This year's edition of the Final Four features a group of blue-blood programs in Kansas, Duke, Villanova, and North Carolina. Since 2008, the four schools have combined to win seven national titles, and if the hype isn't real enough, this is the first time in NCAA Tournament history that each semifinalist enters with multiple championships on their ledger.
Suffice to say, Saturday night's games at Caesars Superdome in New Orleans should deliver must-see drama and high-stakes tension. The only question is, which perennial powerhouse will capture this coveted championship and cut down the nets on Monday? Georgia Tech head coach Josh Pastner believes that it'll be one of his conference opponents. And no, the answer isn't Duke.
"You'd like to see Coach K and the storybook ending happen with him winning a national title, when you think about the emotional part," Pastner explained to The Zach Gelb Show on Friday. "If you're strictly thinking about the basketball aspect of it, I think Carolina is going to win the national championship and cut down the nets on Monday... Duke's really good -- they've got over 30 wins.
"Any time you have over 30 wins, you're a really good college team. They're very talented, and got multiple first-round draft picks... I just think Carolina's offensive output and their ability to score in bunches, the multiple weapons they can put on the court. Then they've got [Armando] Bacot in the middle, who was an ACC Player of the Year candidate... They're just very good."
North Carolina, which finished the regular season 23-8 under first-year coach Hubert Davis, punched a Final Four ticket with a 69-49 drubbing of Cinderella darling Saint Peter's in the East Region final on Sunday. They held the lead for all 40 minutes, led by as many as 27 points, and Bacot posted 20 points with 22 rebounds. According to ESPN Stats, he's the first player with that stat line during the Elite Eight or later since Hakeem Olajuwon (1983).
For the first time in history, the Tar Heels and Blue Devils will meet each other in the NCAA Tournament, and the winner of Saturday's game (8:49 ET tip-off) will advance to the championship game and earn long-lasting bragging rights. According to FiveThirtyEight's projections, Carolina has a 38-percent chance to beat its longtime foe. And if they survive, they'll also send legendary Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski into retirement with a gut-wrenching loss.
The entire college basketball conversation between Pastner and Gelb can be accessed in the audio player above.
You can follow The Zach Gelb Show on Twitter @ZachGelb and Tom Hanslin @TomHanslin.