Remember last week how everyone was bemoaning the fact that they were doing so poorly in their office pool? After this past weekend, I would think there would be less gnashing of teeth and more people still having a little bit of skin in the game. After all the early upsets, three #1 seeds are still alive and a coach they call the “Master of March”, Tom Izzo of Michigan State, has his team playing in Indianapolis. Michigan State last won a national championship in 2000 and Tom Izzo was the coach.
I have three teams still alive in our “for entertainment purposes only” office pool: Kentucky, Wisconsin, and Duke. I picked #2 Virginia to be the other participant, but Michigan State beat them, too, along with the #3 and #4 seeds. Here is the way I see the match-ups for Saturday in Indianapolis.
#7 Michigan State vs #1 Duke – 6:09pm on CBS
Both Duke and Michigan State were in the 2010 Final Four. Ironically, the semifinals that year were also the held in Indianapolis. Michigan State lost to Butler in the semis and Duke went on to win the national title 61-59. These two teams played earlier in the season in November and Duke won the game by 10. There is no question that Michigan State is the surprise team in the Final Four. Even Coach Izzo said earlier he did not believe his team had the size and talent to compete for a national championship. In Michigan State’s last final appearance in 2009 they lost to North Carolina. Izzo has his team one game away again. Despite his basketball acumen, he goes up against Mike Krzyzewski who has taken Duke to nine championship finals and has won four national championships. I like Duke to win this game, but it will not be easy and it will not be by 10.
DUKE 66 MICHIGAN STATE 61
#1 Kentucky vs #1 Wisconsin
Believe it or not, there have only been three Final Four rematches in history and this is one of them. Kentucky hit a three with six seconds on the clock last year that kept Wisconsin from their second national championship game. This is a revenge game for sure. Wisconsin’s stars, Frank Kaminsky and Sam Dekker, made it known that they did not go to the NBA just so they could get back to this position again. Is this one of those “be careful what you wish for” moments?
Everyone knows that Kentucky is 38-0, two wins away from being the first undefeated team since Indiana’s run in 1976. Kentucky’s John Calipari has a bit of a revenge factor of his own losing in last year’s final to Connecticut 60-54. After winning it all in 2013, Calipari certainly wants Kentucky fans to put him in the same conversation as the great Kentucky coach Adolph Rupp who won four national championships. I am awed by the size and the talent that Kentucky puts on the floor. However, Notre Dame may have shown that they can be beaten losing by just two in the Midwest final. The last two teams since 1976 to enter the Final Four undefeated were Indiana State (Larry Bird and company) and UNLV (Jerry Tarkanian) in 1991. Both lost. I firmly believe that Wisconsin has the talent and the motivation to win this game, but they won’t.
KENTUCKY 72 WISCONSIN 69
National Championship Game
KENTUCKY 73 DUKE 71
ABOVE THE EARS (SOME MUSINGS)
An NCAA Championship Quiz
- Ten consecutive titles were won by two teams that were known by initials that started with the letter U. Name the two teams.
- Since 2000, who is the only coach to win back-to-back championships?
- What former Lafayette head basketball coach won a national championship?
- Prior to John Calipari, who was the last Kentucky coach to win a national championship?
- Since 2000, what team has won the most national championships?
ANSWERS:
- UCLA AND UTEP (1964-1973)
- Billy Donovan (Florida-2006 + 2007)
- Gary Williams (Maryland – 2002)
- Tubby Smith (1998)
- Connecticut (3)
