The Final Two

With last night’s Final Four games played, only two teams are left standing: Memphis and Kansas. These two schools will battle for the national title tomorrow (Monday) night. Herein are my thoughts on the beat-downs that occurred yesterday and the championship that is to come.

Memphis vs UCLA

As both games really were, this was simply an old-fashioned blowout. Memphis absolutely rolled UCLA, and made all those who doubted them look extremely confused. Though many people were claiming UCLA as the best team in the tournament, they could not match the speed or intensity of Memphis. That and they could not hit a three pointer to save their lives. So what did we learn?

Memphis is on another level. Though they may be the most disrespected team in the tournament, they use it to their advantage. They seem to out-hustle every team they play against. Their guards are extremely talented, far and away the best backcourt in the nation. The combination of Rose, who could surpass Beasley as the number one pick, and Douglas-Roberts (wow what a dunk on Love) is unmatchable.

UCLA on the other hand showed why they needed help from the refs to maintain their status late in the season. They are still an excellent team, and making three Final Fours in a row is no small feat. However I always felt that something was missing from their team. Most people thought that missing piece was Kevin Love, but even his addition could not push the Bruins over the hump. As big a fan as I am of Love, he and the rest of UCLA were shut down. Memphis controlled every facet of this game, and powered their way into the national championship game.

UNC vs Kansas

Speaking of getting (Rick)rolled, I hope I was not the only one who enjoyed watching UNC get absolutely pounded by Kansas in the first half. Even though I “picked” UNC to advance I must say I enjoyed the utter destruction that they had to endure for the first twenty minutes of play. At one point Kansas had a 28 point lead. Of course, the refs helped them make a run at the end of the half and they were able to get close late as well.

Still, Kansas weathered the storm and was able to come out on top. I personally have doubted Kansas all season, but if they play the way they did last night the championship game is going to be amazing. I now understand why we have been hearing about Kansas being the most talented team in the country. All of their players are amazing athletes, and having two giant white guys can only help.

UNC on the other was not able to ride their giant white guy to victory. Hansbrough’s effort can never be questioned, but as a team UNC was outmatched. Kansas played them with strong, tenacious defense. They were incredibly active on the defensive end getting blocks and steals, and I think that their hustle was the key to their victory.

Memphis vs Kansas

Now that the teams are set, who is going to win it all? Last night it became clear that Memphis and Kansas are rocking letterman’s jackets whereas UNC and UCLA were playing JV. Let me first say that I am exciting to see this clash of the two best teams, at least based on last night.

With that said, I believe Memphis is going to be the national champion come Monday night. Their athleticism and effort is just too much to handle, though things will be close. They are playing a team extremely similar to their own in both of these areas. Dorsey is a force on the inside, but I think the keys are the guards. If Rose and CDR play like they did against UCLA and lock things down defensively they will win this game. At this point that is what I see happening.

Picking Memphis to win it all a few weeks ago would have seemed crazy to most people, which is strange because they only lost once and set an all-time record for number of wins in NCAA Division 1 basketball this season. However only one person in the bracket challenge hosted by Ben and myself picked Memphis at the beginning of March Madness (Well played, Bean).

I am very excited to see which team prevails in the national championship. Were you as impressed as I was with the way Memphis and Kansas played last night? Who do you see winning it all? Maybe just want to complain that UNC losing lost you a lot of money? Let me know in the comments.