Another exciting NCAA men's basketball tournament concludes tonight with two of the nation's best squaring off in Atlanta for the 2013 National Championship.
The action between the top-seeded Louisville Cardinals and No. 4 Michigan Wolverines can be seen live on CBS television at 9:23 p.m., EDT. For those not able to get in front of a TV, the broadcast will also be offered as a free online Live Stream through March Madness Live.
Louisville (34-5) and head coach Rick Pitino entered the tournament as the favorite to go all the way. Coming off a thrilling 72-68 victory over Wichita State in one of the most exciting Final Four match-ups in recent memory, Louisville may be the only team in America that can stop a loaded Michigan offense.
The Cardinals needed a late-game surge to get by WSU in their last game. Down 12 in the second half, the Cardinal defense turned up the heat on the Shockers, forcing 5 crucial turnovers late in the game. Aided by the sharp shooting of Luke Hancock who poured in 13 of his 20 points in the final 12 minutes, Louisville looked like the No. 1 seed everyone expected them to be.
While the Cardinals were able to dispatch of Wichita State, Michigan had work of their own to do as they matched up with Syracuse in the second Final Four contest.
The Wolverines (31-7) have been one of the top-scoring teams in the nation all season. Head coach John Beilein is no stranger to success but entering the Final Four match-up with Syracuse and head coach Jim Boeheim, Beilein was a career 0-for-9 against Boeheim. Thanks to timely scoring and staunch defense late in Saturday night's thriller, Beilein and the Wolverines disposed of the Orange, advancing to their first title game since back-to-back appearances in 1992 and 1993.
One of the biggest reasons for this great tournament run has been the play of rising freshman Mitch McGary. A physical presence defensively, McGary stepped up in a big way on the offensive side, burning the Syracuse zone defense with 10 points and 12 rebounds. Known for their offense, the Michigan defense did a stellar job in holding two of SU's top offensive threats, Michael Carter-Williams and James Southerland, to a combined 7 points.
Key Match-Up: While there are many areas these two extremely talented teams can use to their advantage, the biggest and perhaps most intriguing match-up will be the battle of the back courts. Louisville boast tons of speed with a great distributor in point guard Peyton Siva and the always-dangerous Russ Smith. Smith is the top scoring threat on the Cardinals, averaging 26 points per game while shooting over 50 percent from the floor in the tournament.
The one-two punch of Siva and Smith will have their hands full with Michigan's Tim Hardaway Jr. and Player of the Year Trey Burke. Burke's ability to score and distribute makes him a nightmare for any team facing him. Hardaway Jr. has been a great sidekick to Burke, averaging double figures in points in 4 of the Wolverines' 5 tournament games. Keep your eye on this match-up tonight.
Prediction: Anything can happen in the NCAA Tournament, especially when you get down to the final game where both teams lay everything on the line. Louisville has shown the ability to come back from a big deficit and put teams away while Michigan knows they have tons of offensive firepower. In a battle between the Louisville defense and the Michigan offense, Trey Burke shines as the Wolverines win their first title since 1989.
Michigan - 72 Louisville - 70
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