Four teams are left standing in the NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament. All four have a chance to win it all and cut down the nets in New Orleans on the night of Monday, April 2.
This year, the championships don't have a party crasher from a small conference. It's the Kentucky Wildcats from the SEC, the Ohio State Buckeyes from the Big 10, the Kansas Jayhawks from the Big 12, and the Louisville Cardinals from the Big East that make up this year's final four.
Louisville is the Big East tournament champion and the shutdown defensive team. The Cardinals is not a team that impress you with its scoring, but it will grind out games with scrappy play.
Ohio State is looking to win the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 1960. That year, the Buckeyes won the tournament, but only 25 teams got bids. Today, 68 teams make the tournament.
Kansas is college-basketball royalty and is looking to win its fourth championship, the first since 2008. Year-in and year-out, the Jayhawks put together nice seasons, and this year's team has the ability to win it all.
Kentucky has the most talent of any tournament team, and it has shown. In each round of play, the Wildcats used that talent to run away from their opponents.
Louisville and Kentucky in one national semifinal spotlights the Bluegrass State's two best hoops programs. A rivalry game with a trip to the national title game should be fun to watch.
Ohio State and Kansas should be a good game as well, and either team will make the final great—but especially if it is against Kentucky. The Buckeyes' Jarod Sullinger might be the best player on the court for both teams.
One more small note on Ohio State: Former Murrah High School star LaQuinton Ross is on the Buckeyes bench. Ross doesn't get a ton of playing time, but if you are looking for a Mississippi connection in the final four, Ross is it.
My pick to win it all is Kentucky. The talent on the Wildcats is outstanding, and the team can go on a scoring run to put any game out of reach in a moment's notice. The best part about Kentucky, though, is that the youthful Wildcats play an unselfish brand of basketball. It is something you don't always see on talented teams.
Something else you don't see on talented teams is defense, but the Wildcats play tough defense.
In one winner-take-all game, any of the four final teams can win. But if they play like they should, Kentucky will win the national championship.
Follow Bryan Flynn at http://www.jfpsports.com, Facebook and @jfpsports.
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