NCAA Final Four: Fla/Uconn, Bucky/'Tucky

[hurleyfor3]

Discuss here. Fla/Uconn goes first on Saturday. 1-2-7-8, don't remember a collection of seeds quite like that. I realize Duke people have to officially hate these teams, but I'm rather amused the popular picks (Loovul and Sparty) didn't make it.

[CDu]

Discuss here. Fla/Uconn goes first. 1-2-7-8, don't remember a collection of seeds quite like that.

Almost the worst of all reasonable outcomes. Go Badgers!

[gurufrisbee]

Almost the worst of all reasonable outcomes. Go Badgers!

SUPER agreed.

Never knew I could root this hard for Wisconsin.

It's funny because the two local sports radio guys on in the morning made a bet where one guy got the four 1 seeds and Mich St and LVille versus the field. And he had to give some BIG odds to do it.

[pfrduke]

I hold nothing against this particular UConn team. Calhoun was a driving force in my dislike. I have a lot of respect for the seniors who opted to hang around notwithstanding the postseason ban. Plus, they're about to turn into Memphis of 6 years ago (a good team in a terrible conference), which makes me feel a little bit of pity.

[SoCalDukeFan]

First of all I have come to hate UK and UConn less, but still don't really like them.
Also, I think their fans are generally horrid. So would hate to have either celebrating in Dallas.

I am in a pool. I picked Duke to win it all. My FF was Duke, UVa, Florida, Arizona and I had Duke beating UVa in the NC.

However I have more wins than anyone else and the way this is scored I win if UConn beats Florida on Saturday but fall out of the money if Florida wins.

So for me I guess its UConn at least on Saturday.

Would like to see Wisconsin win it all.

SoCal

[richardjackson199]

Go Badgers and Go Huskies! These Huskies are not a Calhoun team, and they're fine by me. I'd be happy to see Ollie or Bo Ryan win a Natty. I don't want Donovan to get his 3rd and Cal winning 2nd Natty would make me vomit. Anybody but Kentucky.

[Tripping William]

Anybody but Kentucky.

This. Go Sconnie!

[dukelifer]

Horrible FF for Duke fans - Only team we can root for is Wisconsin - but they have no chance. It looks like Cal gets another with a band of one-and-dones and one-and-done wannabes. At least his last team had a great player. This team has a pair of twins that think they are great players.

[MaxAMillion]

Go Badgers and Go Huskies! These Huskies are not a Calhoun team, and they're fine by me. I'd be happy to see Ollie or Bo Ryan win a Natty. I don't want Donovan to get his 3rd and Cal winning 2nd Natty would make me vomit. Anybody but Kentucky.

Bingo...that is how I look at it (at least the UConn part of this). I don't want to see Donovan win his third but that might be better than UK winning. I really don't mind the UK team its the fans that I can't stand.

[brevity]

I'm rather amused the popular picks (Loovul and Sparty) didn't make it.

Absolutely this. For the past few days I've been rooting for mutual bracket destruction. Anyone who picked both Connecticut and Kentucky in their Final Four deserves to win their pool.

I hesitate to mention this, but every year I take notice of the Bizarro Final Four and Bizarro Champion. These are the teams that are as far removed from success as possible. For example, last year's Bizarro Champion was Colorado. They lost to Illinois, who lost to Miami, who lost to Marquette, who lost to Syracuse, who lost to Michigan, who lost to Louisville. No other team (in a 64-team field) is six degrees of separation from the champion.

This year the Bizarro Final Four are Eastern Kentucky, George Washington, Oklahoma, and... Duke. We become the Bizarro Champion if Wisconsin beats Kentucky, then loses the title game.

Past Bizarro Champions...

2013 Colorado
2012 Harvard
2011 Louisville
2010 Oklahoma State
2009 California
2008 Belmont (so, almost Duke)

[hurleyfor3]

I hesitate to mention this, but every year I take notice of the Bizarro Final Four and Bizarro Champion. These are the teams that are as far removed from success as possible. For example, last year's Bizarro Champion was Colorado. They lost to Illinois, who lost to Miami, who lost to Marquette, who lost to Syracuse, who lost to Michigan, who lost to Louisville. No other team (in a 64-team field) is six degrees of separation from the champion.

This year the Bizarro Final Four are Eastern Kentucky, George Washington, Oklahoma, and... Duke. We become the Bizarro Champion if Wisconsin beats Kentucky, then loses the title game.

I have a different name for that concept. Last place. (Nowadays it is possible, and in fact likely, for the last-place finisher to be a team that was not in the play-in round.)

[Dukehky]

Barf. I could literally not be less excited for next weekend. Get out of here Kentucky.

[hudlow]

The opening weekend of trout season couldn't come at a better time.

