As the NBA postseason slowly but surely approaches, the NCAA Final Four will punctuate our weekend until early next week. Duke, North Carolina, Kansas and Villanova, here are the four teams that will compete for the national title on the side of the Superdome in New Orleans. Small focus on the forces present.
The program
- Kansas (1) – Villanova (2) at 12:09 a.m. Saturday night through Sunday (broadcast on beIN Sports, and on ESPN Player)
- Duke (2) – North Carolina (8) at 2:49 a.m. Saturday night through Sunday (aired on beIN Sports, and on ESPN Player)
- Final at 3:20 a.m. Monday to Tuesday night (broadcast on beIN Sports, and on ESPN Player)
Duke
Summary this season: 32-6 (26-5 in regular season), ACC Conference Tournament runner-up
Route to the Final Four: win over Cal State Fullerton, Michigan State, Texas Tech, Arkansas
Number of title(s) won in its history: 5 (1991, 1992, 2001, 2010, 2015)
Will Coach K’s last dance end in apotheosis? This is the big question that hangs over the Final Four version 2022. For his last season on the sidelines, the legendary Mike Krzyzewski can count on a team made up of several prospects who can potentially be selected in the first round of the next NBA Draft, led by Paolo Banchero. The Italian-American stepped up from the start of March Madness to guide his people and thanks also to the contributions of Mark Williams, AJ Griffin, Wendell Moore Jr. or even Jeremy Roach and Trevor Keels, the Blue Devils went straight. Duke particularly impressed with his ability to dominate in the tense endgame, showing both heart and mastery on both sides of the court. In evidence of the confidence characterizing the gang at Coach K today, the players themselves called on the winningest coach in NCAA history to ditch the late zone defense against Texas Tech as that it had nevertheless borne fruit during the second period. A request accepted by Coach K, with victory at the end. “They told me in unison that they wanted to come back man to man. It’s an amazing group of kids. They have grown so much in the last twelve days. It’s a joy. »
75 years old, a 13th Final Four on the clock (NCAA record), and a sixth championship title to go for. The Last Dance version Coach K. pic.twitter.com/wgfX3IzcfB
– Nico TrashTalk 🏀 (@nicolasmeichel) March 27, 2022
North Carolina
Summary this season: 28-9 (23-8 in regular season), eliminated in ACC Conference Tournament semifinals
Route to the Final Four: victory against Marquette, Baylor, UCLA, Saint Peter’s
Number of title(s) won in its history: 6 (1957, 1982, 1993, 2005, 2009, 2017)
Duke’s historic rival knocked out the defending champion – namely Baylor – in the second round of the tournament, and now dreams of sending Coach K into retirement in the first-ever North Carolina-Blue Devils matchup. of March Madness. The Tar Heels already ruined Mike Krzyzewski’s farewell to Duke fans a month ago, so why not do it again in New Orleans this weekend. For this, the residents of Chapel Hill will notably rely on the offensive contributions of guards Caleb Love and RJ Davis, the impact of Armando Bacot in the paint and the sniper qualities of Brady Manek. The danger can come from all sides and the opponents of UNC therefore find themselves facing a rather unpredictable team where each element seems to be able to make the difference in a good evening. In other words, even without being favorites, the Tar Heels can beat anyone in a game. If ever North Carolina manages to go all the way, coach Hubert Davis will make history by becoming only the second all-time coach to win the national title in his first season at the helm of an NCAA team. As a reminder, the former NBA player, who notably worked for the Knicks and the Mavericks, took over from the legendary Roy Williams last year after having been his assistant for a good decade.
Hubert Davis does not have time: first year as head coach of North Carolina, ticket validated for the Final Four. 👏👏
“I love these guys so much. They trusted me. If I’m here, it’s thanks to them. »pic.twitter.com/jmz8YPDPZv
– Nico TrashTalk 🏀 (@nicolasmeichel) March 27, 2022
Kansas
Summary this season: 32-6 (25-6 in regular season), Big 12 Conference Tournament champion
Route to the Final Four: victory against Texas Southern, Creighton, Providence, Miami
Number of title(s) won in its history: 3 (1952, 1988, 2008)
A year ago, longtime Kansas coach Bill Self — almost 20 years service please — signed a lifetime contract with the Jayhawks. The best way to honor him is to win his second national title and fourth in college history in the coming days in New Orleans, exactly a decade after the Finals loss to Kentucky at the Superdome precisely. The winningest program in NCAA history (2,302 total wins for Kansas) will need the best version of guard Ochai Agbaji (one of the finalists for the title of player of the year in NCAA) to accomplish his goal, he who started his tournament slowly before releasing his best performance against Miami last Sunday. If he confirms and that at the same time guard Remy Martin continues his crazy role in his role off the bench, the Jayhawks could well go to the end, they who saw their title dreams fly away in 2020 when the coronavirus pandemic COVID got the better of March Madness as Kansas had arguably the best team in the country. You understood, this Final Four 2022 is a way for the Jayhawks to rewrite history. But it will first go through a revenge against Villanova in the semi-finals, Jay Wright’s band having beaten Kansas at the same stage of the competition in 2018. This promises a good opposition of styles in which Bill Self’s men will try to impose their fast rhythm of play against the more calm game of the Wildcats.
For the 16th time, The Kansas Jayhawks are moving on to THE FINAL FOUR! pic.twitter.com/lMOAf82agP
— CBS Sports (@CBSSports) March 27, 2022
Villanova
Summary this season: 30-7 (23-7 in regular season), Big East Conference tournament champion
Route to the Final Four: win over Delaware, Ohio State, Michigan, Houston
Number of title(s) won in its history: 3 (1985, 2016, 2018)
Considered a benchmark NCAA basketball program over the past decade, Villanova will try to win a third title in six years after those won in 2016 against North Carolina (on a legendary buzzer by Kris Jenkins) and in 2018 against Michigan. A title that the Wildcats will be keen to win for Justin Moore, their 21-year-old back who suffered a torn Achilles tendon in the final seconds of the game against Houston last weekend. A devastating injury for this player who represented an important pawn in Jay Wright’s very serious collective on both sides of the field, but who could push the team to surpass themselves. “All our guys on the bench are going to play more minutes. These are opportunities for them. We know we can be a good team even without him.” in particular declared the coach of Villanova, who believes in the solidity of his group despite this big blow. Leader Collin Gillespie, forward Jermaine Samuels and the others will all have to raise their game while the half-court execution – which is one of the Wildcats’ strengths – will have to be better than ever to hope. get to the top. If it will necessarily be more complicated than expected, you should never underestimate a team that plays for the honor of one of its members.
Villanova’s Justin Moore has suffered a torn Achilles and will be out for the rest of the tournament
Prayers up 🙏
(via @MarchMadnessMBB)pic.twitter.com/hYYxkwuv8S
— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) March 27, 2022
Four teams for a single objective: to leave New Orleans with the national champion trophy in their pocket. Who from Duke, North Carolina, Kansas or Villanova will succeed in going to the end? Beginning of response in the night from Saturday to Sunday, before the outcome final Monday.
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