March Madness 2009 Elite Eight Preview
A Look Ahead at NCAA Tournament Regional Finals Action
Mar 28, 2009
All four #1 seeds could still advance to the Final Four for a second consecutive year, however none of the Elite Eight matchups are clear cut in what promises to be an exciting and entertaining weekend of March Madness action.
Connecticut vs Missouri
Connecticut can consider themselves somewhat fortunate that Purdue did not capitalise on opportunities provided by their sloppy play in the Sweet 16. Having said that UConn’s defense once again impressed and they are a team with several offensive weapons making them real candidates for a third national title in 10 years. Missouri outworked Memphis in their Sweet 16 match up to secure an impressive 102-91 victory in a high-scoring game. Missouri plays a high-paced game at both ends of the court and after coming into the tournament under the radar made an impact knocking off highly favoured Memphis.
Missouri are likely to punish Connecticut’s defense severely for any mistakes made and will look to score heavily on fast breaks, the key to the contest will be how well Missouri are able to reduce Hasheem Thabeet’s impact by my moving him around, if they are successful they have every chance of causing an upset, otherwise UConn will advance to the Final Four.
Pittsburgh vs Villanova
Villanova have gone from strength to strength so far in this competition and were particularly impressive in their dismissal of Duke in the Sweet 16. Villanova is one of the competitions strongest all-round teams with a hard-working defensive system and great inside out presence in the offensive end. On the other hand #1 seed Pittsburgh has been unconvincing in the early rounds with yet another tight finish against Xavier on Thursday night. However, Pittsburgh has shown tenacity in finding ways to win games, something that cannot be under-estimated in the big games.
This is a game between two very balanced teams and should be an intriguing matchup. Villanova enters the game with the superior form and are therefore favourites, but faces by far their strongest opposition of the competition and will find Pittsburgh’s offense far harder to contain than Duke’s. Pittsburgh is on a great run and has proven big-match winning ability but will need to elevate their game if they want to secure a Final Four berth.
Louisville vs Michigan State
The #1 ranked team finally arrived in the tournament when Louisville dismissed Arizona 103-64 in dominant fashion. Louisville had been quiet in the first weekend, hardly looking confident against Siena but produced a remarkably efficient display against Arizona in the Sweet 16, shooting over 55% from the field and dishing out 29 assists. Michigan State pulled off an incredible comeback on Friday night against a strong Kansas side, down by as many as 13 points at one stage Michigan State defeated the defending champions 67-62 in a thrilling finish thanks greatly to some reliable free throw shooting.
As with all of the matchups in the Elite Eight it is very hard to choose between these two teams but if Louisville can bring their ‘A’ game they should win this one based on superior athleticism and their suffocating defensive game. However, Michigan State are a solid two-way team and will take a lot of momentum into this game after the second half performance against Kansas.
North Carolina vs Oklahoma
North Carolina has been the most convincing #1 seed so far in this competition, playing almost flawlessly in a crushing victory over Gonzaga. With multiple offensive weapons and superb rebounding North Carolina has simply breezed through to reach their third consecutive regional final and have justified their tag as one of the favourites to win the National Title. Nobody knew what to expect from #2 seed Oklahoma in this competition, it was said that everything would depend on the performance of standout player Blake Griffin, as it happens Griffin has been absolutely spectacular scoring 30 points once again in the Sweet 16 against a tough defensive unit in Syracuse.
North Carolina fans would have hoped that someone would have defeated Oklahoma before the regional final; Griffin’s ability to takeover a game can be devastating and even a much-vaunted Syracuse defense was unable to nullify him. However, North Carolina is a team of offensive stars with the likes of Ty Lawson, Tyler Hansborough and Wayne Ellington, and should have enough to outscore Oklahoma.
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