A look at how each of the teams made it to Houston
CURTIS HENRY
Distribution Manager
It was three weeks ago when every follower of college basketball, myself included, was staring at this year’s bracket with dozens of questions.
How did Syracuse make the field? Why isn’t Michigan State a one seed? Where’s Monmouth? What about St. Bonaventure?
Slowly but surely, each one of those questions was justified. Well not every question was justified, but the tournament committee came out of this season looking more brilliant than imagined.
Syracuse justified its selection with two emphatic wins out of the gate. Michigan State showed it didn’t deserve a one seed, as the team failed to make it past its opening game. Monmouth proved they probably wouldn’t have done any damage in the tournament as they lost in their second game of the National Invitational Tournament (NIT) to George Washington University. The same was the case for the Bonnies, who lost their opening round game in the NIT to Wagner.
The tournament selection committee slowly looked better and better as the chaos of this year’s tournament unfolded bit by bit. Eventually the field dwindled to the Final Four Teams: Villanova, Oklahoma, Syracuse and University of North Carolina (UNC). The field has now narrowed to two, Villanova and UNC, that will compete in the Championship tonight.
But before the Wildcats take on the Tar Heels, let’s talk about how each of the final four found their way to Houston.
Villanova
‘Nova came into the tournament with more wins than any of the number one seeds except for Kansas Univeristy, so it came as a surprise to many that Kansas and Villanova were in the same region.
In a year with so much parity in NCAA basketball, it struck me as odd that teams like Villanova and Michigan State weren’t awarded one seeds. Each finished with the second-best records of all power-conference teams (29-5) and both made the final of their conference tournaments. Michigan State won its, and Villanova lost in the finals of the Big East tournament to Seton Hall.
All ups and downs aside, Villanova has been one of the most impressive teams in Division I all season long. No one should be surprised that it’s danced all the way to the final this year. The team really is that good, as was showcased in a dominant victory over Oklahoma in Saturday night’s Final Four matchup. Jay Wright’s team shot over 71 percent from the field, second most in any Final Four game of all time. Villanova also holds the top spot on that list, as the team shot 78 percent in the team’s victory in the 1985 Championship game.
Wright’s team has been nothing short of excellent all season long, and it’s only now getting credit for it.
Oklahoma
Oklahoma’s appearance in the Final Four this season was its first such appearance since 2002. Although the ending was less than graceful with their 44-point loss to Villanova on Saturday, it was just the type of deep tournament run that senior Buddy Hield deserved. Hield is widely regarded as one of the best players in the nation and will likely be a top 3 pick in this June’s NBA Draft. His 25.4 points per game this season were the second most in Division I.
Coming into the tournament, Oklahoma posted a respectable 12-6 record against a stacked Big 12 conference this season. Its 26-7 regular season record included an 8-5 record against top-25 nationally ranked teams. This was a team that had big wins all over its resume and weren’t going to back down from any competition, and that was made apparent by the strong showings that the Sooners had against 3 seed Texas A&M and 1 seed Oregon in the Sweet Sixteen and Elite Eight, respectively.
These guys were most deserving of their spot in the Final Four, which is why it’s such a shame that they were put to bed by a 25-point run from Villanova in the second half.
Syracuse
A Final Four appearance isn’t too shabby for a 10 seed that most thought didn’t belong in the tournament, eh?
The Orange more than justified their selection with dominant performances against Dayton and Middle Tennessee in the opening weekend of the tournament. If making the Sweet 16 wasn’t enough to justify their selection, then certainly beating Gonzaga and University of Virginia en route to the Final Four was enough.
Syracuse is the first 10 seed to ever qualify for the Final Four and its 13 losses tie the team for the most losses all-time by a team making the Final Four. Like their predecessors with 13 losses in the Final Four, Syracuse lost in the national semifinal.
Still, the Final Four run that the Orange put together was nothing less than impressive, if not miraculous. Bad losses this season to Georgetown and St. John’s, paired with a nine game absence of Head Coach Jim Boeheim in the midst of conference play, provided ‘Cuse with plenty of adversity to overcome. The team responded with confidence and great defensive play throughout the tournament, only to be ousted by UNC in the national semis.
North Carolina
The only one seed to make the Final Four, UNC’s season just goes to show the brilliance of the mind that rests in Head Coach Roy Williams’ skull. Williams taking the Tar Heels to the Final Four marks the eighth time he’s accomplished the feat with one of his teams. Plain and simple, the guy is one Hell of a basketball coach.
UNC’s season has been outstanding on all fronts. The team won the regular season ACC crown, the seventh time it’s done that under Williams’ watch. It won the ACC tournament, the third time the feat has been accomplished with Williams at the helm. And now, the team is back in the Final Four, dancing all the way through to the championship game.
In a season marred by parity and a lack of standout teams, UNC has been able to, well, stand out. The team has done so consistently, headed by stars Marcus Paige and Brice Johnson. In a day and age when playing one year of college and then making the jump to the pros is such common practice, seeing a team led by two veterans of the college game is such a refreshing change of pace.
UNC has done things the right way this year, and it has certainly paid off. No one should be surprised to see where the team is right now.