CBB: No. 16 Virginia at No. 7 U.N.C.
Week 14 held serve in most cases as each favorite in our game-by-game predictions won their matchups, including No. 16 Duke defeated rival No. 5 North Carolina, No. 10 UCLA protected home court against No. 6 Oregon, and No. 1 Gonzaga stayed undefeated following their most difficult test at No. 18 St. Mary's.
Week 15 is kind of dull on the outskirts, consisting of only three ranked-vs.-ranked pairings, but there are several games that will certainly be interesting like No. 23 Maryland at Northwestern, No. 10 Wisconsin at Michigan, No. 3 Kansas at No. 6 Baylor, and of course, the headliner No. 16 Virginia at No. 7 North Carolina. Tunde Aduroja and I have compiled a top-25, a handful of Wooden Award candidates, 10 predictions for some of the best games, and a preview on the Cavaliers vs. Tar Heels.
Composite Top-25:
1. Gonzaga (26-0)
2. Villanova (25-2)
3. Kansas (24-3)
4. UCLA (23-3)
5. Arizona (23-3)
6. Baylor (22-4)
7. North Carolina (21-5)
8. Oregon (22-4)
9. Louisville (21-5)
10. Wisconsin (21-4)
11. Florida State (21-5)
12. West Virginia (20-6)
13. Kentucky (20-5)
14. Duke (20-5)
15. Florida (20-5)
16. Virginia (18-6)
17. Purdue (20-5)
18. South Carolina (20-5)
19. St. Mary's (22-3)
20. Creighton (21-4)
21. Butler (19-6)
22. SMU (22-4)
23. Maryland (21-4)
24. Notre Dame (19-7)
25. Cincinnati (22-3)
On the Bubble:
26. USC (21-5)
27. Northwestern (19-6)
28. Virginia Tech (17-7)
29. Arkansas (17-7)
30. Kansas State (16-9)
Tennessee at No. 13 Kentucky
Arkansas at No. 18 South Carolina
No. 23 Maryland at Northwestern
No. 14 Duke at No. 16 Virginia
No. 10 Wisconsin at Michigan
No. 16 Virginia at No. 7 North Carolina
Wake Forest at No. 14 Duke
No. 3 Kansas at No. 6 Baylor
Michigan State at No. 17 Purdue
USC at No. 4 UCLA
Week 14 Record: 9-1.
Overall Record: 110-40.
Winning Percentage: 73.3%.
Tennessee at No. 13 Kentucky
Arkansas at No. 18 South Carolina
No. 23 Maryland at Northwestern
No. 14 Duke at No. 16 Virginia
No. 10 Wisconsin at Michigan
No. 16 Virginia at No. 7 North Carolina
Wake Forest at No. 14 Duke
No. 3 Kansas at No. 6 Baylor
Michigan State at No. 17 Purdue
USC at No. 4 UCLA
Week 14 Record: 9-1.
Overall Record: 9-1.
Winning Percentage: 90.0%.
Week 14 Record: N/A.
Overall Record: 78-42.
Winning Percentage: 65.0%.
No. 16 Virginia (18-6, 8-4) at No. 7 North Carolina (21-5, 9-3)
Post: I think both of these teams have the potential to make an Elite Eight run, but only one of them has the goods to reach the Final Four, and that's North Carolina (87.4 points per game). Virginia (allows 55.1 points per game) will be able to slow down the Tar Heels offense for a while but eventually, Justin Jackson (18.7 points per game) will out-run the Cavaliers. North Carolina wins, 71-63.
Aduroja: I think that the key to this will be tempo. North Carolina is famous for playing an up-tempo style of basketball. They want to run after every bucket, while Virginia's style is the total opposite. They'll try to slow the game down so they can set their stingy Pack-Line defense up. I believe that Virginia's defense will perform the way that they usually do, but North Carolina will be able to get out in transition just enough times to eke a close win. Final score: 65-61 North Carolina.
Current No. 1 Seeds:
No. 1 Gonzaga (26-0, 13-0)
No. 2 Villanova (25-2, 12-2)
No. 3 Kansas (23-3, 11-2)
No. 4 UCLA (23-3, 10-3)
Final Four Picks:
Wooden Award Standings:
1. Frank Mason (Kansas PG) -- 20.2 points, 4.9 assists per game.
2. Josh Hart (Villanova SG) -- 18.7 points, 6.6 rebounds per game.
3. Caleb Swanigan (Purdue PF) -- 19.0 points, 12.8 rebounds per game.
4. Marcus Keene (Central Michigan PG) -- 29.9 points, 5.2 assists per game.
5. Josh Jackson (Kansas SF) -- 16.5 points, 7.2 rebounds per game.
Photo Credit: Keeping It Heel.
