FINAL FOUR
Washington will meet Louisville in a national semi-final that nobody saw coming. Can Louisville’s guards handle the pressure that I am sure Washington will throw at them? I like Louisville to win because they are more dynamic offensively and I don’t think Terrence Williams will be contained. Samuels vs. Brockman will be a great battle as the freshman and senior battle for supremacy down low. Louisville will advance to play Pittsburgh for the National Championship on Monday night as the Panthers will slip past Gonzaga. The Zags will reach this game because of their balanced attack (6 players scoring at least 9.2 ppg) and their size. I also feel like Gonzaga has a chip on their shoulder, that people don’t take them seriously as a contender for the title. However, on this night it will be about Pitt. The Panthers big three (Blair, Young, Fields) is going to be the difference in this game and throughout the tournament. Any one of these players can put the team on their back and they will have just enough to advance to the National Championship.
NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP
It’s a heavyweight match-up pitting two of the elite players in the country against each other. Terrence Williams is the key that makes the Louisville machine roll. T-WILL is averaging 12.3 ppg, 8.5 rpg and 5.1 assists, but he has a senior presence that isn’t inherent in every player. Earl Clark, also a senior, possesses great size and athleticism and leads the Cardinals in scoring (14 ppg, 8.8 rpg). The x-factor for the Cards will be Samardo Samuels who is no longer a freshman after the Big East grind. Samuels (11.9 ppg, 4.7 rpg) has to somewhat neutralize DeJuan Blair because if Blair gets going he is going to will the Panthers to a championship. Blair (15.6 ppg, 12.2 rpg) has proven everything he needed to this season, establishing himself as arguably the 2nd best big man in the nation behind Blake Griffin. Blair is a force and he teams up with Sam Young. Young has thrown down some vintage dunks (see bottom) this season. Young leads the team at 18.7 ppg and grabs 6.1 boards a game. Levance Fields completes the trio at 10.6 ppg and a nasty 7.6 assists. I see this game as coming down to foul trouble: If T-WILL is in trouble or Samardo Samuels gets in trouble then Pitt is in control of this game. However, if either Young, Blair or Fields finds themselves on the bench then Pitt could be sunk. No champion the last four years has won the title with a defensive rating lower than 25th and the Panthers enter the tournament at 34th. Louisville comes in ranked 2nd on the defensive side which is why they will win this game. At some point in this tournament Louisville is going to NEED a stop or they will go home and I believe they are going to get it. No team goes through a tournament without a scare and more than not it is the team who plays tough defense that comes out on top. So, the 2009 National Champion is…
LOUISVILLE
68-63
Here are some great dunks by the ultra-athletic Sam Young:
Finally, here are two more vintage March upsets….
