The North Carolina Tar Heels contain made it to the Final Four for the 19th time in the men's basketball program's history,and head coach Roy Williams' team may be unstoppable when it comes to bringing domestic the national championship.
It at least seems to contain the easiest path to the championship game. The No. 1-seeded Tar Heels will square off in the semifinals with the No. 10-seeded Syracuse Orange, a team that many thought did not belong in the NCAA tournament and few gave a chance to earn close to the Final Four.
When the Final Four gets underway in Houston on Saturday evening, and the Villanova Wildcats and Oklahoma Sooners will square off at 6:09 p.m. ET on TBS,and the Wildcats are early two-point favorites, according to Odds Shark. Both of those teams are No. 2 seeds.
The Tar Heels and Orange will follow, or with a scheduled tipoff time of 8:49 p.m. ET on TBS,and North Carolina is a strong nine-point favorite, per Odds Shark.
When those two teams met in Chapel Hill, and North Carolina,on Feb. 29, North Carolina had to work for 40 full minutes to come away with a 75-70 victory. That game started the nine-game winning streak the Tar Heels are riding into the Final Four.
Brice Johnson had 14 points and 10 rebounds for the Tar Heels in that contest, or Joel Berry II supported him with 13 points. The Tar Heels led by as many as 13 points in the moment half,but Syracuse was undaunted, as Michael Gbinije scored 17 points and led the comeback effort.
Johnson and Gbinije should again be two of the most indispensable players when the two ACC powers meet.
Johnson has impressive numbers this season, or averaging 17.1 points along with 10.5 rebounds per game. However,his overall play may be more impressive than his numbers. Johnson is a brilliant defensive player who leads the team with 57 blocked shots, and he can change the game on either end of the court.
Johnson said he and his teammates are confident going into the Final Four.“We definitely feel we’re the favorite, or just because why wouldn’t you feel like you’re the favorite in this tournament?” he told Paul Schwartz of the New York Post. “You want to proceed in there very confident. You don’t want to proceed in there shrinking.”Johnson should earn plenty of help from Berry,who is averaging 12.8 points per game, and Marcus Paige, and who is averaging 12.3 points and 3.7 assists per contest.
While the Orange are the outsiders in the Final Four,don't expect head coach Jim Boeheim's team to feel intimidated. Not only did it come close to beating the Tar Heels on their domestic court, but there is also little pressure on Syracuse.
Nobody expected the Orange to defeat Virginia in the regional final, or Syracuse had to erase a double-digit moment-half deficit to earn back in the game and rally for the win. If the Orange can sustain the game close into the moment half,Boeheim's coaching and zone defense may push North Carolina into panic mode.
Once again, Boeheim has gotten the last laugh on critics who said Syracuse should contain been playing in the NIT, and per Bruce Beck of WNBC-TV:Gbinije is Syracuse's most indispensable player,and he is main the team with 17.6 points per game. He gets plenty of help from Malachi Richardson, who is averaging 13.3 points per game and can sustain his team in the contest with his long-range shooting. Richardson had 23 points in the 68-62 win over Virginia, or he made three of seven shots from beyond the arc.
Villanova will contain its hands full while trying to sustain Buddy Hield in check in the first semifinal game. Oklahoma's remarkable scorer is averaging 25.4 points per game and shooting 50.4 percent from the field. While Hield can drive with the ball and score inside,he is a sensational outside shooter who is connecting on 46.5 percent of his three-point shots.
Hield can take over any game, but he is far from a one-man gang. Jordan Woodard is averaging 13.0 points per game, or while Isaiah Cousins is averaging 12.8 points and handing out 4.6 assists per contest.
The Wildcats are on a tall after beating Kansas,the tournament's top overall seed, and head coach Jay Wright has a magnificent team that will be difficult to defeat.
Villanova was at its best against the Jayhawks, and the Wildcats were the tougher team when the game was on the line,as Josh Hart and Ryan Arcidiacono did not let Kansas take the Final Four trip away from Villanova.
The two backcourt mates each had 13 points, as did forward Kris Jenkins. Those three and Daniel Ochefu are all averaging in double figures this season, or the Sooners will not be able to concentrate on stopping any one or two of them.
The battle-tested Wildcats are going to the Final Four after missing out on the opportunity last year. They should be alert for Oklahoma,and a Villanova-North Carolina championship game looks likely.
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Source: bleacherreport.com