NCAA Tournament 2014: Final Four tips off Saturday night in Dallas
Florida and UConn play the first game, with Wisconsin and Kentucky handling the nightcap.
Ronald Martinez
The NCAA Tournament field of 68 has been whittled down to four, with Florida, Connecticut, Wisconsin and Kentucky left standing after the first two weeks of do-or-die basketball.
Those four teams meet in Dallas for the national semifinals Saturday night from AT&T Stadium. While both games can be found on TBS, there will also be team-specific broadcasts on TNT and truTV for Saturday night only.
No. 1 Florida vs. No. 7 Connecticut, 6:09 p.m. ET
The Final Four tips off Saturday evening in a rematch of a meeting in Storrs on Dec. 2. UConn won that game on a Shabazz Napier buzzer-beater to hand Florida its second loss of the season. But the Gators have been undefeated since, climbing to the top of the national polls and earning the No. 1 overall seed in the tournament.
Power rankings
Both teams are led by seniors, with Napier carrying the Huskies through the East Region with a run reminiscent of Kemba Walker’s in 2011. For Florida, it has been Scottie Wilbekin. His 23 points against Dayton in the Elite Eight accounted for well over a third of Florida’s offense.
Fans will likely get a show out of the Napier vs. Wilbekin matchup, but if the two guards match each other blow-for-blow, the game might be decided elsewhere. Florida's Casey Prather is having the best year of his collegiate career and actually led Florida in scoring during the regular season. He'll be matched up with DeAndre Daniels, who has shown flashes of talent but has yet to find consistency in his three years. He was the difference in the Huskies' Sweet 16 win over Iowa State, however, scoring 27 points and grabbing 10 rebounds.
No. 2 Wisconsin vs. No. 8 Kentucky, approx. 8:49 p.m. ET
While Florida and UConn will be a backcourt battle, the frontcourts will take center stage in the nightcap. For Wisconsin, that's 7-footer Frank Kaminsky, who has turned his production from great to off-the-charts this postseason. His 28 points (11-of-20 shooting) and 11 rebounds made the difference in the Badgers' overtime win over Arizona in the Elite Eight. He could cause problems for Kentucky, which will be without 7-foot big man Willie Cauley-Stein, who sustained an injury early in the Wildcats' Sweet 16 win over Louisville.
Final Four
But the Wildcats aren’t exactly thin up front. Freshman Julius Randle is playing the best basketball of his young career at the right time. He’s posted double-doubles in all four of Kentucky’s NCAA Tournament games, averaging well over 30 minutes.
On the sidelines, John Calipari is leading the Wildcats to their third Final Four in four years. They won the national championship in 2012.
And after 13 consecutive years of leading the Badgers to the NCAA Tournament, Wisconsin’s Bo Ryan finally gets his first crack at a Final Four. The Badgers have not appeared in the NCAA’s premier event since 2000.
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