We’re not really used to it but exceptionally, tonight, there is no NBA game on the program. And for good reason, all eyes will be on the last act of the NCAA Final Four, with Kansas and North Carolina who will compete for the title of university champion on the side of New Orleans. Come on, it’s time for the little home preview to warm up properly.
You may have planned to take advantage of a night without an NBA game to catch up on the 572 hours of sleep you are missing, but we will be in front of the screen to watch the grand final of college basketball at 3:20 a.m.. Already because a night without basketball, we simply can’t bear it and then because March Madness is still a world apart. 70,000 people are expected inside NOLA’s Superdome to see Kansas and North Carolina battle it out in Game 7 mode. NCAA fan or not for that matter. And if we know some who are disappointed that this final does not correspond to the final chapter of the career of Mike Krzyzewski, the iconic Duke coach eliminated by the Tar Heels in the half on Saturday, the storylines around the meeting are not lacking not. North Carolina coach and former NBA player Hubert Davis, for example, can achieve something historic by leading his team to the title when he is only in his first year as UNC head coach. A feat that has been achieved only once in NCAA history, maybe twice in a few hours. In the event of victory, the Tar Heels would hang a seventh championship banner on the ceiling (the first since 2017) and thus approach the total of Kentucky, second all-time behind UCLA with eight titles in all. On the Kansas side, the most successful program in the NCAA in terms of the number of victories accumulated, we are aiming for a fourth trophy and incidentally the second of the era Bill Self, coach of the Jayhawks since 2003 who will be keen to win for his dad who died in the month of january. Two years ago, with the arrival of COVID and the cancellation of March Madness, their momentum was truly cut short, it is now up to them to seize the opportunity to make history.
It’s CHAMPIONSHIP MONDAY in NOLA! ????
RT if you’re ready for the #NationalChampionship tonight on TBS between @KUHoops and @UNC_Basketball pic.twitter.com/uvOhyRc3Na
— NCAA March Madness (@MarchMadnessMBB) April 4, 2022
This is the decor. For the forces involved, we advise you to take a pen and write down a few names that could ignite the final tonight. The first is Caleb Love, the man who sent Coach K into retirement by planting a huge 3-pointer in the semifinal between Duke and North Carolina. Author of 28 points in total against the Blue Devils, the rear is on cloud nine at the moment and one wonders when he will come down. At his side, the combo guard RJ Davis and the sniper Brady Manek can also do damage, but North Carolina will mostly need a large Armando Bacothe who will be opposed to the imposing David McCormack in a duel that could well tip the scales one way or the other. During the half against Duke, Bacot finished with his 30th double-double of the season (11 points, 21 rebounds), breaking the record set by a certain Tim Duncan when he played in the ACC Conference under the colors of Wake. forest. What freaks out UNC fans a bit is that he is diminished in this game within the game because of his ankle injury suffered during the last moments of the fight against the Blue Devils. Because even if the two are friends after playing together in AAU, McCormack – 2m08 for 113 kilos anyway – will have every intention of confirming his XXL performance against Villanova (25 points, 9 rebounds). The other main player in Kansas’ victory and who could make the difference tonight is Ochai Agbaji. Being one of the nominees for the title of Player of the Year, the back confirmed his rise in power by burning the string against the Wildcats (21 points, 6/7 from afar). If you like snipers capable of taking off very seriously towards the circle, Agbaji is your client. Finally, you will also have to keep an eye on the little Remy Martincertainly discreet in half but author of a beautiful March Madness in booster mode when coming out of the bench, or even Christian Braun who hurt Villanova very badly through his banderillas sent in the second period on Saturday.
We have two playful teams, who like to set the pace and who should offer an opposition that is both open and pleasant. Bill Self’s men go off as favorites with their number one seed status, but North Carolina has been royally beating the odds for a while. And after sending Coach K to retirement, the Tar Heels think of only one thing: to stuff themselves with another K, that of Kansas.
Where to see the Kansas-North Carolina final?
???? #NBAextra
⚡️ No #NBA tonight but the tournament final #NCAA live on @beinsports_FR ! ???????? pic.twitter.com/5D5eXqH3jz— NBAextra (@NBAextra) April 4, 2022