Mar 30 2009
The Big Four going to Mo’ Town
65 to 4. Quite amazing how such a thing exists and you only wished this format was in other sports besides basketball. The tournament was full of last second shots, dominance by superior teams, mid major’s trying to hang with the best teams and honestly a good blend of all you wanted and now we have our Final Four.
Michigan State
One of the nice surprises in this year’s tournament the Big Ten Champions came into the field of 65 with a little bit of extra motivation. The Final Four would be taken place in Detroit Michigan. Now this was not the only reason but now it might be a advantage going up against the next opponent which is no small feet. Michigan State came out of no where to first beat the defending Champion Kansas Jayhawks and then they topped that by beating the overall number one seed in the tournament the Louisville Cardinals which was one of the hottest teams and one of the most popular picks for not only a Final Four but good enough to be a potential National Champion. Tom Izzo and his bunch do it again as this will be another Final Four appearance.
University of Connecticut
Uconn came into the field of 65 as a number one seed but many thought the loss of their lead point guard would be a huge loss. Many doubters had more faith in the Memphis Tigers or even the Missouri Tigers based sorely on health of the teams. This was the motivation as Uconn won every game in dominating fashion all the way up to the last game against Missouri. No team in the tournament won with as much domination and complete control over their opponent and this was a team that was challenged early in the tournament with a sudden loss of their head coach with a sudden case of dehydration and then later allegations that their recruiting methods are now going to be under investigation. All of this and still Uconn won with ease and now Mo Town is waiting and the hottest team in the tournament is going to play the home town favorites the Michigan State Spartans. This is what March Madness is all about and why we love it as fans the stories that are similar to all those Hollywood plot lines we always fall for in the end.
Villanova Wildcats
Going into the Elite Eight four teams from the Big East remained in the tournament. Pittsburgh the East Region’s number one seed who beat Uconn twice this year was the favorite going into the East Region with Duke and even Xavier being the ones that only had a shot with a Pittsburgh loss. Then the Big East proved again that not only the top teams are good but every team is good and a Villanova team, an experienced tournament team , not casted as a favorite, came out of the East Region with a last second shot over the top seeded Pitt Panthers. Led by Scott Reynolds, the Wildcats reminded us of those old days of when the Wildcats took down the mighty Georgetown Hoyas. Once again the other school from Philadelphia has the last laugh.
North Carolina
Can we just say even at 90 percent Ty Lawson can still beat anyone. Too much hype was made out of this turf toe injury the whole tournament and I think even the Tar Heels thought we are not one of the best in the nation because of one, but of many. The Heels certainly made this point as the Tar Heels became the second number one seed to reach the Final Four. They did it in workman’s fashion beating most teams with ease including Oklahoma whose Player of the Year candidate Blake Griffin was the leading scorer in the field of 65. Ty Lawson was not at full strength but once he stepped on the floor in many of his games including the game against LSU he simply took over. Quite honestly the Tar Heels are the favorite in this Final Four and it is their tournament to lose. If they are not in the Championship game then Villanova will go down again as a team that surprised everyone once again.
That is my spin on the Final Four teams and I’m sure I’ll have something to say about the one that finishes on top. Thanks for Reading!
