The final four is upon us, let’s get started.

I feel that coming so far in this tournament, each team deserves to share their story of how they got here.

Let’s start with #1 seed Gonzaga. Back in July, Gonzaga was picked to be the best team in the country and oh boy did they live up to that. Gonzaga finished the 2020-2021 season perfectly with no losses. They then went on to beat BYU in the WWC conference to win their division. They entered the tournament with all their star players including Suggs, Timmie, and Crisper. They went on to sweep their #16 seeded opponent and then beat Oklahoma in the second round and flew by the #5 seeded Crighton. Next, they had really their first challenge, USC however still dominated the game and now they are before us in the Final Four.

Now we look at #11 seed UCLA. This team is aggressive and that they are only the fifth 11 seed to make it to the final 4. UCLA started out the year really well however started to fall due to covid and poor play. They lost their conference tournament and many people thought that they wouldn’t even make it to the tournament. However, it would be that they would have to play Michigan State in the play-in game to see who would make it to the tournament. During that game, both teams went into overtime where MSU fell short and let UCLA loose in the field of 64. They went on to beat BYU, Albiline Christan, #2 Alabama, and then to shock win against #1 Michigan. That brings us here to the final 4 where they will battle an undefeated Gonzaga powerhouse.

Next, we have the #1 seed, Baylor. This team is one of the most solid teams in the history of March Madness. They play very well as a team, they shoot the ball very well, and they have a stingy defense. Baylor started their year out perfect until they hit a big delay. Baylor had many COVID-positive students on their roster and had to take nearly 3 weeks off. When Baylor came back they were still very good, however, they dropped a couple of games, including their conference championship. They still dominated in the tournament beating every one of their opponents by a large margin.

The final is #2 Houston. This Houston team can be seen as a wildcard as you really don’t know which team is going to show up on the court, the #2 seed, or their weaknesses. Each of their games this tournament has been extremely close, but they still have made it here and they are a very well-balanced team that has a strong basketball IQ.

The teams are now settled and we just have to wait and see who comes out with a bang. Each team is a champion in their own right, but now it’s time to see who goes to the play for a national title.