[Troublemaker]

Final Four lines:

Florida -6.5 vs UConn
Kentucky -2.5 vs Wisconsin

Go Bucky!

Rooting for the Badgers to win the title and then host Duke in the ACC/Big10 Challenge next season. Unless I'm reading their roster wrong, Badgers could return everyone next season except for senior Brust. That'd be a fun game to play the defending champs on their homecourt. Might even be a preseason #1 vs preseason #2 matchup as well.

[Billy Dat]

Kentucky has a serious head of steam. I can't see Florida beating them 4 times in one year, that just seems like asking a lot. It's hard to bet against Scottie Wilbekin, though.

[1 24 90]

Won't Wisconsin get destroyed inside? I just don't see them hanging with the UK athletes for 40 minutes. Hopefully Bo Ryan can figure out a genius game plan.

[hurleyfor3]

Final Four lines:

Florida -6.5 vs UConn
Kentucky -2.5 vs Wisconsin

I thought both lines would be around seven or eight. Really surprised Ky is that low.

[Troublemaker]

I thought both lines would be around seven or eight. Really surprised Ky is that low.

I think it's about right. Not saying UK couldn't kill Wiscy on Saturday, but UK was only favored by 2.5 over Mich and most computers like Wiscy slightly better than Mich. So if anything, the oddsmakers continue to give Kentucky more and more credit with each additional outing. Makes sense since UK has covered 7 spreads in a row, although this previous game was obviously a coin-flip situation as to who would end up covering.

[gurufrisbee]

Won't Wisconsin get destroyed inside? I just don't see them hanging with the UK athletes for 40 minutes. Hopefully Bo Ryan can figure out a genius game plan.

Well that was the common belief about what Baylor and Arizona would do to them, too. Heck, I watched Duke all year and still never saw a team getting killed on the glass and providing zero interior defense worse than Michigan today - and they nearly won the game.

[CR9]

I hold nothing against this particular UConn team. Calhoun was a driving force in my dislike. I have a lot of respect for the seniors who opted to hang around notwithstanding the postseason ban. Plus, they're about to turn into Memphis of 6 years ago (a good team in a terrible conference), which makes me feel a little bit of pity.

Same. I'm a big Napier fan aswell.

[Dukehky]

With UK's 2nd appearance in the Final Four in 3 years, this time, with all freshman starters, that whole "youth" argument made in defense of Duke's season goes right out the window. It was a poor excuse to begin with that is being made to look foolish now. I know teams are different, but UK plays 2 sophomores, and 1 senior in Paulsen who gets like 2 minutes a game. The rest are freshmen. They had a middling regular season for UK standards, but they pieced it together in time. No more talk about Duke's being a young team. The coaches and players didn't do a good enough job this season to put themselves in a position to legitimately compete in this tournament, despite the incredible amount of talent amongst the coaches and players. Blame lack of size, since that is what UK is riding along with timely shot making, but for goodness sake, no more youth argument.


Bah-humbug, this tournament is no fun when all you do is root against other teams. Now I know how Maryland fans feel.

I would rather have this year's Duke team every day of the week over UK's, that particular youth argument that has been made still irks me.

[fan345678]

With UK's 2nd appearance in the Final Four in 3 years, this time, with all freshman starters, that whole "youth" argument made in defense of Duke's season goes right out the window. It was a poor excuse to begin with that is being made to look foolish now. I know teams are different, but UK plays 2 sophomores, and 1 senior in Paulsen who gets like 2 minutes a game. The rest are freshmen. They had a middling regular season for UK standards, but they pieced it together in time. No more talk about Duke's being a young team. The coaches and players didn't do a good enough job this season to put themselves in a position to legitimately compete in this tournament, despite the incredible amount of talent amongst the coaches and players. Blame lack of size, since that is what UK is riding along with timely shot making, but for goodness sake, no more youth argument.


Bah-humbug, this tournament is no fun when all you do is root against other teams. Now I know how Maryland fans feel.

I would rather have this year's Duke team every day of the week over UK's, that particular youth argument that has been made still irks me.

I completely agree that the "we're so young and their marginal but experienced D1 talent overcame our youth" is a poor excuse for our (lack of) performance. But, I do wonder if it is actually easier to take five freshmen, give them the reins, and let them develop together over the course of a year than it is to integrate two new extraordinary talents with established rotation players. Kentucky's five freshmen had no leadership to begin with, but the proper dynamic eventually developed because it had to happen.

With us, we changed our experienced guys in and out of the starting rotation so much this year that there was no way that clear leadership could develop. We now have one Final Four appearance in the last 10 seasons.

Kentucky's strategy is always going to be a crapshoot. Last year it didn't happen for them, but this year it did. Would you take a National Title-NIT-Final Four three years or an early exit-Elite Eight-early exit three years?

