Final Four is set, but at what cost?

That cost was my bracket being busted.  What?  You thought it was something more important?  Nah, it's just another crushing blow to my self-esteem.  Here's what my bracket looks like:

The only positive is that my championship matchup is still alive, with Kentucky and Duke.  But other than that, only having 2 out of 4 Final Four teams isn't so great.  As you can see, Iowa State and Virgina really screwed me.  And since I'm a man who holds grudges, I will now root against them every chance I get.  I really butchered that top right quadrant, huh?  I didn't get one freakin' team to the Sweet 16.  Not only did Virgina thoroughly hose me, but Michigan State is in the Final Four.  Some of you may not remember, but I'm a big Michigan fan, so even though I have a lot of respect for Tom Izzo, seeing the Spartans in the Final Four is not sitting well with me, especially since Michigan couldn't even make it to the tournament this year.  Can Jim Harbaugh coach the basketball team, too? 

My bracket could have looked a lot different, however.  I'm sure I'm not alone, but I lost every single one of the 1-point games in the 1st round.  Literally.  LSU, Iowa State, Baylor, SMU and Purdue.  Not one of them went my way.  Obviously Iowa State and Baylor were the ones that hurt most since I had them going more than 1 round each.  I was correct, though, in not picking some of the "trendy" upsets in the 1st round.  Tons of experts were predicting S.F. Austin to beat Utah, and Eastern Washington to beat Georgetown, but I held strong and turned out to be right.  I even got Wichita State upsetting Kansas right in the round of 32.  I did, of course, get some upset picks wrong as well.  Buffalo couldn't take down West Virginia, Texas lost to Butler, and Oklahoma ended up making it to the Sweet 16.  Bastards. 

Ok, enough about my bracket, my pride can't take anymore.  Let's dive into some Final Four predictions. 

When filling out my bracket, I practically had to flip a coin to choose between Wisconsin and Arizona, so I'm not surprised that the Badgers are there.  However, no matter which way the coin landed, I was writing Kentucky's name in the championship game.  They've had several close games this year but always managed to come out on top.  Saturday was no different against Notre Dame.  They find a way to win.  And even though Wisconsin is a great all-around team, Kentucky is better, plain and simple.

Duke and Michigan State is not as cut-and-dried, however.  Even though I picked Duke to make it to the championship game, I always felt that if a hot team came along, they could be beaten.  Enter Michigan State.  They got hot during the Big Ten Tournament, and have stayed hot ever since.  I can't pin-point one particular thing that they do exceptionally well, but they just find a way to win.  As for Duke, they were one of the best offensive teams in the nation all year.  Fourth in points-per-game (80.6) and third in field-goal percentage (.502).  But in the tournament, it's been the play of their defense that's really stood out.  No team has scored more than 57 points against them, and that includes a high-powered Gonzaga squad (held to 52 points yesterday).  If their defense can stay tough, then they should be able to provide enough offense to get to the finals.

As for the finals, I predict that....

For that you'll have to check in later in the week.