Perfect No More

Kentucky’s dream scenario of going undefeated has come to a halt, due to the coaching by Bo Ryan and the smart and heady plays by the Wisconsin Badgers during the end of the 71-64 defeat of Kentucky. Kentucky had a 4 point lead, but they could not come through in the clutch. They stopped giving the ball to Karl Anthony-Towns and went away from what was working. The Harrison twins tried to take over. The offense became stagnant, they stopped moving the ball, and just couldn’t execute down the stretch. Wisconsin took advantage of the situation and handed Kentucky its first loss of the season. It was a back and forth game with a lot of intensity. I knew it would be a dogfight, and it was without a doubt one of the better games of the tournament. They will now go on to face Duke tonight in the National Championship game.

Duke played Michigan State and beat them by 20 points. 81-61. They had no problems against the Spartans guard play. Michigan State just didn’t have the size to defend Okafor. I honestly thought that game would’ve been a little closer. Michigan State had a magnificent run in the tournament, but Duke showed why they were the #1 seed.

The National championship game is 2 #1 seeds facing one another. It should be a pretty good game. Player of the year Frank Kaminsky and the Badgers vs future NBA #1 pick Jahlil Okafor and the Blue Devils. This game is a toss-up, and I think will really close. It could go down to a last second shot. I’m hoping the last game is as good as this whole tournament has been. I think that Wisconsin has the slight edge and will get the victory. The game is scheduled to tip off at 9;18 PM eastern time.

Prediction: 73-71 Wisconsin

 

 

Championship or bust for Kentucky

Final Four Preview

Kentucky vs Wisconsin

Notre Dame gave Kentucky a scare in the elite 8, but the wildcats survived that scare by winning by 2 points. Next up for Kentucky is Wisconsin. Wisconsin beat Arizona in the elite 8 for a second straight year. Kentucky vs Wisconsin is sure to be a great matchup. Towns, Cauley-Stein, the Harrison twins, and the Kentucky Wildcats vs Frank Kaminsky, Sam Dekker, Nigel Hayes and the Wisconsin Badgers. Towns and Cauley-Stein are beasts in the paint and are tough physical players. Both are good rebounders. Kaminsky, (who could be the player of the year, and was named 1st team All-American) will be a tough cover. He can drive, post up, has mid range, and can shoot the 3. He’s also a great rebounder and defender. For a 7 footer he has good all around skills that will translate well in the NBA. He was going to enter the NBA after last season, but decided to give it one more go around to try to win the championship, but I think they fall short vs Kentucky. A lot of experts agree that if there is any team that can beat Kentucky it’s Wisconsin. I think that they can give Kentucky a run for their money, but Kentucky’s game vs Notre Dame was too close for them, and they may not want that to happen again, but Wisconsin will keep it close.

Prediction: 77-73 Kentucky over Wisconsin.

Duke vs Michigan State

Tom Izzo has done it once again. He’s always right there in March. He is tournament tested, and the Spartans are always an under dog every year and somehow someway Izzo always finds a way to get his teams to make deep runs in the tournament. before this season Michigan State have at least made the sweet 16 5 of the last 6 years and this year they have reached the Final Four, and are looking for more. The Spartans are led by senior guard Travis Trice and junior guard Denzel Valentine. Trice has been clutch this whole tournament. He’s calm, confident, under control, smart, and knows when to drive, shoot, or make the pass. I know a lot of NBA scouts have been watching him this tournament. He’s small and undersized, but he’s a tough player. They also have a good player in senior forward Branden Dawson. The Spartans have talented players, and as long as Izzo is coaching anything can happen. Duke has future #1 overall pick in the 2015 draft more than likely Jahlil Okafor and the coach with the most wins in coach K. (I’m not even going to bother spelling his name, everyone just refers to him as coach K anyways.) I’m not a fan of Duke, but Okafor is a great post player and rebounder. He reminds me a lot of Tim Duncan, and I think he can be that type of player in the NBA. I think Duke’s talent overall will be too much for Michigan state as they don’t really have anyone to contain Okafor. I think Duke wins but not by as much as most people think.

Prediction: 70-64 Duke over Michigan State.