Obviously, I think we would all take our staff and players over theirs, but that doesn't make our staff's excuses valid.

[_Gary]

I'm not going to rewrite what I've already said, but I will copy/paste it here:


It all makes sense now. Everything has been predestined this Tournament. It's all about one thing and one thing only. Don't let anyone deceive you in this. I'm about to impart serious, insightful basketball fate/gods/fill in the blank stuff right now:

It's all about Florida. Yep. This is about the Gators having the easiest path to their eventual championship. I'm not sure if Donovan has sacrificed more chickens than normal, or what, but this Tournament is all leading to a very obvious finish: UF will cut down the nets, and the resistance factor has been removed at every step along the way. They have yet to play one team that could have legitimately beat them. And it won't happen in the FF semis, because UConn will come back down to planet earth and lay down (after beating them a couple of months ago) so the Gators can continue to march toward yet another title for the great - the awesome - the magnificent - Billy Donovan. I now fully expect UK to beat UM, and then a valiant Wisconsin in the other semi, only to look back into the eyes of the Gators in the Championship game and lie down once more.

Yep, you can mortgage your house on this one boys and girls. It's the Gators Tournament. Plain and Simple. The basketball gods have foreordained it.

BTW, someone pass the Pepto-Bismol. I'm going to be sick.

If others don't see the handwriting on the wall I can't help them. At this point the entire thing is axiomatic.

'Nuff said.

[pfrduke]

I'm not going to rewrite what I've already said, but I will copy/paste it here:



If others don't see the handwriting on the wall I can't help them. At this point the entire thing is axiomatic.

'Nuff said.

Florida's also the best team. That doesn't hurt.

[_Gary]

Florida's also the best team. That doesn't hurt.

Agreed. It's something I've already acknowledged as well. But darned if I wouldn't have liked them to face at least a little compitition on their way the the title. Unfortunately that's not destined to happen. Cupcake City has rained supreme with them thus far. All the teams that were legit threats to beat them are all gone now: MSU, Louisville, Arizona, UVA, Kansas, Michigan, Witchita St, and Duke. All teams that could have pushed the Gators to the limit. But those teams are all gone now, and Florida didn't have to dispatch one of them themselves.

Come on, admit it. This thing is O-V-E-R. :p

[gurufrisbee]

I'd agree Florida had the easiest path and the Final Four was just given to them, but it seems a bit off to suggest the title is theirs for sure when the final four features the two teams that actually beat them this year and a third team that lost by a single point the last time they played each other. If anything, I'm thinking Florida is going to be heading to North Texas very much questioning themselves due to their far too easy road and the now realization that if anything, this is THE collection of teams with the least possible fear of them waiting for them now.

[brevity]

I'd agree Florida had the easiest path and the Final Four was just given to them, but it seems a bit off to suggest the title is theirs for sure when the final four features the two teams that actually beat them this year and a third team that lost by a single point the last time they played each other. If anything, I'm thinking Florida is going to be heading to North Texas very much questioning themselves due to their far too easy road and the now realization that if anything, this is THE collection of teams with the least possible fear of them waiting for them now.

I would agree with this. This Final Four lineup is not the toughest Florida could have faced, but it is probably the most inconvenient.

As an aside, I can and will complain about an easy region on Selection Sunday, but I won't dismiss a team's actual run as being too easy. There are people out there who still want to attach an asterisk to the 2010 champion.

[Stray Gator]

... If anything, I'm thinking Florida is going to be heading to North Texas very much questioning themselves due to their far too easy road and the now realization that if anything, this is THE collection of teams with the least possible fear of them waiting for them now.

That's certainly possible. Conversely, the Gators may adopt a positive perspective and view the Final Four as an opportunity to avenge their only two losses -- a chance to complete a season in which they can say there is no team they faced that they failed to defeat at least once, and no team against which they had a losing record. As is often the case, each of the teams participating in this year's Final Four has demonstrated that it is capable of playing well enough to win against any of the others. And I would assume that each team is confidently anticipating that they will do just that. While I would expect the players and coaches on each team to approach next weekend with a healthy respect for the other three teams, I think it's unlikely that any of them will be harboring "fear" of the others.

[Ky-Dukie]

Anyone but Ky. I don't see anyone beating them though. Florida doesn't want to play them for a fourth time. Won't be surprised to see UConn knock them out. As some others have said, Go Badgers !

[Edouble]

Obviously, I think we would all take our staff and players over theirs, but that doesn't make our staff's excuses valid.

Staff... yes x 1,000.

I have no problem with their players though.

I know there's alot of anti-Kentucky around here, but I can't help it--I LOVE JULIUS RANDLE!!!!!

