Fighting to the Finals: March Madness Mayhem
No. 11 UCLA celebrates after beating No. 2 Alabama, continuing their Cinderella Story into the Elite Eight.
March Madness is heating up as the Elite Eight wraps up and the Final Four will emerge this week. At this point it’s anybody’s game as the tournament comes to close. However, the Big Dance continues with many teams trying to see their Cinderella story through.
What may be the most shocking team making it into the Final Four is No. 11 UCLA. This powerhouse of a team took down a seemingly unstoppable No. 2 Alabama in the Elite Eight in overtime with a score of 88-78. The Bruins were able to continue this streak by upsetting No. 1 Michigan on Tuesday night with a score of 51-49, surprising fans everywhere.
Another exciting matchup in the West was between No. 1 Gonzaga and No. 6 USC that decided the third spot in the Final Four. Gonzaga got the easy win over underdogs USC with a score of 85-66. The fan favorite Bulldogs have a strong chance of making it to the finals and even winning it all.
Now onto who’s already in the Final Four. On Monday, No. 2 Houston took down No. 12 Oregon St., advancing to the Final Four. The Oregon Beavers were down for the majority of the game, but came back and tied Houston in the last five minutes. However, the Cougars were able to pull through and win 67-61.
The No. 1 Baylor Bears were able to crank out an easy win against No. 3 Arkansas 81-72. Baylor has dominated throughout the entire tournament and are likely to go very far moving forward.
Houston will play No. 1 Baylor on April 3 in the Final Four. This No. 1 and No. 2 matchup was not on many fan’s radars but it will definitely be a close game nonetheless.
Here are my picks for the winners of the Final Four and the rest of the tournament. No. 1 Gonzaga will stop No. 11 UCLA in their tracks and unfortunately end their Cinderella Story. On the other side, No. 2 Houston will upset the favorite No. 1 Baylor putting them into the semifinals. Gonzaga will defeat Houston making the Gonzaga Bulldogs the winners of March Madness.
Despite my predictions, anything could happen. Be sure to watch the first Final Four game on April 3 at 4:14 p.m. and 7:34 p.m.
Kennedy is a senior here and it is her third year in the journalism program. Kennedy is the president of C.R.U. and a family captain this year. She is...
