A quick glance at the eight remaining teams in the West and Midwest regions of the men's NCAA Tournament reveals a who's who of college basketball. Four of the eight coaches heading into Sweet Sixteen play -- Louisville Cardinals coach Rick Pitino, UConn Huskies coach Jim Calhoun, Kansas Jayhawks coach Bill Self and Michigan State Spartans coach Tom Izzo -- have championship rings on their fingers. Four teams this year -- Louisville, the Missouri Tigers, the Memphis Tigers and the Purdue Boilermakers -- won their conference tournaments. And the highest remaining seed in the tournament, the only team not mentioned in either of the previous categories, is the lowly No. 12 Arizona Wildcats, who have danced in March for 25 straight years.
A trip to the Final Four is only a weekend away, and with the top three seeds prevailing in every region, the theme of the tournament so far has been nothing but chalk.
No team in the tournament has looked more unbeatable than the University of Connecticut. After the Huskies' heartbreaking and historic six-overtime loss to the Syracuse Orange in the Big East Tournament, doubts followed UConn and rekindled memories of recent postseason failures. But after trouncing the Chattanooga Mocs 103-47 and cruising by a solid Texas A and M Aggies team, 92-66, the Huskies look poised for a trip to the Final Four. Their two most consistent players all season, seniors A.J. Price and Jeff Adrien, have both elevated their play in the tournament, and freshman Kemba Walker has provided a spark off the bench. They have achieved early tournament success largely without star junior center Hasheem Thabeet, who has yet to play to his potential, especially on the defensive end with just four blocks in two games. Their matchup with Purdue, who plays the physical brand of ball typical of Big 10 teams, should provide an opportunity for Thabeet to make amends for his struggles in certain rough-and-tumble matchups (see: Blair, DeJuan).
While UConn has proven worthy of its No. 1 seed, the same can be said about Louisville. While the Pitino-led Cardinals have not been as dominant as the Huskies, the difficulties they faced against the Siena Saints, and their ability to respond, will only make them a better team. The matchup with the Saints provided more evidence as to why senior Terrence Williams may be the most complete player in the country. While he only averaged a shade less than 13 points per game during the regular season on such a deep, talented team, the forward exploded for 24 points and 15 rebounds on Sunday. But more important than the stats was the composure Williams showed as he made clutch play after clutch play, showing a killer instinct that Louisville will need if the Cardinals are to win their first title since 1986.
Louisville's Sweet Sixteen opponent, Arizona, is the closest this tournament has to a Cinderella story. The Wildcats have vindicated the Selection Committee's decision to make them one of the last entries into the tournament. But this team is not a typical 12-seed. The trio of juniors Jordan Hill, Chase Budinger and Nic Wise provide as much talent as any threesome in the country. While the team has been inconsistent all season, the Cardinals certainly have the ability to compete with the higher seeds, even Louisville. Ultimately, the game will come down to Arizona's ability to cope with Louisville's press, something few teams have been able to handle well this season. But if the Wildcats find a way to succeed against the pressure, like Siena did in the second half, it could be a much closer game than Pitino would like.
Memphis brings the nation's longest active winning streak, now at 25 games, to Glendale to face Big 12 Tournament champion Missouri. Memphis possesses two of the most experienced players in the country in juniors Robert Dozier and Antonio Anderson. The two were crucial parts of last year's run to the final game, and freshman Tyreke Evans has lived up to the potential he showed as a highly touted prep player. The battle of the Tigers pits two of the nation's most athletic teams against each other. The combination of seniors DeMarre Carroll and Leo Lyons down low gives Missouri plenty of post presence, but the ability to stop Anderson's playmaking abilities off the dribble will be imperative for Mizzou.
Finally, in the Midwest's 2-3 contest, Kansas will continue its quest to defend its crown against Michigan State, a game that will showcase two of college basketball's most explosive point guards. Jayhawk junior guard Sherron Collins has been one of the tournament's most dynamic scorers so far, putting up 32 and 25 points, respectively, in the first two rounds. At 5'11", the junior has the quickness to blow by anyone. And while MSU's sophomore Kalin Lucas struggled during the first two games, he is a threat whenever and wherever he gets the ball.
Expect this weekend to follow the script that last weekend did: not many surprises, but high-level, intense basketball. What the rest of the tournament may lack in underdog intrigue, it will make up in star power.
