My Two Cents (And a Pick): I'll Take Goliath vs. Goliath Over Cinderella Story Every Time
GLENDALE, Ariz. — Well, we've made it to the finish line. The 2023-24 college basketball season comes to an end late Monday when Purdue and Connecticut play the last game of the season in the NCAA Tournament championship game in State Farm Stadium in Glendale, a Phoenix suburb.
And we couldn't have a better matchup. This one, between 36-3 UConn and 34-4 Purdue, really is a showdown of the two best teams in college basketball. This one, we hope, will be a classic.
Its got everything, really. Both teams have spent much of the year ranked No. 1 in the country in the weekly Associated Press top-25 poll. Purdue has spent five weeks at the top, and has never been lower than No. 4. UConn was there for seven weeks, and it's lowest ranking was at No. 6 in the preseason poll.
They've combined to win 90 percent of their games, and they have two of the best big men in the country in Purdue 7-foot-4 center Zach Edey and UConn's Donovan Clingan, who checks in at 7-foot-2.
Edey is a two-time national player of the year who averages 24.9 points and 12.2 rebounds per game. Clingan isn't asked to do as much, but he still averages 13.1 points and 7.4 rebounds in 22 minutes of play.
This nugget is certainly true: They are the best opponent each other has faced this season. Here's a few more nuggets that will make you go wow.
- This is the first time EVER that we've had a NCAA final that featured two centers who are 7-foot-2 or taller.
- This is the first time in 40 years that we've had a matchup of two 7-footers in the title game. That was a matchup of legends in 1984 between Houston's Hakeem OIajuwon and Georgetown's Patrick Ewing.
I think it's great that we get to see these two going head-to-head on Monday night. It's Goliath vs. Goliath, and I'll take that over a Cinderella story any day. Kansas, Arizona and Houston have spent some time at No. 1 as well, but I've been looking to this Purdue-UConn showdown all year.
They are both deserving competitors in this title game. Edey might have an edge over Clingan on the college level, but Clingan is considered the better pro. There are a ton of NBA scouts looking forward to watching them duke it out Monday.
Clingan probably has better teammates when comparing starting fives, but Purdue has a better bench, led by sixth-man Mason Gillis. That's why this all sets up well for a great way to wrap up the season.
As we wrote earlier, UConn is a 6.5-point favorite, which is based mostly on their amazing 11-game run through the last two tournaments, when they've won EVERY GAME by at least 13 points and have covered against the point spread all year long.
But they've also been beaten three times this season, and Purdue has looked at all of that film. Connecticut's losses — 69-65 at No. 5 Kansas on Dec. 1, 75-60 at Seton Hall on Dec. 20 and 85-66 at No. 15 Creighton on Feb. 20 — have a common theme. Clingan averaged just 9.3 points per game in the losses.
We've seen Edey get better and better the past four years, and he's been phenomenal in winning two straight Player of the Year awards. That just doesn't happen without a ton of hard work. He's very ready for this stage.
He's accomplished everything he can at the college level — except for winning a national title. He gets that chance on Monday night.
It's going to be interesting to see how UConn decides to play him. It's a pick-your-poison kind of thing with Purdue, because they were also the No. 1 three-point shooting team in the country coming into the tournament. Double-team Edey and he can find shooters. Cover him one-on-on and he can crush you.
Can Clingan deal with him one-on-one? How much help will he get from UConn forward Alex Karaban, who's a solid 6-foot-8 himself? How much do the scrappy and athletic UConn guards double down?
Danny Hurley and Matt Painter are two of the best tacticians in the game, so this chess match will be great to watch.
It's Goliath vs. Goliath, and I'll take it. Connecticut is looking to repeat, the first team to do that since Florida in 2006 and 2007. This would be their sixth NCAA title, breaking a tie with Indiana and Duke, who have five each. They'd now be tied for third all-time with North Carolina, who has six. Only Kentucky (8) and UCLA (11) would have more.
That's blueblood status for sure.
Purdue has never won an NCAA title in men's basketball. (Their women's team won one in 1999.) This is just their third Final Four. They lost to UCLA in the 1969 NCAA finals after beating North Carolina in the semifinals. They made it in 1980 too, but lost to UCLA in the semis.
It's been a long 44 years until now, and it's been great for the Purdue faithful to finally make it back to the sport's biggest stage. They'd love to get this done, both for their school — which has won more Big Ten titles than anyone — and their league, which hasn't won a title since Michigan State took it all in 2000.
That's a long 24 years for a league that likes to brag it's the best in the country.
My pick? I really do think Purdue gets it done tonight. Edey's final college game will be one of the ages. Purdue will also make threes. They hit 10 on Saturday, and I think they top that tonight.
It's going to be all about keeping Connecticut's offense in check. They are explosive at all five spots. They will score, and they will go on some runs. We've seen a lot of that in he past few weeks, that 30-0 explosion against Illinois in the regional final, and the late run to close out Alabama on Saturday night, when they turned a 56-all game into a rout.
My prediction? It's upset time in the desert. I'm going with Purdue 81, Connecticut 76.
Tom Brew is an award-winning journalist who's worked at some America's finest newspapers, including the Tampa Bay (Fla.) Times, the South Florida Sun-Sentinel and the Indianapolis Star. He also owns the book publishing company, Hilltop30 Publishing Group, and he has written four books and published 16 others.