by Faith Chojar and Jordan Fickling, staff reporters
Lets fast forward to the main event. Where the tournament reaches its climax. The Final Four and the National Championships.
Final Four: (7) Michigan State vs (1) Duke
Jordan: Michigan State
(7) Michigan State has the potential to defeat top seeded teams in this tournament. In what some believe is an upset, Michigan State has already eliminated (2) Virginia. They’ve also taken (1) Wisconsin to the limit in a game that was down to the wire. Expert opinions suggest that Michigan State is really underseeded and did not deserve to draw the number seven seed. This is a testament to Michigan because they’ve found a way to make it up to the Elite Eight. Michigan moves the ball really well and they’re a great team when it comes to assists and cohesion. They manage to stay consistent in their rebounds and with the amount of momentum they’ve built, the sky’s the limit.
“I had a strong feeling that Michigan State was going to upset (2) Virginia. They had a strong showing against (1) Wisconsin they’ve been playing great. I like the matchup they have against (1) Duke. They will probably be Duke’s toughest challenge in the tournament,” 7th grader Scott Morsette said.
Faith: Duke (1)
I read a book once, and the main character attended Duke University and played on their basketball team. Truth be told, that’s the only reason I’m rooting for this team. It was a great book. Either way, the Blue Devils have a really good chance of making it to the National Championships being a No. 1 seed and having a 17% chance of making it this far compared to Michigan State’s 2%. Junior Marshall Plumlee standing at 7’0’’ tall is definitely someone to look out for along with Jahlil Oakfor playing Center at 6’11’’. With a good lineup and some super tall people, they’re gonna take it all the way.
“I am a diehard Knicks fan and I HOPE that the Knicks manage to draft Jahil Okafor. I’ve seen him dominate hapless players for a while now and I haven’t seen such a strong center come out of Duke since Christian Laettner,” senior Xavier Angulo said.
National Championships: (1) Kentucky vs (1) Duke
Jordan: (1) Kentucky:
This is it. They’ve almost done it. One more victory from a perfect season. They’ve trampled over every opponent so far in this tournament, the question is: are they still hungry? It will be the toughest matchup for Kentucky, as Duke has a strong frontcourt to match Kentucky’s imposing centers. What Kentucky NEEDS to rely on is outside scoring. They’ve had problems with it in the past, however they have the deep enough roster to overtake the Blue Devils in scoring. They’re going to need to step up if they want to withstand Duke Coach Mike Krzyzewski, a man who knows what its like to unseat a team in the National Championships. This will be a game that defines Kentucky’s legacy to the NCAA as many of their players will not be back next season with the impending NBA draft.
Faith: Duke (1)
Marshall Plumlee, one of Duke’s star players, is being enrolled in the army after his graduation in 2016. The Blue Devils need a win for this reason, if not any other. They have a history of coming close and losing it at the last second, but it won’t happen here. Their coach, Mike Krzyzewski has a significant advantage over Kentucky considering his team has been though the final four several times and can rely on previous knowledge and history to help him lead the way. Duke has a lot of great players individually but they really just need to work on connectivity and operating as one team to get it done. Seventy one of Duke’s players have been drafted into the NBA and they’ve seen the Final Four 15 times, establishing them as a strong team to beat.
“I think Kentucky winning is a bit overrated. My whole bracket relies on an upset, and I’m just praying they lose, even by a little bit. They’ve had a long run, but it can’t last forever,” NCAA fan John Millagro said.
