March 28. 2011; The Final Four Forecast

Every basketball fan should or have followed the NCAA Tournament this year. It has been a roller-coaster ride since not all top-seeded teams made it all the way to the Final Four. Surprise teams have once again made headlines as they barged their way in to the big dance. Now is the time for us to discuss and talk about the Final Four teams this year.

EAST Region

Champion: Kentucky

Nickname: Wildcats

Seed: 4th
Road to the Final Four: def. Princeton in the Round of 64 (59-57), def. West Virginia in the Round of 32 (71-63), def. Ohio St. in the Round of 16 (62-60), def. North Carolina in the Regional Final (76-69).

Who to face: Connecticut

Player/s to watch: Brandon Knight (Fr), Josh Harrellson (Sr)

Verdict: After John Wall and DeMarcus Cousins left the University last season in pursuit of a professional career, nobody really expected this team to go all the way to the Final Four, and by beating UNC in the Regional Final. Expect more crucial shots from Knight down the stretch, just as what he delivered before. Close game to be expected against UConn.

WEST Region

Champion: Connecticut

Nickname: Huskies

Seed: 3rd

Road to the Final Four: def. Bucknell in the Round of 64 (81-52), def. Cincinnati in the Round of 32 (69-58), def. San Diego St. in the Round of 16 (74-67), and def. Arizona in the Regional Final (65-63).

Who to face: Kentucky

Player/s to watch: Kemba Walker (Jr), Jeremy Lamb (Fr)

Verdict: Kemba Walker, an alumnus of New York's famed Rice HS, has stepped up his game this season, averaging 29.2 points per game. He single-handedly brought back UConn to its glory days. He is doing Kevin Durant-type of a performance. His terrific knack for offense will make it hard for Kentucky's defense.

SOUTHWEST Region

Champion: Virginia Commonwealth

Nickname: Rams

Seed: 11th

Road to the Final Four: def. Georgetown in the Round of 64 (74-56), def. Purdue in the Round of 32 (94-76), def. Florida St. in the Round of 16 (72-71), and def. Kansas in the Regional Final (71-61).

Who to face: Butler

Player/s to watch: Jamie Skeen (Sr), Bradford Burgess (Jr), Brandon Rozzell (Sr), Joey Rodriguez (Sr)

Verdict: This squad has lots of seniors (4 out of 14), which, in a good way, led their team to Houston, earning a spot in the Final Four to face last year's runners-up from Butler. This squad is the epitomy of run-and-gun. They execute it as beautiful as possible. As seen during their win against Kansas, just when Kansas makes a run, they bounce back to score as quick as they can, credit it to coach Shaka Smart. Expect this team to rely on the backcourt savvy of PG Joey Rodriguez to lead them towards the National Championship perhaps.

SOUTHEAST Region

Champion: Butler

Nickname: Bulldogs

Seed: 8th

Road to the Final Four: def. Old Dominion in the Round of 64 (60-58), def. Pittsburgh in the Round of 32 (71-70), def. Wisconsin in the Round of 16 (61-54), and def. Florida in the Regional Final (74-71)

Who to face: VCU

Player/s to watch: Matt Howard (Sr), Shelvin Mack (Jr), Ronald Nored (Jr)

Verdict: Last year's runners-up are back on the hunt this year. Ronald Nored told the hundreds of Butler fans that "This year we're going to get the real call from President Obama and not the runner-up call", a bold statement to tell the least. Their performance would simply do the talking. With last year's champs Duke out of the running, is it prim and proper that Butler go on for their Cinderella story this season? No more Gordon Hayward this year though, but with a steady performance from Matt Howard, everything will be fine.

By the way, I pick Butler as the champions for this year, haha!

There you have it! You guys have just been fed!

God bless you guys! Stay safe! Peace out! The Wizard was here...:)

Comments, questions and suggestions are highly appreciated! :)