The March Madness tournament never fails to disappoint. Fans from all around the world sit at home and watch the best teams go head-to-head on their quest for a nationalchampionship. This year was filled with many upsets and historic runs. In the end the four teams from their respective regions battle out for the title. This years Final Four contained powerhouse schools, Duke, North Carolina, Kansas, and Villanova.
The first game tipped off on Saturday, April 2, between Kansas and Villanova. Kansas jumped out to an early 10-0 lead and never looked back. Kansas was lead by David McCormack and Ochai Agbaji who each poured in 20 or more points. For Villanova Collin Gillespie and Brandon Slater turned in solid performances in their losing effort.
Game number two of the Final Four was a classic rivalry showdown between Duke and North Carolina. Coach Mike Krzyzewski announced earlier in the season that this would indeed be his last season coaching at Duke University. First year head coach Hubert Davis for North Carolina took his team on an improbable run to get to this point, beating higher seeds such as Baylor and UCLA.
A very highly contested first half proved to be the same in the second half. With Duke clinging to a 3-point lead at half, North Carolina never fell short of confidence. Caleb Love and Armando Bacot turned in incredible performances to keep North Carolina close. With under a minute left Duke had there chance at the free throw line and were unable to capitalize. This led to an 81-77 victory over the Duke Blue Devils for North Carolina, ending an incredible career for Coach K.
In the championship game it was Kansas taking on North Carolina. Bill Self vs. Hubert Davis. David McCormick vs. Armando Bacot. It was a classic national championship game between two powerhouse programs. Students around the building were ecstatic talking about the national championship.
“I’m really pulling for North Carolina,” senior Jacob Majczyk said. “It’s crazy how they even got here, so if they lose I’m going to be really heated.”
At Cathedral Prep, most students were split on who they thought would win, and that’s how the game played out. In the beginning it was all North Carolina, as the Tar Heels jumped out to a 40-25 lead going into halftime. But if you know Jayhawks basketball, you know they never quit. Kansas stormed back to take the lead on North Carolina with 9 minutes to go in the half. After back-and-forth action Kansas led UNC by 3 with 4.5 seconds left in the game. Caleb Love of UNC had a chance to tie the game from the top of the key with a 3 and came up with nothing but air. Kansas won the 2022 NCAA national championship in what proved to be an instant classic.
Senior Jack Rouch mentioned how pumped he was that Kansas won.
“I was so hype, bro,” Jack said. “I’ve been a fan of them since I was a kid, and to see them pull it out was incredible to watch.”
This year’s Final Four turned out to be nothing less that incredible. Congratulations to Kansas on winning the national nhampionship. This season featured great moments and incredible memories. As we take a look ahead at next year’s season, ESPN ranked Arkansas as the #1 team followed by Houston and UCLA to round out the top 3. March Madness seems to get better and better each year.
Stay tuned for NCAAM and hopefully NCAAW basketball articles next year here on The Rambler.
