Myron Medcalf
Myron Medcalf
ESPN Staff Writer
Graduated from Minnesota State University in Mankato in 2011, university basketball joined ESPN.com
Jeff Bolzero
Jeff Bolzero
ESPN Staff Writer
Basketball insider. I joined ESPN in 2014. Graduated from the University of Delaware.
Men’s Final 4 is set. It is the first species since 2008.
The Florida Gators and Auburn Tigers held semi-final action on Saturday at 6:09pm, followed by the Houston Cougars and Duke Blue Devils at 8:49pm (both CBS).
All the chokes are on the San Antoni Oliver Walk, and do you have a college basketball expert for the national championship on April 7th?
They break down the keys to how each team reached the national semi-finals of the NCAA Tournament and advance to the title game and predicting winners. (Tip: They agree with one matchup, but not the other.)
Jump: Auburn vs. Florida | Duke vs. Houston
Final 4 Preview
Things you need to know about Florida
The first factor that helped Florida reach the Final Four: American teams couldn’t like the game with devastating runs like the Gators.
They fell nine points at 3:14 to face Texas Tech and they finished the game with an 18-4 run this season, just like we’ve seen many times. In this tournament, they outscored Maryland 47-33 in the second half of the Sweet 16 victory, scoring 53 points within 17 minutes against Norfolk State in the opening round.
They also released the same knockout punch against other elite teams. In the SEC Tournament Championship, Florida tied with Tennessee at 4pm and played in the first half. Eight minutes later, the Gators took a 12-point lead.
Florida is the equivalent of a college basketball home run batsman at the bottom of nine innings. It never ends with the Gators, because of the way they can grab control of the game, even when they seem out of reach.
0:35
Walter Clayton Jr. promotes 3-second late Florida to the final four
Florida’s Walter Clayton Jr. delays a pair of clutch 3-pointers to send the Gators to the Final Four.
The key to Florida’s Auburn: Walter Clayton Jr.’s brilliance.
The last four are all stars. The team with players shining under the brightest light is the one that ultimately cut the net and won the national championship. There’s a reason to mention it when talking about the biggest NCAA tournament run by Anthony Davis, Carmelo Anthony, Kemba Walker, Mateen Cleaves and Jay Williams. The reign of star power. Next to the Cooper Flag, Florida could have their biggest star at Clayton Jr. – Myron Medcalf
Things you need to know about Auburn
The first factor that will help Auburn reach the Final Four: Closing defensively.
The Tigers essentially collapsed defensively when Auburn struggled with stretching the season and lost three of his four games. They allowed at least 1.13 points per 1.13 points in all three defeats, committed too many fouls and struggled to protect the rim. However, they looked like the team that started season 27-2 since the NCAA Tournament took chips. Bruce Pearl’s team did a much better job limiting simple opportunities, allowing only Clayton to reach one point per owner.
Denver Jones is one of the elite border defenders in the country, with the Tigers incredibly defending the three-point arc, while Johnny Bloom and Dylan Cardwell protecting the paint. However, it is important to limit the foul.
Auburn’s Key to Florida: Johnny Bloom.
Bloom had a nasty fall in the middle of his eight wins at Michigan on Sunday, and quickly went to the locker room to provide words of encouragement to Cheney Johnson and update his parents. It looked like his night, and perhaps more – was over. However, Bloom came out of the locker room after just five minutes of gaming action and quickly filled in with a 3-pointer to give Auburn a boost.
He looked healthy enough to perform at a high level this Saturday, but he needs to be 100% to compete with Florida’s deeply talented frontcourt. – Jeff Bolzero
Florida vs Auburn prediction
Jeff Bolzero: Florida wins, 82-79
Joe Runardi: Florida wins, 85-80
Myron Medcalf: Florida wins, 88-84
Florida led the first meeting between these teams by 21 points before scoring 90-81. The Gators scored 13 3 against the Tigers’ Sec-Best 3-point defense, and Florida’s Walter Clayton Jr. solidified his case as the country’s best security guard. Florida has not slowed since then, nor does Clayton have won one of the best match shot-making performances of all time in this NCAA tournament. Can the Denver Jones limit Clayton’s clean looks?
The Gators have internal size and depth to make life difficult for Johnny Bloom, and are able to win in more ways than the Tigers can. – Jeff Bolzero
Things you need to know about Houston
The first factor that helped Houston reach Final 4: 3-point shooting.