I also love Cauley-Stein and Poythress.

The Cats have somehow caught that March wave and I think they're gonna win the whole thing. I have no problem with that. They're playing some really great basketball as of late.

If they win this thing, they are an incredibly deserving champion. They beat the undefeated. They beat their archrival. They started five freshman and beat Michigan (anyone catch the irony there?).

They're gonna have to go through a surging Wisconsin and then the best team, Florida, to cut down the nets in Texas.

If they can do all that, I applaud them.

[Mabdul Doobakus]

Best thing about this Final Four is that 3 of these teams will lose. I guess. I will also be rooting for Wisconsin, who I usually dislike for being boring. Desperate times.

[ice-9]

With UK's 2nd appearance in the Final Four in 3 years, this time, with all freshman starters, that whole "youth" argument made in defense of Duke's season goes right out the window. It was a poor excuse to begin with that is being made to look foolish now. I know teams are different, but UK plays 2 sophomores, and 1 senior in Paulsen who gets like 2 minutes a game. The rest are freshmen. They had a middling regular season for UK standards, but they pieced it together in time. No more talk about Duke's being a young team. The coaches and players didn't do a good enough job this season to put themselves in a position to legitimately compete in this tournament, despite the incredible amount of talent amongst the coaches and players. Blame lack of size, since that is what UK is riding along with timely shot making, but for goodness sake, no more youth argument.

Bah-humbug, this tournament is no fun when all you do is root against other teams. Now I know how Maryland fans feel.

I would rather have this year's Duke team every day of the week over UK's, that particular youth argument that has been made still irks me.


I don't think the coaches and players are making the excuse that they're young. Coach K even implied in his presser that he'd rather be in his current position (i.e. coaching a super freshman like Parker) than in Dawkins' at Stanford (with a senior team).

It's pretty obvious the reason we lost this year is due to poor defense.

It's been an enlightening season actually. Whenever I watched this team on TV I can't help but think about all the potential that's just on the verge of being unlocked: a superior offensive team with talented athletes that should be able to play great defense. But that KenPom defensive rating stuck out like a sore thumb...and over the course of the season I rationalized it away. There will be times that a team transcends their season long woes (like Kentucky this year), but most of the time, you are the team that played the last five months.

[dukelifer]

Agreed. It's something I've already acknowledged as well. But darned if I wouldn't have liked them to face at least a little compitition on their way the the title. Unfortunately that's not destined to happen. Cupcake City has rained supreme with them thus far. All the teams that were legit threats to beat them are all gone now: MSU, Louisville, Arizona, UVA, Kansas, Michigan, Witchita St, and Duke. All teams that could have pushed the Gators to the limit. But those teams are all gone now, and Florida didn't have to dispatch one of them themselves.

Come on, admit it. This thing is O-V-E-R. :p
Florida is the most deserving. They have had a great season. But destiny will have them play KY for a 4th time and the game will come down to the last minute. KY has had one of those magical runs- and they believe. The basketball gods hand 3 NCs to just a few. They are not ready to give to Donovan. The 3 KY Freshman stars are all TX kids - going to Dallas. This one is predestined- KY will win it.

[TKG]

Florida is the most deserving. The 3 KY Freshman stars are all TX kids - going to Dallas. This one is predestined- KY will win it.


It must gall the UT faithful that these three left the state. Can you imagine the Texas football program losing this level of talent to schools in another state?

[Billy Dat]

Best thing about this Final Four is that 3 of these teams will lose. I guess. I will also be rooting for Wisconsin, who I usually dislike for being boring. Desperate times.

I think this year's Wisconsin squad, led by Frank the Tank, is one of the most entertaining offenses I have seen this year. They are not high flying entertaining - that would be Kentucky - but they run so much interesting action out of that Swing framework centering on Kaminsky, and he makes so many sweet reads off the action, that they are a blast. Jimmy Jackson's kid isn't bad either. Florida's offense has really evolved with Wilbekin doing an amazing Bazz Napier impression, and the others being able to go double figures nearly every night.

If Kentucky is able to win it all, I agree with other up-thread that, while painful, it will hopefully make our staff, and K, reconsider the "youth prevents good defense" excuse. K is a guy who always likes a challenge and in his final chapter, let's see if he can really adapt to the one and done era. He's crossed the chasm of actively recruiting these guys, now lets see if he can figure out how to optimally shape them in a 40 game time horizon. He has always relied on the upperclassmen teaching the underclassmen, but that's not the way it works these days if, in his words, leaders are the ones who play 30+ minutes a game.

