Throughout the week, we’ll be running small capsules on the remaining Final Four teams, stating why they’ll win it all. First up: UNC.
If this was November or December, you could find very little argument against UNC for the National Title. They were the preseason favorite, and they were straight rolling teams. The Tar Heels beat Kentucky by 19, Notre Dame (ranked eight at the time) by 15 and in perhaps their most emphatic statement of the year, they crushed Michigan State at Ford Field on Dec. 3 to the tune of 35 points. The Heels were riding high behind the grit of Tyler Hansbrough, the leadership of Ty Lawson and the suave of Danny Green and Wayne Ellington.
But conference season hit and they came back down to life. The Heels lost their first two games in ACC play. Tyler Zeller missed significant time with a wrist injury. Marcus Ginyard never saw the floor all conference season due to injury. Suddenly Goliath was slayable.
But, these were still the Tar Heels, still a team full of immense talent with a stellar coach. They won the ACC, only losing one more after the 0-2 stumble. They’ve had little problem dispelling their opponents in the NCAA Tournament; Their average margin of victory in four tournament games is 22.5.
The Tar Heels should win it all because they were supposed to win it all. And they are right here, right now with the opportunity to do so. No remaining team has more talent than the Heels. (Though, UConn and Nova are right there.)
If they play their game and play it well, the Heels should be cutting down the nets, and Barack’s bracket will have the winner picked correctly. Mine, however, will not.
I wasn’t going to address Calipari to Kentucky, until I read this
Don’t get me wrong. I think Calipari will be great at Kentucky. Do I think he’ll win a title? It’s probably a good bet. Multiple titles? Not out of the realm of possibility, either.
What I don’t believe is that college basketball as we currently know it is over because John Calipari is reportedly the new coach at UK. Maybe I missed something, but Roy Williams is still loading up at North Carolina, Rick Pitino is still in charge at Louisville, Tom Izzo is still getting to the Final Four in East Lansing and Tom Crean is just getting started in Bloomington.
Sure, it’s a scary thought when you combine a top-notch recruiter like Calipari with the facilities, fanbase and tradition that exist in Lexington. If Calipari keeps his nose out of the dirt and wins big, it’s a match made in heaven. The hunger to win for a rabid fanbase that hasn’t been to a Final Four since 1998 will be satisfied.
But there’s also the other side of the coin: awful graduation rates, a possible lack of discipline, a vacated Final Four appearance at UMass and of course, William Wesley. So before we go anointing a dynasty in Lexington, let’s let this all play out … shall we, Mr. Doyel?