NCAA basketball: and then there were four

Sixty-eight teams started the March Madness college basketball tournament, and now just four remain.

In a short but wild two weeks, we have now whittled those large and cumbersome numbers down to just a select four. Four teams left to decide who our 2025 national champion will be.

And what a foursome we have. Not a dud in the bunch. All four teams were the number-one seeds, and all four were dominant teams over the course of the past season. Make no mistake, Cinderella was not invited to this year’s dance.

Trying to pick a favorite from these four teams is like trying to pick a favorite flavor of ice cream. Maybe you like one a little better, maybe one looks pretty good at the moment, but they are all delicious and they all taste great!

Let’s take a quick look at all four. Again, trying to pick an ultimate winner out of this bunch is next to impossible, a total crapshoot based on the incredible quality of all four.

Florida is as good as it gets. Not just for its beautiful weather and sunshine drenched beaches, but also for this university's basketball team. Young coach Todd Golden, who looks younger than his players, has put together a true quality squad. Florida is led by the best point guard in the nation, Walter Clayton Jr., and Florida Atlantic transfer Alijah Stewart. 

The ”x” factor for the Gators is big man off the bench Thomas Haugh, who has been outstanding the second half of the season and now into tournament play.

Florida made a miracle comeback (Haugh with two three-pointers and Clayton with two threes—all coming in the final three minutes) to defeat Texas Tech. Can that momentum carry them all the way? Don’t bet against them.

Then there is Auburn, which returns to the Final Four, led again by the mercurial coach Bruce Pearl and his band of brothers (the players!) who can all shoot, drive and play defense. 

The team depth is off the charts, but clearly the key is the man in the middle, Johnni Broom, a first team all-American, likely national player of the year and an automatic scoring machine from the inside.

The Auburn Tigers were the best overall team for a good part of the season, but did slip a bit at the end, losing three of their final five games.  But that was then, and it seems now they have got back on track in a major way, winning all four of their games to get to the Final Four with relative ease.

Pearl’s Auburn team lost an absolute heartbreaker a few years ago to Virginia. Don’t bet against them this time.

Next up are the Houston Cougars, who are an absolute machine on the hardcourt, most recently seen with all gears in motion while destroying a very good Tennessee team.

Similar to Auburn, the Cougars’ team depth is their strength with any number of players able to score, rebound and defend at a high level. Veterans L.J. Cryer and Emmanuel Sharpe are the two best, but stopping just those two alone won’t do the trick. 

The Cougars are loaded with scoring threats, and their swarming defense is maybe the best of all four remaining teams. Can Coach Kelvin Sampson finally win the big one? Repeat the mantra: Don’t bet against them.

And finally, there is Duke. The Blue Devils, an icon for many years in college basketball, have returned to greatness.(Actually they never left!) Duke boasts a squad with more than enough talent to win the entire tournament.

Freshman sensation Cooper Flagg gets all the attention, but another freshman, Kon Kneupple, is just as important. The two superstar youngsters get plenty of help from a host of others, including veteran guard Tyrese Proctor and a tough-as-nails point guard, Tulane transfer Sion James.

Coach Jon Scheyer is a Chicago native (Glenbrook North High School), and has done a tremendous job keeping the program going after the legendary “Coach K” stepped down three years ago.

Picking a winner from these four? Forget about it. 

You might as well bring out a coin and keep flipping it till you get your desired result. You could literally play this Final Four field out four different times and have a different winner each time.

They are that evenly matched up.

A few days to rest. A few days to catch our breath…and then, starting Saturday, the games resume and, one way or another, a champion will be crowned on Monday night, April 7. 

Saying it should be fun to watch is like saying it was “sort of” cool to land a spaceship on the moon back in the ’60s.

Our best recommendation? Buckle up and enjoy!