The March Madness continues into April, as the women’s and men’s Final Four tip off on April 3 and April 4, respectively. With six exciting games between both brackets, here is who The Collegian sports section thinks will take home the championships.
NHU-HAN BUI | SPORTS CO-EDITOR | hbui@butler.edu
Although I do not keep up with March Madness, there has been no shortage of exciting games this year. My knowledge is admittedly low about these four teams, but I have to back fellow Big East school UConn. After first-year guard Braylon Mullins completed a beautiful comeback with a three-pointer against Duke, I can see the Huskies winning it all. The game against the Blue Devils proved that they have the resiliency and mindset to win against any opponent.
On the women’s side, the Huskies have been dominant all season, boasting a perfect 38-0 record with no signs of slowing down. I have no doubt that head coach Geno Auriemma’s squad can complete the repeat, and Storrs will be seeing two championship titles come home.
DAVID JACOBS | MANAGING EDITOR | drjacobs@butler.edu
My men’s bracket is an utter disaster. Truly one of the worst ones I have ever put together; however, I will hang my hat on still getting two Final Four teams right: UConn and Michigan. So, I am riding with the Huskies and Wolverines to win their match-ups against Illinois and Arizona, respectively, and give me UConn to win its third title in four years.
As for the women’s side of things, I correctly picked six of the Elite Eight teams and three of the Final Four participants. While there is a lot of talent on all remaining squads, I will be riding with UConn here, too. The Huskies just have too much talent on their roster to pick any other direction.
JAMIE HEALY | STAFF REPORTER | jdhealy1@butler.edu
After a much more exciting tournament compared to last year, it is finally time to crown a champion. In the first matchup, history is on Connecticut’s side. Not only have they won two of the last three national championships, but they dominated Illinois in the 2024 East Regional Final and beat them earlier this year as well. However, this is a much-improved Illinois team; for example, first-year point guard Keaton Wagler played only 13 minutes in the first meeting this season. Once given the keys to the offense, he has been sensational. Along with Wagler, the emergence of first-year forward David Mirkovic and junior forward Andrej Stojaković leads me to believe the Illini will find a way to return to the National Championship. In the other matchup, Arizona and Michigan have been arguably the best two teams all season long. In a clash between these two heavyweights, give me Arizona. When the brackets came out, the Wildcats were my national champion. I will double down on my pick. Arizona has been the most consistent team all season long, except for a poor showing the second week of February. Exacting revenge for the 2005 classic between them, the Wildcats will find a way to claim their second national championship and once again, cut down the nets in Indianapolis just as they did when they shocked the nation 29 years ago.
As for the women’s side, I believe it ends with UConn taking the title. They have been the best team all year long and Auriemma will solidify his legacy with his 13th national title.
BROOKS BAKER-WATSON | STAFF REPORTER | bbakerwatson@butler.edu
I do not pay attention to basketball that much, so statistics will have to do my talking for me.
Since 1985, the NCAA has been tracking the frequency of every seed that has made it to the Final Four, National Championship game and won the tournament. In front of the pack by a country mile, no surprise, are one-seeds. In 31 years, they have made the Final Four 66 times, progressed to the championship round 41 times and won the championship 26 times. I am not a math major for a reason, but those numbers mean that if a one-seed reaches the final round, they will have a 63.4% chance of winning it all. A one-seed being in the championship is guaranteed with Arizona and Michigan playing each other in the Final Four, so the winner of that game is likely to take it all. And since I root for Michigan during football season, I think the Wolverines will pull through.
For the women’s side, just based on a gut feeling, I think the Texas Longhorns will overcome the odds to secure their first national championship since 1986.
CALEB BALL | STAFF REPORTER | cdball@butler.edu
The excitement from Sunday, unfortunately, will not propel UConn any further. They trailed by 19 against the 1-seed Duke, and launched a Hail Mary from the half-court logo to send them to the Final Four. This is as far as they go. They face an Illinois team that has looked nothing less than impressive, and handed a gut-wrenching loss to Houston, who was favored in that game. The other side of the bracket contains the two 1-seeds, Michigan and Arizona. Michigan lost to Purdue in the Big 10 Championship this year, and Arizona just beat Purdue by 15 to advance to the next round. That’s all I will say about that. With that being said, my prediction from the Illinois/Arizona finals will finish with Arizona on top. The Wildcats will be the first team since 1997 to win a national championship and also be located west of Texas. Ironically, they were the team that won that year, led by future NBA players Mike Bibby and Jason Terry.
MARIA CLARA KOLLER | STAFF REPORTER | mkollerfernandez@butler.edu
Although Mullins’ logo shot became an all-time March Madness moment, people have narrowed down a whole game to a single moment. People are forgetting that UConn trailed by as much as 19 points, and their win is more because of Duke’s breakdown rather than their own rallying — as impressive as it was. They face an Illinois team that has been utterly dominant and consistent, two things the Huskies have not been. In the final, they will face Arizona, arguably the most impressive and consistent team this season, who will undoubtedly beat Michigan in what will be a great game to watch. In the final, however, I am taking the underdog. Wagler, Mirkovic and Stojakovic have been an absolute joy to watch this tournament, and I have no doubt they will continue to show out in Indianapolis this weekend, bringing the national title to Champaign.
OWEN PRISCOTT | STAFF REPORTER | opriscott@butler.edu
This year’s tournament has been one of the best I have watched in my life. The Final Four is going to be no exception, with two extraordinary collisions coming to Lucas Oil Stadium. Brad Underwood’s “Balkan Bloc” has used stifling defense and efficient three-point shooting to reach its first Final Four since 2005. However, I see no reason that the Illini should be favored in their matchup against UConn. Yes, UConn is only in Indy due to an improbable last-second shot. Setting that aside, the Huskies match up very well against Illinois, and they already dismantled them once so far this season. As a Connecticut native, this remains a non-emotional pick whatsoever. Senior center Tarris Reed Jr. is averaging 21.7 points and 13.5 rebounds in the tournament, and the Huskies already defeated the Illini without Reed Jr. at full health in November. In the later matchup, fans are treated to a clash between one-seeds, where I see Michigan escaping thanks to a size advantage in the front court with junior center Aday Mara and sophomore forward Morez Johnson Jr. The National Championship is where I see UConn’s March magic running out, as the Wolverines avenge their two title game losses from the 2010s by winning the program’s second championship.
As for the women’s bracket, I see no reality where the G.O.A.T Auriemma does not win championship number 13 this year. The Huskies have an absurd average margin of victory of 38 points per game. UConn takes it home.