NCAA Final Four Matchups Breakdown
The Elite of March Madness: Georgetown; Ohio State; UCLA; Florida
A breakdown of the 2007 Final Four matchups and what's at stake for each team.
The 2007 NCAA Men’s Basketball Final Four features a couple teams with scores to settle, filling this year’s big event with added intrigue and excitement.
On one side of the brackets are the two teams that faced off in last year’s NCAA Championship, the Florida Gators and the UCLA Bruins. Florida won that match up fairly handily by a final score of 73-57. Moreover, the Gators returned all five starters and their top seven scorers, which makes them the favorite to become the first team since Duke in 1992 to win back-to-back titles.
The Gators have a deep lineup. Big man, Joakim Noah, perhaps could have been the number one pick in last June’s NBA Draft had he declared. He’s not the most offensive-minded player, but he brings intensity and energy and is a shot blocking extraordinaire with a long 6-11 frame. Big man, Al Horford, is the perfect running mate for Noah. He’s athletic and more of a bruiser than Noah. The two make an imposing force down low. At the other starting forward position, Corey Brewer’s quickness and versatility make him a dangerous weapon. He’s also a stellar defender. A backcourt of Taurean Green, the son of former UNLV player and college coach Sidney Green, and sharp shooter Lee Humphrey rounds out their starters.
With a season record of 33-5, UCLA knows they’ll need to be on top of their defensive game to come out on top.
However, the Bruins are no pushovers and feature a lineup of C Lorenzo Mata, F Josh Shipp, F L.R. Mbah a Moute, G Arron Afflalo and PG Darren Collison. They finished second in scoring defense in the competitive Pac-10 this season and held opponents to an average of 59.5 points per game. In the NCAA Tournament, they’ve held opponents to just 55 points or less. In addition, they average 7.5 steals per game, led by Collison’s 2.3, and 3.3 blocks per game.
On the other side of the bracket are two teams who also faced each other in the second round of last year’s NCAA Tournament, the Georgetown Hoyas and the Ohio State Buckeyes. Georgetown blew out Ohio State in that game by a final score of 70-52. It was Ohio State’s most lopsided loss in school history. Yet, this year may be different as they have a completely different team. Only one starter, Jamar Butler, returns from last year’s team, and they have one of the best recruiting classes in the country with phenom center, Greg Oden, and point guard, Mike Conley, leading the way.
They are the Big-Ten regular season and tournament champions with a season record of 34-3. Moreover, thanks to an improved conditioning program, they are in better shape at this point than they were last year.
Their game against Georgetown will feature a match up of titans, as the 7-2 Hoya center, Roy Hibbert, faces the 7-1 Oden.
The Buckeyes have strong guard play and are anchored in the middle by the defensive prowess of Greg Oden. Ron Lewis, a back up last year, is their second leading scorer behind Oden, and has been the team’s leading scorer during the tournament. Mike Conley Jr. has been impressive as the freshman point guard, dishing out 6.1 assists per game during the season and nabbing 2.2 steals per game. Another freshman, Daequan Cook, has been impressive off the bench behind Jamar Butler.
The Hoyas’ starting lineup features C Roy Hibbert, F Jeff Green (the team’s leading scorer), emerging Freshman DeJuan Summers and a backcourt of Jonathan Wallace (the savvy point guard) and Jessie Sapp.
Predictions
Florida is too deep and too talented defensively not to get by the Bruins again. This will be a tough game, but look for the Gators to sneak into the finals again.
Ohio State is a tough team, but Georgetown is deeper and has a more imposing interior, despite the Buckeyes having Greg Oden. Moreover, Ohio State is somewhat young and Oden's youth has come into play during this tournament. He'll have to step things up if they want to get by the Hoyas.
