It has been one of the most thrilling year of college basketball as we saw a whirlwind of upsets and underdogs this season. After the March Madness, the final 4 teams are already here ready to take on the other top teams in this year’s 2010 NCAA Basketball Tournament. The four teams are the Duke, Michigan State, Butler, and West Virginia. On the schedule, it the game will be Michigan State vs Butler University and West Virginia vs Duke.
Even though Michigan State and Butler are both number fives, it is the Bulldogs who are true giant slayers and the real underdog entering the final four. They have knocked off a number one and a number two – Syracuse and Kansas State. They play sound defense and stress fundamentals, and look to be on the “Cinderella Path” as we enter the final three games.
Michigan State beat a twelve, a four, a nine and a six seed to get here. True, they have Coach Izzo, who is a proven commodity in March, but like Kentucky the Spartans have benefited from some lucky wins and gift calls from the refs.
West Virginia is the lone survivor from the division that had the most teams in the tournament, the Big East. They only beat a fifteen, ten and eleven to get to the Elite Eight. They did take out number one Kentucky, but Big Blue, as has been pointed out here, was young and inexperienced, and had a few lucky breaks down the stretch. Luck only carries you so far and sooner or later the mistakes of youth catch up with you.
The tournament has proven that though they had the most entries, the Big East was soft, and it is unlikely that a representative from the division wins it all.
Butler seems to be the most battle-tested, and they have that look of destiny about them. They have the ability to force opponents to play their style, and along with attractive odds at 4-1 they represent the best value at this point in the tourney.
So who will win the championship this year? Find out.
