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Show the great Utes make strides as Pac-12 contenders DEBATE BY BROCK JENSEN/STAFF WRITER Which Final Four team has best chance of winning all? w ith a little bit of Magic (Johnson) on their side(line), the KIM Michigan State Spartans are going to stun the basketball world and take home the championship. Going into the tournament, the Spartans weren't really expected to do much. This team hasn't been dubbed a "Cinderella" because of the history of their basketball program, although in reality that's exactly what they are. But I get it, with Tom Izzo at the helm, it's kind of hard to call this team a Cinderella, and frankly, he is the reason Michigan State is in the Final Four. Izzo and his Spartans shouldn't have been counted out at the beginning of the tournament, and definitely shouldn't be now. That said, this team was an underdog heading into the Big Dance, and after a disappointing regular season, most people didn't expect the Spartans to be dancing for long. But that was then, and Michigan State is certainly playing their best ball when it counts the most. Most of the country favors Kentucky to win, but it barely survived an attack from the Fighting Irish. The Wildcats' so-far perfect season is one for the books, but they played in the SEC, and that conference didn't really offer up that much talent this year. The Spartans, on the other hand, had to play tough opponents all year long in the Big 10, and Wisconsin also making it to the Final Four shows this conference was BRENNEISEN one of the best in the land. While Tyus Jones and Justise Winslow have been able to step up for Duke, its best player Jahlil Okafor is hardly making an impact in the games. Expect the Spartans to look at how the other teams have been playing him and find their own way to stop him. After losing to Duke 81-71 in November, the Spartans will not be taking another loss at the hands of the Blue Devils. That earlier loss only benefits Michigan State because now they know what to expect. Granted it was in the early season, but they have still seen what Duke can do and will be able to correct their mistakes. The Spartans now have a chip on their shoulders as a No. 7 seed. They want to show everyone they can win and they have been improving game after game, and Travis Trice is simply on fire. Trice scored 17 points in addition to dishing out five assists in Michigan State's Elite Eight victory and the senior also drained 24 points against the Sooners in the Sweet 16, so while Michigan State's best player is heating up at the right moment, Duke's best player is cooling down. The Spartans' Denzel Valentine has also been hitting his stride as of late and this can only help Michigan State win on Saturday night. It makes no difference whether the Spartans have to face Wisconsin — a team they have already seen this season — or Kentucky come the national championship game, the college basketball world will crown Michigan State the new champions and the Sparty will party. You never bet against Tom Izzo in March. k.brenneisen@chronicle.utah.edu @kbrenneisen ook, I get it. Bo Ryan might have the best team he's ever had at Wisconsin, Coach K has two potential lottery picks among a mix of talented freshmen and veterans, and you never doubt Tom Izzo in March. There's a solid case for each of the Final Four teams to win it all, but in the end, Kentucky is just too talented to lose in this tournament — and this year. Of course, just from a factual standpoint, the Wildcats are a superteam compared to its opponents. Kentucky is led by nine McDonald's High School All-Americans, something that not many teams in the history of the sport can say. This is one of the main reasons why the Wildcats are so successful this season — depth. Head coach John Calipari essentially has two teams. Calipari has so many weapons at his disposal that he is able to court two lineups that are good enough to compete with nearly anyone in the country. This allows him to give his players adequate rest, as they buy into a team effort in order to achieve greatness. And Kentucky has been nothing short of great this season. The Wildcats are a perfect 38-0 heading into their Final Four tilt with the Badgers, but Wisconsin will be a whole different battle than Kentucky has seen this season. Luckily for Kentucky, it has just the personnel to present problems for the Badgers. Whether it's Willie Cauley-Stein or Karl-Anthony Towns squaring up, either player can give Wisconsin's Frank Kaminsky trouble, and that's no slight on the big man. The Wooden Award candidate is an extremely talented center and has a bright future ahead of him, but Cauley-Stein is the best defensive center in the country and Towns is potentially a future No. 1 draft pick. L 8 { THECHRONY I NEWS I OPINION I ARTS I SPORTS I TUESDAY, MARCH 31, 2015 } cn XJ —I IN 3> 0 Cn 0 I< 1— m > xi —1 m It's true Kentucky has never seen anyone like Wisconsin, but it's also true Kaminsky hasn't seen a frontcourt like Cauley-Stein and Towns. Yes, Wisconsin has a number of other weapons, namely Sam Dekker who has been on a tear in the last two tournament games for the Badgers. But that's when Calipari calls on any of his other seven McDonald's All-Americans to counterattack. Devin Booker, Marcus Lee, Aaron Harrison, Andrew Harrison, Tyler Ulis, Trey Lyles, Dakari Johnson and Alex Poythress are just a few of the names that have been influential in this historic Wildcat run, and Calipari has found a way to get each of these star-studded players who are fresh out of high school to commit and buy into a team effort to find success. Oh, and the reason I only reference Wisconsin as an opponent is because I don't think any other team will give Kentucky much more of a run than the Badgers. If in fact the Wildcats square off against Duke in the Championship, it'll be an NBA scout's dream to see Towns and Blue Devil Jahlil Okafor play against one another, but Kentucky has the power to get past Duke. But in the end, the main reason why this Wildcat team will make history and complete the first undefeated season from start to finish since 1976 is because of its will to win. When the Wildcats were down in their Elite Eight game against Notre Dame for nearly the entire contest, Kentucky was able to turn it on down the stretch and seal the victory. The Wildcats have been close to tasting defeat before this season, but they haven't yet, and I expect that to continue all the way until Kentucky is cutting down the nets in Indianapolis. g.adams@chronicle.utah.edu @GriffDoug he Utah softball team made some significant strides during their series against Stanford last weekend, getting its first road series win since joining the Pac-12. As is the case with nearly anything in life, there is a bit of an adjustment period that takes place when something changes, especially at the college level. When Utah switched conferences from the Mountain West to the Pac-12, it was a big deal for nearly every aspect of the school. It affected how the U was viewed and the schools it would be grouped with, including schools like Cal and Stanford. For athletics teams specifically, this change brought a lot of different opponents Utah would be facing nearly every year. The Pac-12 is an extremely competitive conference and arguably the best all-around athletic conference in the nation. T Softball is just one of the sports that has been competitive within the Conference of Champions. Utah has needed a few seasons to adjust, and understandably so, but it seems like the Utes are ready to shed the newcomer title and become a legitimate threat. They took a critical step in that direction last weekend. Entering the series against Stanford, Utah had yet to win a conference series on the road. Prior to the start of the season, Utah coach Amy Hogue noted this was an improvement the program needed to make. "The fact that we have only won one conference game on the road is something I think about a lot': Hogue said at the beginning of the season. Well it's something she won't have to think about much anymore. Her Utes went out and not only matched their previous conference wins, but got another one against the Cardinal to clinch the series. "I feel like it's been a big team effort," senior Marissa Mendenhall said. It wasn't easy, though the Utes sure made it look like it by winning the first and third games of the weekend slate. "It's hard to win games on the road," Hogue said. "We hadn't won a series on the road before so this was a pretty big deal to come away with the series win." Utah won't spend too much time celebrating the program's accomplishment, as the Utes have loftier goals for the season. They won't have much time to think about it either, as they have a doubleheader in the middle of this week. Utah plays Southern Utah in two games on Tuesday at the Utah Softball Stadium. These games will provide a great opportunity for a little bit of in-state rivalry. The Utes aren't taking this doubleheader lightly though, as the Thunderbirds are hungry for a chance to take down a much larger school. "It's a huge game for them so we've got to recover fast and come ready to play," Hogue said. "We can't just roll in and expect to win games. That's not how it works in college softball." Hogue and the rest of the team are excited to have a slower travel schedule this week and to enjoy some time playing on their home field in front of a Utah crowd. The first game is scheduled to start at 4 p.m. with the second following at 6 p.m. MT. bjensen@chronicle.utah.edu @brockjensen02 9 |