Ty's 2023 Men's Basketball Final Four Predictions
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The men's final four is this weekend. I am going to do a preview and prediction. With that being said, take this prediction with the biggest grain of salt. On my personal brackets I have zero of the final four teams. I filled out multiple brackets too. This tourney has been nuts and all of my "bracket buster" picks were wrong. I also had Arizona in the Final Four. They got beat on the first day. I had Purdue making a run. They were the second 1 seed to be beat by a 16. I was sticking up for Marquette, and they were gone after the first round. I'm just saying, I may not be the best predictor out there. Just a heads up.
Where we stand, we have San Diego State, Florida Atlantic, UConn and Miami in the Final Four. There are two 5 seeds, a 9 seed and a 4 seed. That is wild. Two of the teams are from power 5 programs, but the other two are mid majors. Three of the final four teams have never been this far before. This is pretty much unheard, especially after the blueblood fest that was last season's final four. But I am excited for this four team crew. There is no team I dislike and no team I am a humongous fan of. I could care less who wins. If I am sticking up for any team it is SDSU due to the Michigan connection. But I have always liked UConn. Seeing a perennial football power like Miami here is rad. I am enjoying the whole FAU storyline that is going on. This is fun. This is why they put "madness" within the "March Madness" marketing.
With all that, I am most excited to watch FAU-SDSU. These are the two mid majors. These teams couldn't be more different. FAU wants to move up and down the floor. They want to shoot and shoot some more. They are fast and athletic and want a track meet. SDSU is all about their defense. I saw a stat in their elite eight game that said they have held their last five opponents below their season scoring average and 3 point percentage. I love that. They also like playing a half court game and shortening the other team's time of possession. They are a throwback team. They are also older and experienced. That is why I'm going with the Aztecs to make the title game. They have a little bit of everything, they have played a tougher schedule and they are coming off upsetting the number 1 overall seed. And their defense is otherworldly.
The "blueblood" matchup has UConn and Miami. Miami is fun. They are like a bigger FAU. They also have a ton of experience. They can also absolutely shoot the lights out. Miami deserves to be here. UConn should be the prohibitive favorites, definitely now. They have it all. They have size, athleticism, shooting, speed, experience and talent. They have been very good all season long. They have also been consistent. They are such a good, deep basketball team. They have also been destroying their opponents in the tourney. I think they will do the same to Miami. UConn is so good and they will overwhelm the hell out of you. In each game it is close for a half, and then UConn has put it on teams in the second half. I believe that will happen tomorrow.
So that gives me UConn-SDSU in the title game. And much like their entire tournament run to this point, I think they will be too much for SDSU. I will be pulling for SDSU. I'd love for them to prove me wrong. I'd love to see their defense play their best game all season long in the title game. But I just do not see that happening. UConn can counter anything SDSU might throw at them. They can also play the exact same thing, but their size and talent will win out in the end. UConn is going to win it all this season and announce their return loudly back at the top of men's NCAA basketball. They are loaded and they will win it all in pretty resounding fashion.
Now let's get to these games. I am pumped.
Ty
Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing, the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast, and the greatest basketball writer on the internet.