NCAA Title Game Prediction

 

Hello again. I was in Boston over the weekend, so I did not get to preview the Final 4. But I am back at it to preview tonight's conclusion to March Maddens, as #7 UConn takes on #8 Kentucky for all of the marbles. Let's breakdown this game and I will give you who I think will be crowned the 2014 NCAA Men's Basketball Champion.

Offense
No brainer here. The Cats, led by Julius Randall and the Harrison twins, are a solid offensive team and have been this whole tournament. UConn, on the other hand, has struggled offensively all year long, and it has continued the past 2 games, with the Huskies scoring 60 and 63 points respectively. Shabzz Napier and DeAndre Daniles are both solid, but I just think the Wildcats have more offensive firepower.

Edge: UK

Defense
This is where the Huskies have an advantage. When a team is 144th in the country and makes it to the title game,  they must be doing something right defensively. The Huskies have size and are very athletic, and the same could be said about UK. I just fell that UConn has a slight edge, as the Cats cannot force turnovers, while the Huskies rank in the top ten in the country in steals per game.

Edge: UConn

Coaching: Calipari>Ollie. Not a lot of explaining needs to be done here.

Edge: UK

Overall: These teams match up very evenly, but I feel that one huge stat to point out is that UK is 5th in the country in offensive rebounding. I feel that that stat could be the key to tonight's game. As for experience, UConn does not have anymore then Kentucky does when it comes to big games, no matter how many Freshman UK has. I feel that while both teams were not expected to be here, UK has more talent and has thought through more adversity, as they have played in more close games.

Therefore, Kentucky takes it home tonight.

Winner and 2014 NCAA Men's Basketball National Champions: Kentucky Wildcats