This will be the first time since 1989 that a No. 1 or 2 seed will not play in the NCAA Championship game. That year, a pair of No. 3 seeds, Michigan and Seton Hall, earned their way to the title game with the Wolverines beating the Pirates, 80-79, in overtime. Check the NCAA Championship Game Odds as 2011 March Madness comes to an end with the NCAA Basketball Championships Final.
Connecticut beats Kentucky 56-55
Kentucky came in as favorite to win the National Championship, but when the options boil down to winning or heading home, nobody’s better than Kemba and Connecticut. Kemba Walker scored 18 points Saturday night to lift UConn to its 10th straight victory since finishing off a .500 Big East regular season, a 56-55 win over cold-shooting Kentucky that moved the Huskies a victory away from their third, and most improbable, NCAA title. Check Kentucky Odds to win the National Championship.
Butler beats VCU 70 to 62
The Butler Bulldogs, who are headed back to the title game, not as lovable underdogs but as a team trying to make up for last year’s heartbreak. Shelvin Mack scored 24 points, Hahn scored all eight of his points during a 90-second span in the second half that gave Butler control of the game for good and the Bulldogs shut down hot-shooting VCU with their trademark unforgiving defense. The eighth-seeded Bulldogs (28-9) will face Connecticut on Monday night as the lowest-seeded team to play for the NCAA national title since Villanova won it as a No. 8 seed in 1985.
Butler-UConn preview
Kemba Walker and the UConn Huskies will face Shelvin Mack and the Butler Bulldogs in Monday night’s NCAA championship game.
National Championship Game time is 6:20 PM ET on CBS with a crowd of 76,000+ expected at Reliant Stadium in Houston. The UConn Huskies, a two-time national champion, opened as -4 point favorites but the number was quickly bet down to -3.5. The total is at 129.5 with the sportsbooks figuring on a defensive battle. Check Uconn Odds
Butler returns to the title game for the second straight year not as lovable underdogs but as a team intent on making up for last year’s heartbreak. The Bulldogs were defeated by Duke 61-59 last year for the championship but covered easily as 7-point dogs. Connecticut, which will be after its third national title, claimed the championship in 1999 and 2004.
The Butler Bulldogs came within a bounce of winning it all last year only to see Gordon Hayward’s last-ditch, half-court heave carom off the rim as Duke held on for the win. That Butler is playing for the title again is maybe even more impressive than the first trip, having lost Hayward, their leading scorer and rebounder, to the NBA lottery.Check Butler Odds