Back to the forthcoming games - the Wilbekin/Napier match-up will be really fun to watch. I think the teams match-up really well, but I expect Florida to prevail. The Wisconsin offense is really going to challenge the Kentucky defense. But, I don't think Kentucky will struggle to score. I expect Kentucky to win, especially since the Harrisons have clearly kicked it into an extra gear and suddenly guys like Johnson and Lee are looking like dominant players. Throw in the usual excellent play from Randal and solid play by Young and suddenly this looks like the preseason #1 team. Amazing.

[brevity]

I'd be happy to see Ollie or Bo Ryan win a Natty. I don't want Donovan to get his 3rd...

You're not the only one with this sentiment, but I'm singling you out for quoting because I like context.

I think it's short-sighted to just compare coaches. The long view is to look at the school programs, and you have to ask yourself if your ultimate allegiance is to Coach K or to Duke.

Duke is currently alone with 4 titles, one behind both Indiana and UNC. (Sorry, Heels. I am only counting the gluten-free championships.)

This matters when you're developing a rooting interest in the Florida-Connecticut semifinal. Rooting for Kevin Ollie over Billy Donovan means that you'd rather see Connecticut win its 4th title, tying Duke, than see Florida win its 3rd.

This measure is also a reason to root for Wisconsin, seeking only its 2nd title. Kentucky certainly doesn't need a 9th, though I wouldn't mind seeing that Wildcat fan getting a Title IX tattoo in mistaken anticipation.

[johnb]

Best thing about this Final Four is that 3 of these teams will lose. ..

Agreed.

I don't really dislike any of these players. Don't know 'em, for one thing, and I'm fairly confident that I'd like them if they'd dragged us to the championship weekend.

I've never given Wisconsin much thought, but I'm certainly rooting for them to win both games on Saturday and then play shirts/skins on Monday night.

[nmduke2001]

I am forced to cheer for Wisconsin becuase I really dislike the others.

I must say, however, that the transition that UCONN has made over the last two years is remarkable. If I remember correctly, Kevin Ollie wasn't even given the full-time job until midway through last season. With the collapse of the Big East, the NCAA sanctions and the coaching change, I was expecting UCONN to be a long distant memory. Ollie somehow held it together.

[FerryFor50]

I don't know why people aren't giving Wisconsin a shot against Kentucky. They've beaten UVA and Florida this season and they're not really like previous Wisconsin teams (grid it out, pound on you), though they've shown they can plan that style. This Wisc team can actually score points. And Kaminsky is playing out of his mind right now.

Will be an interesting matchup for sure.

[tbyers11]

I don't know why people aren't giving Wisconsin a shot against Kentucky. They've beaten UVA and Florida this season and they're not really like previous Wisconsin teams (grid it out, pound on you), though they've shown they can plan that style. This Wisc team can actually score points. And Kaminsky is playing out of his mind right now.

Will be an interesting matchup for sure.

I agree. UK has won their last 3 games but they were all essentially coin-flips (one possession games in the last minute). Kudos to UK and Aaron Harrison, particularly, for winning all of them, but its not like they've been blowing teams out of the water.

Wisconsin had a close game with Oregon in the round of 32, blew out Baylor in the S16 and beat Arizona (whom I think is a better team than any of UKs' victories) to get to the FF.

Pomeroy likes Wisconsin by 1 and Vegas likes UK by 2. Pretty much the exact spreads for UK-Michigan yesterday. While Wisconsin is not a large team, they are bigger than Michigan and I think will be able to negate UK on the offensive glass better than Michigan did.

I expect a very close game.

[FerryFor50]

I agree. UK has won their last 3 games but they were all essentially coin-flips (one possession games in the last minute). Kudos to UK and Aaron Harrison, particularly, for winning all of them, but its not like they've been blowing teams out of the water.

Wisconsin had a close game with Oregon in the round of 32, blew out Baylor in the S16 and beat Arizona (whom I think is a better team than any of UKs' victories) to get to the FF.

Pomeroy likes Wisconsin by 1 and Vegas likes UK by 2. Pretty much the exact spreads for UK-Michigan yesterday. While Wisconsin is not a large team, they are bigger than Michigan and I think will be able to negate UK on the offensive glass better than Michigan did.

I expect a very close game.

Yea, they're not big, but they have NBA talent in Sam Dekker, Frank Kaminsky and possibly Traveon Jackson.

Despite not being big, they were 28th in the country in defensive rebounding.

An interesting matchup will be Nigel Hayes (6'7", 250 lbs) and Julius Randle (6'9", 250 lbs). Randle is taller, but Hayes is stockier and probably just as strong.

Kentucky has been beating good teams, but escaping in a lot of games. If Cauley-Stein is still out, I think Wisconsin has a much better chance of combating Kentucky's size. I think Kaminsky will eat Dakari Johnson and Marcus Lee alive.

