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For just the second time in history (2008), all four No. 1 seeds advanced to the Final Four. While some fans were distraught at the lack of upsets in this tournament, it’s left us with four elite teams who separated themselves from the rest of the field. How do the remaining teams stack up with one another?
1. Duke
The Blue Devils have been the most dominant team of the tournament. Three of their four wins were by 20-plus points – – and, their 100-93 win over Arizona wasn’t as close as the final score may indicate. In the East Regional Final, Duke faced off against an Alabama team coming off a record-breaking performance. Holding a high-powered Crimson Tide offense to just 65 points is no easy feat. With Cooper Flagg, the Blue Devils have the best player in college basketball. He’s surrounded by arguably the best supporting cast as well. A team with no glaring weakness, the Blue Devils enter the Final Four as heavy title favorites.
2. Houston
Houston’s coming off their best performance of the tournament in a convincing 69-50 win over Tennessee. The nation’s No. 1 defense showed out against their SEC opponent. The Volunteers had just 15 points heading into halftime, and were held to 28-percent shooting on the evening. Their elite defense will be tested against Duke’s No. 1 ranked offense on Saturday. If the game is close late, the Cougars have shown they won’t wither under pressure. Kelvin Sampson’s group executed down the stretch in wins over Gonzaga in the Round of 32 and Purdue in the Sweet 16. It’s an experienced team that has won a ton of games, and they look hungry for two more wins.
3. Florida
The Gators have been on the brink of elimination twice, but refuse to go down. Against the defending champion Connecticut Huskies, Florida escaped with a 77-75 win despite not playing their best game. They cruised to a win over Maryland in the Sweet 16 to set up a Regional Final matchup with Texas Tech. The Red Raiders had them on the ropes late in the second half, but the Gators rallied. All-American guard Walter Clayton Jr. had 13 points in the final five minutes to cap off a stunning comeback. Florida entered the NCAA Tournament as one of the hottest team in the country. They haven’t been at their best thus far, and that’s a scary thought for the other three teams.
4. Auburn
The No. 1 overall seed Auburn Tigers entered the NCAA Tournament having lost three of their final four regular season games. It hasn’t been pretty, but Bruce Pearl’s team is back in the Final Four and ready to make some noise. Led by a group of seniors, there’s nothing you can throw at this team that they haven’t seen before. All-American forward Johni Broome survived an injury scare in their Elite Eight win over Michigan State, and has put up 20-plus point in back-to-back games. Auburn has a unique advantage as they’ve already played the other three teams that are in the Final Four. They beat Houston back in November, but dropped games to Duke and Florida. We’ll see if those experiences help them this weekend.
