I, for one, am grateful for the tariffs.
It places my worst ROI in 15 years in perspective.
Duke (-5.5) over Houston
The Cougars are not any enjoyable to face. That has been the case for almost a decade, since Kelvin Sampson introduced Houston again to prominence with physicality, ferocity and a protection designed to sap all pleasure from the sport. However protection isn’t sufficient to hold the Cougars to their first championship. When the pictures inevitably go chilly, Houston’s slow-paced, low-possession system permits no room for error in a single-elimination sport.
The Cougars have been ousted within the 2019 Candy 16 after scoring 58 factors. They misplaced within the 2021 Ultimate 4 after being held to 59 factors in a 19-point loss to eventual champion Baylor. They shot beneath 30 p.c in 2022, scoring 44 factors in an Elite Eight loss. They shot beneath 38 p.c in a 14-point loss to Miami within the 2023 Candy 16. And final yr, Houston was restricted to 51 factors in a Candy 16 loss to Duke.
The rematch finds Duke with even better benefits. Essentially the most evident distinction is the presence of the nation’s finest participant (Cooper Flagg), plus a pair of projected lottery picks (7-foot-2 Khaman Maluach and Kon Knueppel). The Blue Devils enter with the dominance and swagger of yore, profitable 31 of their previous 32 video games (just one win by fewer than six factors), with the most-highly environment friendly offense of the KenPom period (starting with the 1996-97 season).
Houston — which was almost upset by Gonzaga and Purdue within the NCAA Event — went 1-3 in opposition to top-five offenses this season, however Duke’s top-five protection ought to trigger better concern for the Cougs. Final week, the Blue Devils refused to permit Alabama, the fastest-paced/highest-scoring workforce within the nation, to get clear seems to be, holding the Tide to their second-lowest level whole of the season (65), 26 factors under their season common. Houston’s offense shouldn’t fare any higher, rating 282nd within the nation in 2-point taking pictures share and 313th in free throw fee, with an overreliance on offensive boards that gained’t bail them out in opposition to Duke’s larger frontline.
Florida (-2.5) over Auburn
Solely in March have been the Gators first acknowledged as the most effective workforce within the nation’s finest league, however the fact was foreshadowed on Feb. 8, when Florida traveled to Auburn and left with a convincing victory, ending the Tigers’ 14-game profitable streak. In that matchup, Nationwide Participant of the Yr contender Johni Broome shot 8-of-19 in opposition to Florida’s deep and lengthy frontline. The Gators additionally gained that street sport with out second-leading scorer Alijah Martin, the fifth-year senior who was a starter on Florida Atlantic’s Ultimate 4 workforce.
Now, coach Todd Golden has everybody again, holding the best edge in a sport that probably will likely be determined within the ultimate minutes — Walter Clayton Jr. There isn’t any participant within the nation who has been extra clutch within the event than the Iona star turned First Workforce All-American, whose latest performances rank among the many finest in latest reminiscence. There isn’t any participant within the nation with a greater case to take the largest pictures. It’s his sport to resolve.
Betting on Faculty Basketball?
This season: 23-30
2011-24 document: 378-340-12