[tbyers11]

Yea, they're not big, but they have NBA talent in Sam Dekker, Frank Kaminsky and possibly Traveon Jackson.

Despite not being big, they were 28th in the country in defensive rebounding.

An interesting matchup will be Nigel Hayes (6'7", 250 lbs) and Julius Randle (6'9", 250 lbs). Randle is taller, but Hayes is stockier and probably just as strong.

Kentucky has been beating good teams, but escaping in a lot of games. If Cauley-Stein is still out, I think Wisconsin has a much better chance of combating Kentucky's size. I think Kaminsky will eat Dakari Johnson and Marcus Lee alive.

This is a very interesting matchup. Wisconsin's starting lineup of Jackson, Brust, Gasser, Dekker and Kaminsky would not really matchup well with UK (assuming Kaminsky guards Johnson). Dekker or Gasser would have to guard Randle. Hayes will likely get a lot of time but he is more advanced offensively than defensively at this point.

[FerryFor50]

This is a very interesting matchup. Wisconsin's starting lineup of Jackson, Brust, Gasser, Dekker and Kaminsky would not really matchup well with UK (assuming Kaminsky guards Johnson). Dekker or Gasser would have to guard Randle. Hayes will likely get a lot of time but he is more advanced offensively than defensively at this point.

I have a feeling Hayes will be playing a lot more than Bo Ryan would like. Randle will force his hand.

[sagegrouse]

Although I have no use for either team (especially the Wildcats), I thought this is one of the best-played college games I have ever seen. And, of course, it was exciting, going down to the last play. The Cats look like an NBA team in terms of athleticism and dunks. Michigan was doggedly determined and would have won if it had done a better job of boxing out on the boards. Kentucky had 17 offensive boards and Michigan had only 10 DEFENSIVE RBs.

[_Gary]

That's certainly possible. Conversely, the Gators may adopt a positive perspective and view the Final Four as an opportunity to avenge their only two losses -- a chance to complete a season in which they can say there is no team they faced that they failed to defeat at least once, and no team against which they had a losing record. As is often the case, each of the teams participating in this year's Final Four has demonstrated that it is capable of playing well enough to win against any of the others. And I would assume that each team is confidently anticipating that they will do just that. While I would expect the players and coaches on each team to approach next weekend with a healthy respect for the other three teams, I think it's unlikely that any of them will be harboring "fear" of the others.

Bingo. What Stray just said above is the sentiments of every Gator fan I know - and living in Florida I know plenty of them and had a chance last night to speak to several at a church function. To a man they said/felt the same thing: this Tournament could not have fallen better for them. They are now looking at 3 teams that they are supremely confident they'll be able to defeat. They look at UConn and Wisconsin just like Stray said. It's a chance to avenge an earlier season loss and create a kind of "perfect season" for them. And with UK, they feel like they are inside the mind of the Wildcats, whom they feel won't be able to keep playing at the level they've demonstrated the last few games. It's a dream come true for Gator Nation. Trust me on this one. I know of what I speak. The fates have determined this one. It's O-V-E-R.

[gumbomoop]

This is a very interesting matchup. Wisconsin's starting lineup of Jackson, Brust, Gasser, Dekker and Kaminsky would not really matchup well with UK (assuming Kaminsky guards Johnson). Dekker or Gasser would have to guard Randle. Hayes will likely get a lot of time but he is more advanced offensively than defensively at this point.

I'd be dismayed if Gasser guards Randle at all. I'm no expert on Wisconsin, but it seems they have 3 guys for the 2 interior spots -- Kaminsky, Dekker, and Hayes -- and 4 guys for the 3 perimeter spots -- Brust, Jackson, Gasser, and Koenig.

If any Wisconsin big gets into foul trouble, Bo does have another tall guy, Dukan, who seems to play a few minutes each game.

Wisconsin perimeter guys seem solid and smart, but UK is big everywhere. Young will be noticeably taller than whoever guards him.

[ICP]

Something interesting I'd like to bring up is that this year, for all the talk throughout the year of parity and wide-open tournament, we ended up with some E8/FF results mostly going in the direction of big powers from big conferences. As a side note, sadly, Duke's upset was probably the only counter-evidence of that... Dayton was a Cinderella of sorts and caused some upsets, but compared to deep runs by Butler, VCU or Wichita State in previous years, this is a very big-program oriented final four, and tourney in general given that the other teams that got really close to FF were Arizona, MSU or Mich (Dayton never really stood much of a chance against UF. Hope this bodes well for us next year, given our highly touted recruits coming in, and a good core of players coming back. I feel like we're due for another Final Four run after a three year absence.

[cptnflash]

Go Badgers. All other outcomes unacceptable.

