Three schools with deep tournament experience and one newbie combine today to determine the last two spots available in the Final Four. Three of the coaches have made it to the national championship game, while the other is 33 and
Three schools with deep tournament experience and one newbie combine today to determine the last two spots available in the Final Four. Three of the coaches have made it to the national championship game, while the other is 33 and in just his second year as a head coach.
Today Virginia Commonwealth University attempts to continue its improbable run and win its fifth straight game of the tournament as an 11-seed. It will have to do it against the only No. 1 seed left in the field, the Kansas Jayhawks.
The second game pits a pair of historic basketball powerhouses as the North Carolina Tar Heels go up against the Kentucky Wildcats.
Picks for today’s action:
Kansas (1) vs. Virginia Commonwealth (11)
The only team to have already won four games in this tournament, VCU continues to brush off the lack of respect it received from analysts and pile up victories. USC, Georgetown, Purdue and Florida State have all fallen by the wayside as these Rams from the Colonial Athletic Association have made their first-ever visit to a regional final.
Their opponent today will be like none it has seen, as Kansas has lost just two games all season and averages over 82 points per game. To this point, VCU has taken on teams that have liked to play defense and had big front lines. Well Kansas has that as well, but boasts offensive punch from every spot on the floor. With the Morris brothers, Marcus and Markieff, controlling the paint, the Jayhawks typically limit teams to one shot and then get out in transition.
Tyrel Reed, Josh Selby and Tyshawn Taylor are all beneficiaries of the up-tempo style, with Thomas Robinson having come on as a dynamic slasher. Brady Morningstar and Elijah Johnson keep things calm when the team is in the half court, typically feeding Marcus Morris and running the offense through his top-level post play.
VCU has seen different players step up each night, with Bradford Burgess igniting the offense in the overtime victory over Florida State on Friday. Prior to that, it was the team’s leading scorer and rebounder, Jamie Skeen. Point guard Joey Rodriguez has been knocking down shots and not turning the ball over, though he struggled with his offense last game.
All three of them will have to have big games, as will Brandon Rozzell off the bench, for VCU to have a chance. Freshman center D.J. Haley will have a tough assignment, no matter which Morris he ends up checking. However, he is a legit seven-footer and could at least play without requiring a double team.
The energy and excitement of VCU will keep it in the game for 20-25 minutes, but the talent and depth of Kansas will win out and send the Rams back to Virginia with some great memories in tow.
Pick: Kansas
North Carolina (2) vs. Kentucky (4)
Now this is more like what the CBS executives had in mind. History and tradition seeping through the television screens. Adolph Rupp, Dean Smith, Rick Pitino, now Roy Williams and John Calipari; two rabid fan bases with high expectations and exciting talent all over the court.
Kentucky showed Friday that youth can still be served as it dispatched with the tournament’s top overall seed in Ohio State and has now surpassed what last season’s much-hyped unit was able to accomplish. Point guard Brandon Knight nailed his second game-winner of the tournament and Calipari’s crew appears to be peaking at the perfect time.
Center Josh Harrellson has scored 15, 15 and 17 points in the three tourney wins after putting up just 6.4 points per game for the regular season. He has been a defensive force and a reliable rebounder, really changing the dynamic of any team that likes to play in the paint.
His success against the front line of North Carolina will be tested today, with the Tar Heels’ trio of Harrison Barnes, John Henson and Tyler Zeller having dominated their competition so far.
Barnes, who was named a preseason All-American first teamer prior to this, his first year in college basketball, has been as good as advertised over the past month. Some nights he can go for 40 points if he needs to, other nights he can take his 16 and get his teammates involved. He may not wow in the same way that Kemba Walker can, but he is lethal in the clutch and understands the game just as well.
Henson and, specifically, Zeller have been so good that guards Kendall Marshall and Dexter Strickland have really been asked to just take care of the ball, which they have.
The Wildcats are coming off an emotional win in one of the tournament’s best games, while the Heels absolutely obliterated Richmond in the Sweet 16. Kentucky may have played its best game, which is difficult to duplicate both physically and emotionally.
It will again be one of the best games of the tournament, but in the end, Barnes will be the best player on the court.
Pick: North Carolina
