Turns out that having all No. 1 seeds in the Final Four makes for pretty entertaining basketball.
As ridiculously good as the national semifinals were, no one will be pining to see Cinderella this late in the NCAA tournament next year.
In the opening game of Saturday night’s Final Four doubleheader, Florida rode Walter Clayton Jr.’s torrid shooting and improved second-half interior defense to a come-from-behind victory over SEC rival Auburn. Then, in the nightcap, Houston held Duke to one field goal in the final 10 minutes, storming back from a 14-point deficit with eight minutes to go to deny Cooper Flagg a national title shot.
Those results leave two teams left standing. It will be Florida versus Houston for college basketball’s ultimate prize. Either Houston wins its first national title after a litany of near misses dating back to the 1960s, or Florida joins a list of nine men’s college basketball programs with three or more championships.
Below are four keys to who wins the game.
1. Can Houston refocus after stunning upset of Duke?
It’s quite possible that Houston has already defeated the best team it will face in San Antonio, but the Cougars can’t call themselves champions yet. They’ll have to topple a second No. 1 seed, one with the most feared closer in college basketball and an array of talent and experience surrounding him.
Historically, it has been hard for teams to follow an emotional Final Four win with another in the title game. North Carolina ended Mike Krzyzewski’s coaching career in 2022 … and then lost to Kansas two nights later. Wisconsin denied Kentucky an undefeated national title in 2016 … and then blew its own chance at a championship ...
