Thursday, March 29, 2007

"Final Four preview: This could be memorable"


I woke up this Thursday morning excited, ready for some basketball, itching for some more NCAA tournament action. All day I couldn't stop thinking about it. Florida, UCLA, Georgetown, Ohio State. I had goose bumps by lunchtime and major goose bumps by lunchtime on the West Coast.

And then I turned on CBS at 7 p.m. and "Entertainment Tonight" was on? Quickly it hit me, like dodgeball right in the gut. The games aren't until Saturday, unless the NIT championship is considered a game (not quite).

The news depressed me, but at the same time it makes the upcoming games all the more juicy. As if they could get any juicier than they already are. Let's face it, folks. While the first eight days of the tournament may not have been as chaotic as last year, these last three games have the potential to go down in history (unlike last year's final weekend, which was anti-climatic at best).

There is no reason not to watch every second of the two games on Saturday and whatever matchup they beget for Monday. There are thousands of reasons why you should be watching. I'll throw out a few.

Greg Oden vs. Roy Hibbert. We haven't seen a matchup of true big men like this since Olajuwon vs. Ewing in the 1984 finals. This could only be better if G-Town was playing Houston instead of Ohio State. The Hoyas' attack even features Patrick Ewing Jr., with John Thompson III manning the sidelines. Meanwhile, John Thompson Jr. should be doing radio (although we all know he shouldn't be) and the elder Ewing will more than likely be in the stands. Hibbert and Oden should be extremely fun to watch. All season long these guys - especially Oden - have had to ease their way against smaller players trying to pick up cheap fouls. Now they can go at each other, one blow after another. The more physical the better.

Jeff Green, the best player nobody outside of the Big East knew about until last weekend. If you've noticed, this kid can flat-out play, and he'll do plenty of playing at the next level as well. Too many forwards in today's college game are content to settle for outside jumpers and playing the finesse game. Not Green. He's an attacker, an assailer, a slasher, a banger. And to cap it all off, he's one of the smartest players in the Final Four. His calmness during G-Town's comeback against North Carolina on Sunday was admirable. It'll be a pleasure to watch him shred Ohio State's zone.

Ron Lewis, Mr. Clutch. He saved the Buckeyes against Xavier. He saved 'em against Tennessee. What's next for Lewis? All I know is the senior will not shy away from the big shots come Saturday. How can you not love a player who wants the ball at the end of a game, who wants the last shot, and who knows he's going to make it. Lewis has been the Buckeyes' unheralded MVP so far this tournament. Look for him to continue his impressive play.

Mike Conley Jr., the unfazed freshman. Save the talk about Oden. We'll be mentioning his name for years to come. What about his freshman counterpart? While Oden has had a relatively subpar tournament, Conley has been the Buckeyes' second-best player behind Lewis. He runs the offense like a senior (yes, they still exist - Lewis is one of them). He's as unselfish as Steve Nash. Yet he also knows when he needs to be aggressive (like during overtime against Xavier with Oden out). As good as Georgetown's Jessie Sapp is at running the Hoyas, the reason I'm taking OSU is Conley. Buckeyes' fans need not worry when the ball's in his hands.

On the other side of the bracket, how about the matchup? A rematch of last year's national title game, which really wasn't a game (let's be honest). Florida absolutely dominated UCLA's big men a year ago, scoring at will and making shot-blocking into an art form. I can't wait to see the response by the Bruins' bigs.

Sure, they lost Ryan Hollins, but every other big man is back. Lorenzo Mata and Luc Richard Mbah a Moute - these two players have more to prove than anyone left in this tournament. Can they stand up to Joakim Noah and Al Horford? They don’t' need to score a lot. They just need to rebound and stop those two guys from scoring. They have something to prove, and you have to expect they'll come ready to play and fired up for the Gators. An added plus: I bet you no one named Luc Richard Mbah a Moute has ever played in back-to-back Final Fours before. Lemme know if you want the bet (I promise, I haven't researched it).

And then there are the Gators, the group of underclassmen no one knew about a year ago who surprised just about everyone (although everyone was also disappointed when they eliminated George Mason). Now everyone is familiar with Noah, and Horford, and Humphrey, and Brewer, and Green, and their young, genius coach, Billy Donovan. No one outside of Gainesville particularly likes them either. No one wants to see them become the first team since Duke in 1991-92 to win back-to-back national titles.

But here's the bottom line: When the Gators are playing their best - which they haven't done yet this tournament, a scary thought - they are a beautiful team to watch. None of their five starters are liabilities on either end of the court (OK, Humphrey isn't a great defender, but he has plenty of help behind him). And all of their five starters fill their roles perfectly. Horford's your typical big man who can post up with his back to the hoop and power his way to the basket. Noah's your atypical post player. He'd rather get the ball facing the hoop and make a move off the dribble. Brewer's the slasher/jump shooter. Basically, he can do a lot of things efficiently. He's not great, but very solid. Humphrey's the classic outside shooter. That's all he does, and all he needs to do. His 23 points against Oregon led the Gators. Finally, Green is the x-factor. When his boys aren't playing like they should, he huddles them in and starts the engine again. And he's also the shot-maker. He'll pull up on the break and nail the 23-footer when it’s needed most.

Watching Florida's five starters play as a unit is almost as beautiful as Noah's ponytail (Sorry, bad joke). But seriously - any true basketball fan has to be pleased the Gators are still playing.

So who's it gonna be? Who will survive Saturday to play Monday? Who will get to be interviewed by Billy Packer Monday night (not that this is the reason players try to reach championship Monday). It's about as difficult to predict as the weather here in Michigan. Which is great. Because uncertainty is what drives this madness, especially when the best of the best are facing off. So below you'll see some picks, some guesses from a small section of my brain, but don't count on them happening, because this Final Four weekend may be the most wild, thrilling and memorable in quite some time.

Saturday's picks
- Ohio State 78, Georgetown 74
- Florida 63, UCLA 57

Monday's pick
- Florida 70, Ohio State 66

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

I just need to quickly voice my opinoin about you saying that Conley Jr. was the second best player on the team next to Lewis. I disagree I think that Conley Jr. is the best player that Ohio State has even when you put Oden in the mix. I do realize that it is very difficult to compare a big guy like Oden with someone like Conley Jr., but I have to say that Conley is incredibly fast and under control at all times. He can create something out of nothing.