The first game in the Final Four is a matchup between a team most picked to win a championship against a team some picked to lose in the first round. Louisville, the #1 overall seed, is here by no surprise as they are the only team left to win their conference tournament and have rode that momentum in the Big Dance. The also have a little extra motivation after the terrible injury suffered by backup point guard Kevin Ware against Duke. The Cardinals will sport "Win It For Kevin" t-shirts during warmups. The Wichita State Shockers on the other hand are this years Cinderella, becoming the 5th team seeded 9th or lower to reach the Final Four. However, none of those previous teams made it to the championship game. If the Shockers hope to do that they will have to slow down a team nobody has been able to in the Cardinals last 14 games.
How They Got Here
Louisville - North Carolina A&T 79-48, Colorado State 82-56, Oregon 77-69, Duke 85-63.
The Cardinals have ran through every opponent they've faced and have lived up to their #1 overall seed. The nine point win over Oregon was the slimmest margin but it was not that close.
Wichita State - Pittsburgh 73-55, Gonzaga 76-70, LaSalle 72-58, Ohio State 70-66.
The Shockers upset the #1 and #2 seeds in their region to reach the Final Four but even won those games in impressive fashion. They led the entire first half against 1-seed Gonzaga before needing to comeback from seven down with less than six minutes to play. Against Ohio State they led for all but 42 seconds when OSU was up 9-7 early.
Player To Watch
Russ Smith is the hottest player in the tournament averaging 26 a game on 54% shooting and scoring in ever way. In transition, jumpers, 3s, and from the line. Smith is a catalyst on defense as well with over two steals a game and a season high eight against UNC A&T in the round of 64. Basically, Smith is the barometer for how Louisville will play as he's their leader on both ends of the court.
Key Matchup
Malcolm Armstead held his own going up against Aaron Craft, the best on-ball defender in the country, only turning the ball over three times.
Armstead now gets to face even more pressure from the Louisville press, spear headed by Smith and Peyton Siva,
that has forced over 60 turnovers in four games. Being able to get the
Shockers into their offense is going to be key to them staying in the
game. Cleanthony Early and Carl Hall will only be able to do damage if
Armstead can get them the ball. He's made a name for himself in the
tournament as a solid PG but if he has trouble getting passed half court
it's going to be a long night for the senior.
Prediction
Louisville was already going to be a tough out for any team in the tournament but now are on a mission playing for Kevin Ware. They are playing the best basketball of anybody left and want to bring a championship to their fallen teammate. Wichita State has made a great run but I don't think they can handle what Smith and Siva will bring in terms of pressure and Gorgui Dieng will negate anything Early tries to do inside. The Cardinals defense has been suffocating teams and Wichita State has seen nothing like them. They will treat Cinderella poorly and send her home from the tournament.
Game: Louisville
Bet: Louisville -9.5
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