A year without North Carolina teams should be very refreshing for the NCAA. To look at this, I gotta say it's going to be some big underdogs for Saturday's Final Four. Michigan State beating Duke was a stunner. Auburn getting past Kentucky was a shocker. But nothing compares to Texas Tech playing defense down the stretch and shutting down Gonzaga. By the way, Auburn and Texas Tech are going to their first ever final four appearances. Not even Charles Barkley made it that far 30 plus years ago.
I see Texas Tech and Virginia going for the championship next Monday. I buy into that defense for Texas Tech. They know when to clamp down and not bend during the critical moments of the second half. That's how the victory against Gonzaga and also Michigan were. Nothing against Auburn, but the health of some of their players is a pressing concern. Losing a player with a torn ACL is one thing, but some of these guys against Kentucky will be sore for a little bit.
Virginia plays high scoring basketball, but they are not a selfish group. It's a balanced team that can make shots count and can put together a solid defense. However, they had to earn their victory against Purdue. Yes, it was a win, but they barely survived it to force overtime. And why I think it's them against Texas Tech for my prediction is that both can put up solid games scoring. However, these defenses could provide an entertaining two hours of basketball.
Anything can happen, though. But my take is Virginia and Texas Tech winning to advance to the championship and Texas Tech winning it all. It's going to be a fun weekend for all four teams involved.
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