2024 NCAA Tournament FINAL FOUR PREVIEW: Keys for each team to cut down the nets | CBS Sports

2024 NCAA Tournament FINAL FOUR PREVIEW: Keys for each team to cut down the nets | CBS Sports

Our final fours are set on both sides there’s actually two universities who are represented in both we have Yukon and NC State they could face off for the title in both men’s and women’s sports Yukon plays Alabama Saturday on the men’s side NC State plays Purdue speaking of NC State incredible story a

Th000 to one to win the NCAA Championship heading into the ACC tournament where they had to win five games in 5 days just to get in to the NCAA then they were 200 to one when the NCAA tournament began and now entering the final four NC State 20 to one to win

The whole darn thing let’s bring in our finest Matt norlander from the on college basketball podcast which you can see on CBS Sports Network a lot lately let’s let’s let’s start by kind of uh dipping our toes in both the men’s and women’s here because yukon’s been here and done that right I

Mean they’ve won a national championship in men’s and women’s in the same year before but we have another team NC State as well that’s in the men’s and the women’s how about that yeah no it’s it’s an awesome uh subplot that’s developed here in uh in all of college basketball for to have

Two schools make uh make the final four in the same year for the first time and yes usual suspect with Yukon but uh but foren State and the women’s team obviously very highly SE it in this tournament it’s a it’s a really really fun thing adds another Dynamic and

Because we have alternating days you know the the women on Friday the men on Saturday the women on Sunday the men on Monday uh this will kind of this will continue on here uh into the weekend and yeah it’s uh it’s it’s awesome I I I

Guess I’m going to go on a semi limb but not really and say at least one of those four teams is going to cut down the Nets and and be a national at least one of the four will will be a national champion by the time we get to the end

Of Monday night well the Yukon men are the favorites to do just that the biggest long shot would be the NC State men double digit seeds are 0 and six all time in the final four do you give NC State much of a shot to become the first

Double digit seed to play for a championship I do not and I say that as someone who is going to write about the incredible NC State story for uh for cbssports.com later this week I just I I would love to I would love to personally Hassel I’d love to cover something like

That but uh but given that NC State is a significant Underdog to Purdue it is Comfortably the lowest rated team across the board that’s in this in this final four it’s just it’s just hard to get there um so no I I I don’t if they’re

Going to do it they’re going to have to keep continuing this outrageous streak where they have not allowed an opponent in the past six games to shoot better than 40% from the field that’s going to be a tall task against puru and Ed I mean Ed you know he’s 60% uh field goal

Shooter as is so um they’re going to need that plus DJ Burns has been all of the uh the hyp and understandably so but DJ Horn’s the team’s leading scorer DJ horn is the guy that shoots better than 40% from three-point range so um hey it’s March magical we’re technically now

Into April we’ll see if that can continue but yes you mentioned all double digit season specifically no 11 seeds have ever even made the title game after breaking through to the final four are you a little jealous cuz you you’ve kind of been a darling in the background

Of some shots at the final four with your Guster is for Lovers thing on your laptop and now our very own Danny canel is coming in taking the Limelight away from you and he’s trying to get there to the final four to see his nephew Mr Middlebrooks yeah and and how about like

The shamelessness of canel like I’m Ben middlebrooks’s uncle just putting it on a t-shirt just begging the cameras to find him there uh I fully expect to uh to scoll up to my press seat on Saturday in Arizona expecting to see either canel right next to me on press row and if

That’s the case I’ll just rip that off and toss him into the garbage or I just know he’s going to be directly behind me uh once that game getss tipped off congrats to canel and yet another yes a little p piece of wallpaper here uh as

We head toward a very fun final four with no shortage of intriguing story lines and I’m not sure many people would take the field over Yukon right now in the final four so maybe the question isn’t how does Yukon win may maybe it’s how don’t they win what would the answer

Be uh the only ways Yukon isn’t going to win this National Championship is uh if Alabama has an outrageous performance from three-point range and by outrageous I means it has a game where it takes more than 33s and makes more than half of them I think something like that in

Addition to uh you know knock on wood we don’t want to see any kind of injury or anything like that um you know it but let’s remove that even from the discussion Al together uh you just have to get something completely out of character for this team yes it has been

Beaten three times and those three games we’re all on the road against Kansas Kon Sean hall for varying reasons but you’re this this team is is as dominant heading into a final four as any team I’ve ever seen which includes the Yukon team from last year which set a record by winning

