March Madness has been everything every basketball fan loves: incredible plays, shocking moments, memorable performances, and busted brackets. Now with the Elite Eight over, only four teams remain: Florida, Connecticut, Wisconsin, and Kentucky. This is how they got there:
Florida Gators:
The Seniors finally pulled through to reach the Final Four. Led by Scottie Wilbekin, Florida took down Albany in the Second Round 67-55.
They moved on to play the hometown Pittsburgh Panthers in the Round of 32, and with their smothering full court defense, they held Pitt to 45 points in a 61-45 ouster.
In the Sweet Sixteen, they took on Pac 12 champions UCLA Bruins. Wilbiken’s offensive clutch helped halt a couple of UCLA runs en route to a 79-68 victory.
Then, in the Elite Eight, the senior heavy Gators showed they really wanted it as they took on the Cinderella Story Dayton Flyers. Even though Florida seemed to pull ahead by 18 points at one point, Dayton managed to cut the lead down to single digits. The Gators ultimately prevailed in winning 62-52.
Worth Noting: Florida is a team loaded with seniors with Scottie Wilbekin, Patric Young, Will Yuegete, and Casey Prather all in the starting lineup. Florida also put an end to a three year losing streak in the Elite Eight to finally reach the Final Four.
Wisconsin Badgers:
Part of the Big 10 powerhouse, and led by junior forward Frank Kaminsky, Wisconsin started off their NCAA tournament run with a quick dispatching of American University in the Second Round, 75-35.
Things started to heat up for Wisconsin in the Round of 32 when Oregon gave them a run for their money. Oregon went into halftime with a 12 point lead, but Wisconsin managed to outscore them 48-28 in the second half to win 85-77.
After a close call, Wisconsin beat Baylor in the Sweet Sixteen swiftly 69-52. They shot 52 percent from the court in the game and outrebounded and outblocked a pretty sizable Baylor unit that demolished Creighton by 30 points the game prior.
The most impressive win in the tournament for Wisconsin was taking down Arizona in the Elite Eight. Arizona was the number one team in BPI. Winning 64-63 in an overtime thriller, Kaminsky scored 28 points and hauled down 11 rebounds.
Worth Noting: Head Coach Bo Ryan goes to his first Final Four appearance. Frank Kaminsky is averaging 18.5 points per game in the tournament, and the team is averaging 73.3 points per game.
Connecticut Huskies:
Connecticut has been nothing short of surprising this tournament. Led by senior Shabazz Napier, the team survived in the Second Round as they came back against St. Joe’s in overtime 89-81.
In the Round of 32, Connecticut played former Big East opponent Villanova. They dominated them with a huge performance by Napier, winning 77-65.
The Sweet Sixteen was much sweeter for them as Connecticut played Iowa State, a high scoring team with Melvin Ejim and Deandre Kane. Connecticut pulled out the game with a clutch play by Deandre Daniels and impressive free throw shooting.
In the Elite Eight, Connecticut played Michigan State, a team favored to win the tournament. Trailing by four points at halftime, Connecticut’s Napier came up big in the second half, hitting all kinds of shots. The icing on the cake was Connecticut making its final 20 free throw attempts, winning 60-54.
Worth Noting: Connecticut suffered their worst loss this year to Louisville 81-48 and are now a Final Four team. The team has excelled from the free throw line this tournament making 75-87 from the line.
Kentucky Wildcats:
This Kentucky team is basically concocted of entirely freshmen, but when it comes crunch time, they play with experience. Led by Julius Randle, this young team has been a part of the most memorable tournament games this year.
In the Second Round, Kentucky took down Kansas State behind Randle’s double-double. Kentucky won 56-49.
The Round of 32 pitted Kentucky against Wichita State. Wichita State went undefeated through the regular season. James Young’s three pointer helped Kentucky win and knock off the number one seed, 78-76.
In the Sweet Sixteen, Kentucky dueled defending champions, Louisville. With the game winding down, Louisville looked good with an 8 point lead. Then, Kentucky came back with a late run to win 74-69. Andrew Harrison made a clutch three pointer to take the lead with under a minute left.
The Elite Eight matchup of Kentucky against Michigan was one for the ages. Tied up after a half of play, both teams exchanged blows and fought hard for the last remaining Final Four spot. Ultimately, it was the young Kentucky unit that prevailed with Aaron Harrison making a three pointer with 2.6 seconds left to take Kentucky to their third Final Four in three years.
Worth Noting: Julius Randle is leading the country with 24 double-doubles and has averaged a double-double in the tournament. The final three games for Kentucky have been decided in the final minute.
In the end, the Final Four is pretty interesting as the teams will showdown on Saturday.