The 4 Biggest Questions for the NCAA Men’s & Women’s Final Four Weekends
The month of madness is finally coming to a close. We’ve seen a 16-seed and a 15-seed make NCAA Tournament history while all four 1-seeds failed to reach the Elite 8 in the men’s bracket for the first time ever. The women’s game saw two 1-seeds sent packing by 8-seeds in the Sweet 16 while South Carolina continues their pursuit of a perfect season. And when the upcoming weekend closes out March and welcomes April, we’ll be crowning champions.
It’s Final Four weekend and the big finale of a month to remember. Two games tonight will determine our women’s National Championship Game on Sunday while Saturday's men's Final Four will set up Monday’s title game. Here are the four biggest questions we’ll get answers to this weekend:
4 Biggest Final Four Questions
1. Will South Carolina Go Undefeated?
We start with the women’s tourney where Caitlin Clark (Iowa), Kim Mulkey (LSU) and the underdog Hokies (Virginia Tech) are all waiting to take their shot at the juggernauts from South Carolina (36-0). Aliyah Boston, Brea Beal and Zia Cooke are two wins from a historic perfect season, and head coach Dawn Staley has built the next great women’s basketball dynasty. Perfection is within reach, but it requires one final test.
2. Can Florida Atlantic Make History as a 9-Seed?
The lowest seed to ever win the National Championship is an 8 — Villanova in 1985 — but Florida Atlantic has risen from Conference USA and slayed one giant after another. The Owls have taken down Memphis, Duke and Kansas State, and only two games stand in the way of FAU becoming the lowest seed to ever win March Madness.
3. Is UConn One of the Best Tourney Teams Ever?
The 4-seed Huskies were a hot pick when the bracket was revealed, and there’s a reason why. Connecticut began the year on a 14-game win streak, and they were ranked as high as No. 2 in the nation before the holiday break. The Huskies tumbled after losing six out of eight, but they went 9-2 the rest of the season with those two losses by a combined five points. If you isolate that brutal three-week stretch in the schedule, UConn was 23-2, and they still ended up as a 4-seed. They’ve manhandled every opponent in the tournament to the tune of a 22.5-point average margin of victory — the fourth-highest ever. Only UCLA (1967), Indiana (1981) and Loyola Chicago (1963) have scored higher average win margins in the history of the NCAA Tournament.
4. Who Wins the Tournament MVPs?
We’ll use our fourth question to touch on both the men’s and women’s brackets. Three players stand out in the women’s game — Caitlin Clark (Iowa), Angel Reese (LSU) and Aliyah Boston (South Carolina) — and it obviously depends on which team wins it all. The men’s tournament has more options with multiple potential winners on each squad. Both Jordan Miller and Isaiah Wong are capable MVP candidates from Miami. Johnell Davis and Alijah Martin are the deserving duo from FAU. UConn is led by Adama Sanogo and Jordan Hawkins who have taken turns dominating opponents. Then, there’s San Diego State with a roster so fluid and deep that just about any starter could pop off and win the award. If it wasn’t predicated on who wins (it’s not supposed to be, but it is), then Caitlin Clark (Iowa) and Jordan Hawkins (UConn) would be the likely favorites.
Women’s Final Four Schedule
#1 Virginia Tech vs. #3 LSU (Fri. 7:00 pm ET)
#1 South Carolina vs. #2 Iowa (Fri. 9:00 pm ET)
Women’s National Championship (Sunday, April 2)
Women’s Championship Odds
South Carolina (-310)
LSU (+700)
Virginia Tech (+800)
Iowa (+900)
Men’s Final Four Schedule
#5 San Diego State vs. #9 Florida Atlantic (Sat. 6:09 pm ET)
#4 UConn vs. #5 Miami (Sat. 8:49 pm ET)
Men’s National Championship (Monday, April 3)
Men’s Championship Odds
UConn (-130)
San Diego State (+350)
Miami (+500)
Florida Atlantic (+550)
Additional Storylines
Yahoo! Sports: Ranking the Final Four Starters From 1-20
ESPN: 2023 Final Four Beting Preview: Can UConn’s Historic Success Continue?
SI: How UConn Went From Rock Bottom in January to a Trip to the Final Four
FOX Sports: Women’s Final Four: Everything to Know About South Carolina-Iowa & LSU-Virginia Tech