‘Pokes pick the ­Final Four: PDF Print E-mail
Written by Tom Hesse   
Thursday, 31 March 2011 21:52

This Final Four is an incredibly strange slate of games to pick. No number one seeds. No number two seeds. No obvious favorite. No clear top coach. No clear worst coach. No super-duper star. No answers and no clues. But here’s some picks anyway. 

UConn vs. Kentucky

Sat. 6:49 p.m. MT on CBS

There are just as many reasons to pick UConn as there are to pick Kentucky. Kemba Walker has given the nation more than enough reasons to pick UConn to finish their incredible run. 

The Huskies rebound better than anyone in the tournament and Calhoun is just as good a coach as Calipari. However, the case for Kentucky comes down to this: Princeton, West Virginia, Ohio State and North Carolina. 

Those are the teams that Kentucky beat to make it to this point. The Huskies on the other hand: Bucknell, Cincinnati, San Diego State and Arizona. 

Kentucky played one good team, and three contenders to get to this point. UConn has had an impressive run. 

There is absolutely no way to ignore the run they made through the Big East and the NCAA tournament but this year John Calipari will make the nation apologize for calling him a recruiter and not a coach.   

VCU vs. Butler

Sat. 4:09 p.m. MT on CBS


Mike Morris: Butler

Darion Donnelly: VCU 

Zach Greubel: Butler

Tom Hesse: Butler


The battle of the young hip coaches will be won by the most complete team. That team is Butler. VCU has been great but they shot an incredible percentage (48 percent from behind the arch) and Kansas clearly didn’t show up. VCU has shot well from three all tournament (46 percent). Seems like it’s about time for VCU to shoot 15 percent from three and take about 30 shots from behind the arc. It’s college basketball. An 8-30 night from three is less a possibility and more a tragic inevitability.  


Butler has had some quality wins. They have also had some bad wins. Pitt should be here right now instead of the Bulldogs but every team in this tournament has taken advantage of some lucky bounces so Butler can’t be penalized for theirs. George Mason made an incredible run to the Final Four in 2006 and as soon as Saturday started we knew that George Mason’s run was over. Butler found a way to escape that last year and will never be in the same context as the Cinderellas again. Does VCU this year have what Butler had last year? No. They are another George Mason. Butler will play for the championship once again. 


Email:
 

Comments

Show Other Articles Of This Author