Final Four

Ok, we're down to the last 3 games of the college basketball (thanks AverageBro, 'cocaine is a powerful drug) season. Let's take a look at the teams playing tonight and see who I'm picking to play in the Championship game.

6:07 pm EST

Michigan State vs. Connecticut - I would say the team that we didn't think would be here is the Michigan State Spartans. They played in the Big Ten, which I thought wasn't a good league this year anyway. But they have played their way into the Final Four by playing Spartan basketball, and that starts with DEFENSE. They don't have a lot of offense, so they need to keep the game in the 60's in order to win. They have the guard play and active bigs, which is the recipe for winning this game. Connecticut comes in with Hasheem Thabeet being the name that had been pushed to the forefront, but Stanley Robinson and Kemba Walker will be the reason the Huskies win (or lose). I have to go with the team that has the size and the guard play.

Projected Winner - Connecticut

8:47pm EST

Villanova vs. North Carolina - This Villanova team is showing us that heart has a lot to do with winning. They have Scottie Reynolds and like I've said before, Dante Cunningham scares me, because he's not a big big, but he definitely gets the job done on the boards and through his scoring. Unfortunately for them, they are going up against a juggernaut. Let's cut to the chase, I'm a Duke fan and the Wildcats beat my Dukies, but the ACC will pay them back for that. Carolina is too deep and too talented. Like I've said before, they have many different weapons and the odds of all of them having a bad day,...well let's just say you'd have a better chance winning the lottery without buying a ticket.

Projected Winner - North Carolina

Elite 8 - Part 1

Well, based on the games from the last two days, I know nothing about NCAA basketball. Let's try this again and see what happens. Today we have some very interesting games and I should be able to pick these, they should be easy, right?

4:40pm EST

Missouri vs. Connecticut - Somewhere Nolan Richardson is smiling. His system is showing us how timeless that '40 Minutes of Hell' actually was. Missouri uses the same system and they have a lot of success. I doubt many of you had them coming this far. They win with defense and hard nosed play. I think Connecticut is the first #1 to go home. Not so much for any reason other than the Tigers seem to be on a run. Thabeet will be an issue for the Tigers if this becomes a half court game, but I expect that the Tigers to try and use the person he's guarding to pull him away from the paint.

Projected Winner - Missouri


7:05pm EST

Villanova vs. Pittsburgh - And Pitt lives to play again. Ok, I am going to pick Villanova because it's just time for Pitt to lose. They haven't been playing basketball since they've been in the tournament and Villanova has the horses to make them pay for that. Then again, maybe this is the game that Pitt makes us all realize that they are a #1 seed and warrant that distinction. Same cast of characters from each team, but I think the bigs from Villanova win this game for them.

Projected Winner - Villanova