On Monday the University of Connecticut Huskies will take on the Kentucky Wildcats in the National Championship as March Madness concludes. The matchup of the #7 ranked Huskies and #8 ranked Wildcats is something that no one could have predicted and thus Warren Buffet’s billion dollars is safe for another year.
In a Tournament filled with upsets, it seems fitting that the National Championship game features the lowest combined seeds (15) of any NCAA National Championship since seeding was introduced in 1979. It also is the first time that no #1 or #2 seed has made it to the Championship game.
The Huskies started the day of upsets, ending the 30-game winning streak of the number one ranked team in the country, the Florida Gators. DeAndre Daniels and Ryan Boatright were the Huskies stars in a 63-53 over the heavily favored Gators on Saturday. Daniels had 20 points on 9-of-14 shooting and 10 rebounds, and Boatright finished with 13 points in the come from behind victory for UConn. Shabazz Napier, the Huskies leader all season, added 12 points, six assists and four steals.
“We’ve been saying all year that we’ve got a complete team,” Boatright said. “It’s not a one-man team. It’s not a two-man team. We’ve got a complete team.”
The Huskies (31-8) were the last team to beat Florida, on December 2nd, 2013, on a last second Napier three. No last minute heroics were needed in this game though as the Huskies dominated the second half and won by 10.
“I don’t know if you all keep thinking it’s a one-man team, but it’s not,” UConn coach Kevin Ollie said. “Shabazz is the first one to tell you and I keep telling everybody it’s not just him.”
Meanwhile the Kentucky Wildcats beat the Wisconsin Badgers 74-73 in a game that did feature last minute heroics. Aaron Harrison, the hero of the Wildcats last second victory over the Michigan Wolverines in the elite eight, and their victory over the Louisville Cardinals in the sweet sixteen, did it again hitting a three-pointer with just 5.7 seconds left to give the Wildcats the lead.
Traevon Jackson had a last-second shot to try to beat the Wildcats, but his desperation jump shot rimmed out and once again Harrison found himself at the bottom of a dog pile at centre court.
“You can’t be scared to miss, and you want to be that guy that wants to take the big shots,” Aaron Harrison said.
The three straight game winning shots in the final seconds have been just part of the Cinderella story for John Calipari’s Wildcats. To make it even more special the assist on his last two game winning shots went to his brother Andrew Harrison.
While other teams with big-time one and done recruits flamed out early, Calipari’s Wildcats have made a magical run to the National Championship game defeating higher seeds in each of their last four games. While the team disappointed in the regular season, they have certainly come to play in the tournament.
“I know how good they are, but I don’t know how they play,” Kentucky coach John Calipari said of his next opponent.
And so on Monday, we get the showdown no one predicted, as Cinderella plays Cinderella for the National Championship.
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