And then there were four! This year’s annual NCAA Men’s Basketball tournament is down to the Final Four. This year’s Final Four consists of the Auburn Tigers, the Florida Gators, the Duke Blue Devils, and the Houston Cougars.
These four number-one seeds were victorious in their respective regions, making this the first time since 2008 that four one seeds reached the final four.
This year’s final four is filled with the brightest stars, as the highly anticipated matchups between Florida’s National Player of the Year Finalist Walter Clayton Jr. and Auburn’s superstar forward Johni Broome, Duke’s Freshman sensation Cooper Flagg, and Houston’s lead guard and 2021 NCAA Champion LJ Cryer.
The first round of this year’s tournament only featured two top-five seed upsets, which was the lowest since 2023, which featured both a one-seed and a two-seed getting knocked out in the first round.
The most notable headline this year is the lack of the madness that the NCAA tournament normally brings. As always, there have been thrilling game-winners and big-time plays, but there has been a lack of upsets in this year’s tournament. Only one double-digit seed made the Sweet 16 this year, which was the 10 seed Arkansas Razorbacks who were quick to get bounced by Texas Tech.
Considering the large number of Cinderella teams in the past few years, such as the North Carolina State Wolfpack and the Florida Atlantic Owls, this year brought a lack of underdog runs in the tournament.
The main reason for the major team imbalance in the tournament this year has to do with the transfer portal. Each year, the number of players who have to enter the transfer portal has skyrocketed (with more than 20 players entering the transfer portal after the tournament’s first round).
The portal allows players to switch schools constantly to seek NIL money and different roles in a new opportunity. The larger schools are reaping the benefits of this. Power 4 conferences have the finances and competition stage to influence transfers from smaller schools to join their schools, creating a large talent imbalance between high-major and low-major teams.
Another reason for the lack of madness this year has been the number of coaches who leave their schools as soon as their team’s March Madness run comes to a close. Coaches such as Kevin Willard from Maryland and Will Wade from Mcneese State were quick to jump ship after their tournament losses. As the coaches make these decisions, it will affect the players because they want to follow their coaches and leave their schools to garner more exposure.
As the final four approaches, my picks for the Final Four games are for Florida to defeat Auburn 80-76, led by National Player of the Year Finalist Walter Clayton J and Florida’s high-octane offense.
Houston will pull off the massive upset of Duke 81-74 due to the spectacular play of 2021 National Champion LJ Cryer. The Blue Devils have been the hottest team in the tournament, but critical mistakes made by their young starting lineup will doom them.
In the national championship, Florida will get by Houston 75-71, with Walter Clayton carrying the Gators to their first title since 2007 when they won back-to-back titles in 2006 and 2007. The final four are expected to bring some incredible matchups and a ton of madness. It will be interesting to see who comes out on top!
