NCAA Tournament Final Four Projections and Analysis

Four No. 1s but Only One No. 1

This NCAA tournament has been exciting. It has had it all. We've seen sweet Cinderella stories, close games that have gone to overtime, powerhouse teams that haven't been that powerful, and more. Great players have come out of the woodwork, and other greats have not shown up at all. It is, in my humble opinion of course, the greatest time of the year.

The funny thing is that after all the excitement the remaining teams are the four that started the tournament as the number one seeds. One would think this happened almost every year, but this is not the case. It's the first time ever that four number one seeds are left standing at this point! Amazing maybe, but if we look at how they all got to where they are...maybe not such a crazy thing.

First we have Kansas, probably the weakest team out of the four. Ending the season ranked number four in both national polls, I didn't see them as a team that could even make the final four. They played erratically throughout the season, with guard Brandon Rush playing hurt part of the time. But by the time the season ended, they were strong, winning their last four. It is Coach Self's first Final Four, so the team has that to play for. They can win, but have to play really well against North Carolina's great big man Tyler Hansborough.

North Carolina had the easiest road to the final four, blowing out all the teams they played. They were never really threatened. They also ended the season as the number one team in both polls, and it's going to be hard to pick against them at this point. With Hansborough, a national player of the year candidate, leading the front court, and Ty Lawson running the point, Kansas will have a tough time stopping them.

Prediction: North Carolina 86, Kansas 74

Now we move on to UCLA, the most experienced team in the tournament. This is their third final four in a row, and they play like it. The team is incredibly deep, and I think this will be a huge problem for the Memphis Tigers. Plus, when the going gets tough, their defense is hard to get through. I really like this team, and would be surprised not to see them in the Final.