Final Four (2009)
Everything on UNC, UConn, MSU and 'Nova
Thinking about the NBA draft? Take some advice from Mr. T: Stay in school.
Just ask North Carolina, Kansas or Florida. There’s never been a better time to come back and win a title.
“We came back to accomplish something,” UNC senior Danny Green said after beating Michigan State on Sunday. “We had to make some sacrifices. We had to give up a lot of individual things to make this work. I think we did a great job the whole season of being selfless and sharing the ball with each other and sacrificing.”
The Tar Heels’ quartet of Tyler Hansbrough, Ty Lawson, Wayne Ellington and Green were just the latest group of players to put their professional careers on hold and have it result in NCAA glory. If college coaches are smart, they’re gathering their players and telling them that they too could win it all.
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Michigan State and North Carolina will play for the NCAA men's championship on Monday night -- duh. But there's another honor at stake when the two schools take the floor: team of the decade.
The first one’s official. You’ve probably seen the trophy.
But the second carries bragging rights that aren’t associated with just one tournament. It’s excellence over an extended period of time, using different sets of players and sometimes different coaches.
Much like Duke and Kentucky can make arguments about which team had a better '90s, the Spartans and Tar Heels will do the same after Monday.
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On paper, North Carolina should run Michigan State out of the building during Monday’s national title game.
The Heels have more NBA-caliber players, a more experienced team and the game’s most potent offense.
Yet a big, big part of me thinks the Spartans are going to win Monday. Not sure who I’m picking just yet, but I do know that in working up these player matchups for the title game, I found myself unable to choose between Ty Lawson and Kalin Lucas and which roster has the superior bench.
Plus, there’s the whole home crowd thing. Ford Field’s a cavernous space, but of the 72,000 fans expected to be in attendance, the majority will be wearing green. That’s no small thing.
But I could be wrong. After all, the Heels already ran away from the Spartans once this season … but check out the player matchups and cast your vote. I’ll be back with more tomorrow on the title game.
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Only a rube would doubt Michigan State’s place among college basketball’s elite programs. Recently, it has to rank among the top 7. Maybe better.
The Spartans may not have the name recognition to casual fans as Duke or North Carolina, but anyone who’s filled out a bracket in the last 10 years knows you ignore Tom Izzo’s team at your own risk.
Since 1999, Michigan State’s been to five Final Fours, more than any other school. Among active coaches, only Mike Krzyzewski (.763) and Billy Donovan (.759) have higher NCAA tournament winning percentage than Izzo (.750).
Throw in the 2000 NCAA title and five regular-season Big Ten titles, and Sparty has the résumé to match any team around.
Yet every year, Michigan State and the rest of the Big Ten are ripped for their slow-it-down, bruising, aesthetic-less style of play. But why is that? Doesn’t its record speak for itself?
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The next few days will ultimately determine Tyler Hansbrough’s college basketball legacy.
Accolades aren’t the issue for the North Carolina senior. Few players can match being national and ACC player of the year, a consensus first-team All-American three times (and second-team as a freshman) and the career scoring leader at UNC and in the ACC.
Hansbrough’s been the face of college basketball for nearly three years, as the best player on one of the sport’s most storied programs. He’s led the Heels in scoring and rebounding for four years, the only player to ever do so. UNC’s won nearly 85 percent of its games – 122-22 in the last four years – a mark only a few players in NCAA history can surpass.
He’ll surely go down as one of the best players of his era, perhaps even of the last decade. But without an NCAA tournament title, will Hansbrough’s legacy be remembered as really good, but not elite?
Does Hansbrough need a trophy to be considered an all-time great?
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Final Four teams never lack for talent, and this year’s no exception. Connecticut, Michigan State, North Carolina and Villanova all feature deep, balanced roster sprinkled with future NBA players.
The coaches read like a who’s who in college hoops. Jim Calhoun, Tom Izzo, Roy Williams and Jay Wright all have won national coach of the year awards. Combined, they have 16 Final Four berths and four NCAA tournament titles.
But the real driving force behind these teams is at the point. Kalin Lucas, Ty Lawson, A.J. Price and Scottie Reynolds comprise four of the game’s best floor generals. They score, pass, defend (to varying degrees) and are all touted as true team leaders.
Even better? They’ve been at their best in the Big Dance.
Here’s a closer look at each player’s strengths, weaknesses and what it means for the Final Four.
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Michigan State’s impressive win against Louisville gives Tom Izzo a chance at the ultimate prize: Coaching at Kentucky.
OK, there’s a little sarcasm in there.
Izzo’s going to be focused beating Connecticut and trying to win a second NCA tournament title. But rest assured you’ll hear Izzo’s name mentioned as possibly the next coach in Lexington more than once this week.
Billy Gillispie’s ouster in Lexington has the rumor mill in full swing. Nearly every big-name coach – except for Billy Donovan – seems to be a candidate. Izzo, Villanova’s Jay Wright, Pitt’s Jamie Dixon, Texas’ Rick Barnes and Memphis’ John Calipari are chief among them.
So what's it all mean?
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