Six games by at least 13 points in a tournament that had never happened you see this the fact that is only trailed I mean 5 minutes and 50 seconds total is a joke so Alabama would have to be outrageously hot or if it got Purdue you’d have to have Zach Edy you know

Completely dominating Clingan the guards playing their best game of their career it’s possible it’s college basketball 40-minute game in this tournament it’s on the table but it’s not likely and I’m not picking against Yukon I’m I’m picking Yukon to win by double digits until I see a team even get Yukon to a

Close game I mean it is searching Hassel Yukon is looking around it’s looking it cannot find a close game it can’t find one so I’m not going to pick one to happen till I see it well it was 17 years ago to the day that we saw our

Last team go back toback the Florida Gator in ‘ 06 and ‘ 07 you mentioned that matchup that that a lot of people might be looking for if you come runs into Purdue in the championship game we could see a great big man battle between kingan and Edy can Purdue win this whole

Thing by going through their 7 foot4 big man in the middle Pur has to go through Zack Edy if it wants to win the national championship he is and has been the best player without debate in this sport two years running and I hope that making the final four will actually rise Ed’s

Profile and his respect overall there’s been no shortage of respect for Ed for me I profiled him in depth last year for CBS Sports uh we have lotted him consistently on the I on college basketball podcast but I think he has not somehow somehow maybe it’s because

He’s not a six7 wing that can fly through the air and uh and has Ultra athleticism that he hasn’t been recognized for what he is and what he is is one of the best players in the history of men’s college basketball so yes Purdue will need to play it game

Through one of the best players in the history of men’s college basketball again this list look at what you’re watching this is an absolute joke okay it is it is crazy they will need to play through Edy and if it is Yukon versus Purdue on Monday night to cut down the

Nets then Edy May well need to have 28 30 plus points he may well need to have 14 15 16 plus rebounds he may well need to be on the floor for 37 38 minutes and the match up with Kling would be incredible um but it can’t just be Edy

Braden Smith who’s had a big jump as a sophomore running the offense he’s going to need to play well Lance Jones who’s come in as a transfer from Southern Illinois and has been a factor he’s going to need to step up big and you’ll need the role players like a Tre Kaufman

Ren to step up Fletcher lawyer to step up it is absolutely possible and on the board but Ed needs to continue to be the best player in the sport for Purdue to win two more games so you have these these great story lines with several of these teams like Purdue with with the

Giant Edy the best player in the country after losing to a 16 seed you have the defending champs Yukon just rolling everybody have the quote unquote Cinderella in NC State as an 11 seed the Forgotten team here is Alabama they’re an 11 and a half Point Underdog against

Yukon are we doing them a disservice by overlooking them a little bit no I think that’s more about respect with Yukon after Yukon got uh a game in the elite eight against the number two offense a 29 win Illinois team that won the Big 10 tournament and then could not

Keep it close and was on the wrong end of a 30 nothing run so Alabama is is is receiving some shrapnel after what Yukon did to Illinois uh and also the school it’s fan base uh how do you like this one CU normally on the football side

It’s your it’s your it’s it’s your team on the on the on the grid iron that’s a heavy favor going into a national semi-final not such the case here they are capable of dropping 100 plus I mean they’ve done it a dozen times this season and they’ve got the capacity to

Make it an interesting game if they get hot yes Alabama i’ say this we aren’t giving enough enough credit just yet and it is Tuesday the game is played on Saturday ho we’re going to be talking about this a lot more all week long on CBS Sports HQ and CBS Sports HQ

Spotlight so we’ll be getting 20 into Alabama but it will take its best defensive effort of the Year combined with its best offensive effort of the year to beat Yukon so Mark Sears listen I I think he’s a second team All-American he’s a really good player

But the size down low the interior how they would actually face up and battle with kinging is a is a major thing to watch for but but I will say this they have the Firepower to keep it with Yukon so I am not just casually dismissing their chances but it is undeniable that

Alabama has the least compelling storyline of the four teams that make up a very compelling final for that’s Matt norlander from the island college basketball podcast what’s coming up on the latest episode uh I’m I’m I’m interviewing a sit down with the one and only ion Eagle

That’s going to be in your feet on Tuesday he’s obviously the lead playby play voice for the final four on the men’s side cannot wait to talk to the bird so that’ll be next up in the feed all right take over for Jim Nance who saw his Houston Cougars bow out before

The final four latest I on college basketball podcast scan follow you’ll be alerted when it

Matt Norlander joins CBS Sports HQ to tell us how each Final Four team can cut down the nets Monday.

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