[Edouble]

Something interesting I'd like to bring up is that this year, for all the talk throughout the year of parity and wide-open tournament, we ended up with some E8/FF results mostly going in the direction of big powers from big conferences. As a side note, sadly, Duke's upset was probably the only counter-evidence of that... Dayton was a Cinderella of sorts and caused some upsets, but compared to deep runs by Butler, VCU or Wichita State in previous years, this is a very big-program oriented final four, and tourney in general given that the other teams that got really close to FF were Arizona, MSU or Mich (Dayton never really stood much of a chance against UF. Hope this bodes well for us next year, given our highly touted recruits coming in, and a good core of players coming back. I feel like we're due for another Final Four run after a three year absence.

To me, parity doesn't have to do with which conference a team is from. The Final Four is a 1, 2, 7, and 8 seed. I would say that points to parity.

[ICP]

To me, parity doesn't have to do with which conference a team is from. The Final Four is a 1, 2, 7, and 8 seed. I would say that points to parity.

Fair point, although I think a lot of the parity talk was mostly in terms of teams from non-power conferences closing the gap with major powers. I doubt that most people who talked about parity would see Kentucky or UConn making the final four as evidence of parity, still..

[dukelifer]

I have a feeling Hayes will be playing a lot more than Bo Ryan would like. Randle will force his hand.

Only chance for Wisconsin is that they shoot lights out. This is likely not going to end well. Hard to see them winning this one. Only chance for KY not to cut down the nets is for Fla to have their number for the 4th time. Just seems unlikely. It will likely be Fla and KY. At least the SEC did not win football again this year.

[dukelifer]

Although I have no use for either team (especially the Wildcats), I thought this is one of the best-played college games I have ever seen. And, of course, it was exciting, going down to the last play. The Cats look like an NBA team in terms of athleticism and dunks. Michigan was doggedly determined and would have won if it had done a better job of boxing out on the boards. Kentucky had 17 offensive boards and Michigan had only 10 DEFENSIVE RBs.

It was a heck of a game. Kids on both teams made plays down the stretch. That is all you can hope for.

[moonpie23]

On Wisconsin, On Wisconsin, plunge right through that line.
Run the ball clear down the field, a touchdown sure this time.
On Wisconsin, On Wisconsin, fight on for her fame.
Fight, fellows, fight, fight, fight, we'll win this game.

On Wisconsin, On Wisconsin, stand up Badgers sing.
"Forward" is our driving spirit, loyal voices ring.
On Wisconsin, On Wisconsin, raise her glowing flame.
Stand, fellows, let us now salute her name.

And! From Murali Patel
Class of '01

On Wisconsin, On Wisconsin, plunge right through that line
Run the ball clear down the field boys, touchdown sure this time
U-Rah-Rah
On Wisconsin, On Wisconsin, Fight on for her fame
Fight, Badgers, fight, fight, fight, we'll win this game.

source: http://www.lyricsondemand.com/




(sung to the tune of "Ace Of Spades" by Motorhead….)

[Troublemaker]

I think it's short-sighted to just compare coaches. The long view is to look at the school programs, and you have to ask yourself if your ultimate allegiance is to Coach K or to Duke.

Duke is currently alone with 4 titles, one behind both Indiana and UNC. (Sorry, Heels. I am only counting the gluten-free championships.)

This matters when you're developing a rooting interest in the Florida-Connecticut semifinal. Rooting for Kevin Ollie over Billy Donovan means that you'd rather see Connecticut win its 4th title, tying Duke, than see Florida win its 3rd.

I agree with this, in a vacuum. However, I'm rooting for the homerun to happen (Wisconsin winning it) and not settling for a single or a double or a strikeout (to me, Kentucky winning is a strikeout).

From that standpoint, I'm rooting for UConn over Florida because theoretically that makes it easier for Wisconsin to win the title.

[Wander]

If Kentucky loses in the title game, Duke will be the "last place team" in the tournament. Which, yes, I understand is not actually a thing. But every year there's exactly one team that loses to an opponent that immediately loses their next game, who also immediately loses their next game, who also... etc. That would be us. So, another (sort of) reason to root for Wisconsin?

[uh_no]

If Kentucky loses in the title game, Duke will be the "last place team" in the tournament. Which, yes, I understand is not actually a thing. But every year there's exactly one team that loses to an opponent that immediately loses their next game, who also immediately loses their next game, who also... etc. That would be us. So, another (sort of) reason to root for Wisconsin?

this is incorrect....it would be the team from the wisconsin bracket.

for it to be us, wisconsin would have to beat UK, and then lose in the title game.

if UK loses in the title game, then the loser is oklahoma

oklahoma lost to
nd state lost to
sd state lost to
arizona lost to
wisconsin lost to
kentucky lost to
whomever

[FerryFor50]

this is incorrect....it would be the team from the wisconsin bracket.

for it to be us, wisconsin would have to beat UK, and then lose in the title game.

if UK loses in the title game, then the loser is oklahoma

oklahoma lost to
nd state lost to
sd state lost to
arizona lost to
wisconsin lost to
kentucky lost to
whomever

Wouldn't the "last place team" actually be one of the play-in teams?