The simple answer is D – and we reach the elite defensive unit of the Cougars. But the biggest difference between this year’s team and Kelvin Sampson’s previous iterations is the ability to consistently make shots from the Cougars’ boundaries. They led the country with three-point shooting, earning almost 40% of the shots from behind the arc, with three starters shooting over 42%.
Houston averaged 3 seconds per nine games in the NCAA Tournament, allowing him to take all his life from the elite eighth Tennessee state with Dagger 3 after Dagger 3 in the second half of the game. The Cougars hit five trays at the final 5:30 on Sunday, ruining the possibility of a volunteer comeback.
Editor’s Pick
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Houston’s Keys Against Duke: Defense > Attack.
Saturday’s final four showdowns against Duke will feature the most efficient attacks of the Kenpom era (after 1996-97) against the country’s best defense. Can the Cougars slow down the Blue Devil? Duke has torched his teams all season. Through the Cooper Flag, you can defeat enemies in a variety of ways, whether it’s a 3-point fire or use a good size to finish around the rim.
Houston plagues the game, making sure to stay in a predominantly half-court environment, leaning on its experience and physicality to drive the young Duke stars out of the rhythm. Is the best defense better than the best attack? I hope Houston does. – Jeff Bolzero
Things you need to know about Duke
The first factor that helped Duke reach the Final Four: Duke is more talented than any other team.
Cooper Flag and fellow NBA deserve most credits for prospects from Kaman Mallach and Kon Knupel, but the fleet of roster talent strengthened everything coach John Schayer did with it.
This has made practices more competitive. The team was able to overcome adversity (see: Flag was injured and won the ACC Tournament title). And in the final stages of the season, it means that players who leave the bench will become starters for many other teams. Caleb Foster is a top 30 recruit in high school, Isaiah Evans could be selected early in the NBA Draft this summer, while Mason Gillis was ranked 26th in Patrick Ngongi II, Patrick Ngongba II’s Paddo Ngongi II a year ago. How many teams will pull players of that pedigree off the bench?
From top to bottom, there are no teams in the field where you can build an equivalent collection of elite players.
1:57
Villas explains how Duke closed the Alabama attack
Jay Villas and Jay Williams analysed Duke’s emphatic victory over Alabama in the Elite 8.
Duke’s key to Houston: The Blue Devils’ ability to protect rims and paint.
This Duke team has one of the best defensive units in recent program history. Against Alabama’s team that made 25 3-pointers on the Sweet 16, the Blue Devils pushed the Crimson tide into a troublesome, unbalanced shot. Alabama plays at the fastest pace in America, but Duke has turned that tempo into chaos, limiting Alabama’s options around the rim.
Blue Devils will be baiting the big Blue Devils man by Khaman Maluach changing shots and blocking them or surrounding the Cooper Flag protecting the player at 90 feet, challenging the enemy at the boundary line. Alabama was outscored in double digits on Saturday. This is because Duke doesn’t give space to opposing teams to be comfortable in the post. – Myron Medcalf
Houston vs. Duke Prediction
Jeff Bolzero: Duke wins, 70-68
Myron Medcalf: Duke wins, 74-70
This will be an incredible contrast between the elite offense and the elite defense. This is one of the oldest teams to play against one of the youngest teams in the country. The problem with the Cougars is that the Blue Devils also have elite defensive capabilities that fit a good offense historically.
The Duke can switch everything and run a good shooter from the 3-point line with Kaman Mallach of paint to protect the rim. Houston tries to confuse Duke, but the Blue Devils’ offense is almost nothing f-stroke throughout the season. It continues in San Antonio. – Jeff Bolzero
Joe Runardi: Houston wins, 75-70
Duke Freshmen Cooper Flag, Conc Noupel, Kamanmaru Ach and Patrick Ngomba II make up the best frontcourts that other coaches want. They are also 18, 19, 18, and 19 years of age, respectively. Houston will face off against J’wan Roberts (23-year-old, 170 career games), Ja’vier Francis (22-128 games), Terrance Arceneaux (22-83 games) and Joseph Tugler (20-66 games). That’s a big difference between experience and basketball maturity.
Generally, I would still prefer talent over experience, but that doesn’t mean that the guys in Houston are not being recorded. The Cougars won 159 matches during their time at J’wan Roberts-Kelvin Sampson. This is their second final four together. The Cougars can claim their longest winning streak in the country with 17 consecutive victories. They have lost only once since November, and only once in regulations throughout the season.
This is a great matchup in every respect, but I have experienced veterans to the most talented freshmen in the tournament. – Joe Runardi
