March Madness has once again lived up to expectations, and then some. Just about everyone had their brackets busted immediately with a huge upset in the tournaments very first game, while several low seeded teams made their way into the third round of the 2015 Men’s Basketball tournament. UCLA might be the team everyone thinks of when thinking upset special when they look back at the 2015 Final Four, but in the end the best teams seem to have emerged to college basketball’s final stage.
The final group has the top-ranked Kentucky Wildcats taking on fellow No. 1 seed Wisconsin Badgers in a rematch of last year’s Final Four showdown. On the other side, Tom Izzo leads his always feisty Michigan State Spartans up against Coach K’s impressive Duke Blue Devils squad. Three of the tournament’s No. 1 seeds have made it to the end of the Big Dance and only Michigan State has a chance to keep one of the top seeds from taking it all. Of course, there’s plenty of debate as to whether the Spartans, Badgers or Blue Devils have much of a chance at taking down the mighty Wildcats, as they pursue a perfect 40-0 season.
March Madness has been storyline central this year, arguably more than ever, and there will be plenty of drama to go around as fans line up to land their 2015 Final Four tickets. Fans can see the action live by purchasing Final Four tickets to just the Kentucky vs. Wisconsin and Duke vs. Michigan State showdowns ($1,004.41 on average and $346 to get in the door) or they can package them all together, including the national title game for $1,696.38 on average ($499 for the cheap seats) according to Razorgator.
Value is alive and well as the college basketball season winds down, as it appears to be anyone’s ballgame despite Kentucky coming in as the perceived favorite. Kentucky Wildcats tickets have returned amazing value all year long, as John Calipari’s “one and done” group have earned the tag of “favorite” due to not losing a single game this year and having one of the most tenacious trios of seven footers roaming the paint. As formidable as they appear, Notre Dame may have presented a blueprint to take them down and no team may be better equipped than the balanced and efficient Badgers. Wisconsin has had revenge on their minds ever since they were ousted by the Wildcats at this same spot in the tournament a year ago. Frank Kaminsky and co. will give it their best shot to be the one and only team to beat Calipari’s crew this season.
While the Badgers’ revenge and Kentucky’s bid for perfection weighs heavily on one side, two historic programs face off in the second semifinal. Coach K and his Blue Devils will go up against Tom Izzo and the Spartans is an epic clash of elite coaching that will send one of these storied college basketball teams back to the national title game. It will be a tough battle to gauge, considering Duke has the edge with the more potent offense, while Michigan State wins with gritty defense. The difference just might come down to who can own the paint, where big man Jahlil Okafor could cement his draft stock with a huge performance to thrust Duke one step closer to another championship.
Fans will be purchasing Final Four tickets regardless of whether they have a dog in the race, while most college basketball fans will simply be hoping for good games. Others will just want to show up to see Kentucky make history, while just as many will be crossing their fingers that they fail. Whether Kentucky does predictably win it all or it’s the Spartans capitalizing on momentum and shocking the college basketball world, this year’s Final Four figures to be one for the ages.