[Wander]

this is incorrect....it would be the team from the wisconsin bracket.

for it to be us, wisconsin would have to beat UK, and then lose in the title game.

if UK loses in the title game, then the loser is oklahoma


Oops, you're right. Well. I still would like to root for Wisconsin. Just don't screw it up against Florida, Bo?

[hurleyfor3]

Wouldn't the "last place team" actually be one of the play-in teams?

Not necessarily. For this purpose seed numbers are completely irrelevant. Exactly one team has to have all W's and one has to have all L's, regardless of how many games everyone plays.

A related concept is the "spread winner", the slot in the original bracket that "won" all its games when adjusted for point spreads, pretending the spread winner and not the actual winner advances and keeping all the point spreads the same. There are such things as "spread pools".

[Atlanta Duke]

Alex Wolff of SI.com brings back memories for me of the team that was the foundation for all subsequent success in his column on the upcoming games

Final Four field spurs memories of 1986, with Florida in role of Duke

I've always felt those [Wolff uses a term that triggers the real wanker edit] were among the most deserving teams not to win a title. Their place in history only grew more meaningful over time, as it became clearer and clearer that they had been a signpost, a gauntlet Coach K threw down to make clear that, yes, Duke was now a program....

Guys on that roster -- Dawkins, now the Stanford coach; Bilas, the ESPN commentator who's the NCAA's most tenacious gadfly; Harvard coach Tommy Amaker; and Atlanta Hawks general manager Danny Ferry -- are throwing their weight around the sport today, to say nothing of their coach, who recently announced that he has no plans to leave Durham anytime soon.

Among all the teams Krzyzewski has taken to a Final Four that failed to win a title, the 86ers are surely the group he most wishes had done so.

http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/-college-basketball-mens-tournament/news/20140401/1986-final-four-duke-lsu-louisville-kansas-florida-uconn-wisconsin-kentucky/#ixzz2xkEt5GuM

[brevity]

We have to talk about this "North Texas" thing.

4059

Officially, the Final Four is being held in AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas. Arlington is midway between two much larger cities, Fort Worth and Dallas, but is still fairly big in its own right. Both 2010 and 2012 data list Arlington as the 50th largest city in the United States, with a population estimated at over 375,000. This makes Arlington more populous than recent Final Four locations like New Orleans (51st), St. Louis (58th), and St. Petersburg (78th). That last one -- for the 1999 Final Four -- had "Tampa Bay" in its logo, but that's still fairly specific. "North Texas" is not. We don't celebrate Final Fours in Central Indiana, South Louisiana, East Missouri, or Left Twin City.

I was listening to Jim Nantz being interviewed on a radio show Tuesday night*, and even he was having a hard time uploading that bit of information into his robotic mainframe. He kept saying Dallas, because the alternative does not compute. And who can blame him? "North Texas" is Amarillo.

*What? I have insomnia. He says "Hello, friends" and I say "Zzzzzzz."

[Henderson]

We have to talk about this "North Texas" thing.

4059

Officially, the Final Four is being held in AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas. Arlington is midway between two much larger cities, Fort Worth and Dallas, but is still fairly big in its own right. Both 2010 and 2012 data list Arlington as the 50th largest city in the United States, with a population estimated at over 375,000. This makes Arlington more populous than recent Final Four locations like New Orleans (51st), St. Louis (58th), and St. Petersburg (78th). That last one -- for the 1999 Final Four -- had "Tampa Bay" in its logo, but that's still fairly specific. "North Texas" is not. We don't celebrate Final Fours in Central Indiana, South Louisiana, East Missouri, or Left Twin City.

I was listening to Jim Nantz being interviewed on a radio show Tuesday night*, and even he was having a hard time uploading that bit of information into his robotic mainframe. He kept saying Dallas, because the alternative does not compute. And who can blame him? "North Texas" is Amarillo.

*What? I have insomnia. He says "Hello, friends" and I say "Zzzzzzz."

Dallas Money + Fort Worth Money > Arlington Money = Silly Compromise

[IBleedBlue]

So who did Frank Kaminsky idolize while growing up playing basketball? Find out here: http://catalog.e-digitaleditions.com/i/289068
It turns out it's none other than #4 whose jersey hangs from Cameron's rafters!!
Frank Kaminsky also says that he wears #44 because he wanted to have #4 on his jersey!!
No wonder he can shoot from that far away on the court.