by Michael Natelli ’14

As the Final Four, let’s get an update on how our staffers’ brackets are doing.

Correct Final Four picks:

Kyle Melnick: 1/4 (#1 Louisville – Midwest)
Joey Lavoie: 1/4 (#1 Louisville – Midwest)
Brendan Cudd: 1/4 (#1 Louisville – Midwest)
Andrew Wasik: 1/4 (#1 Louisville – Midwest)
Dylan Craig: 1/4  #4 Syracuse – East)

This year college basketball saw so many regular-season upsets that the term almost became obsolete. While there were certainly favorites heading into 99% of games this year, underdog wins became almost a norm by mid-January. The tournament has been no different, and at this point there’s not one documented perfect bracket in existence.

#1 Louisville has proved to the world that it’s worthy of the number one overall seed, dominating all competition they’ve faced so far. While many were surprised by the Tournament Committee’s decision to give the Cardinals that top seed, Louisville has shown that even Duke is no match for them.

#15 Florida Gulf Coast over #1 Georgetown and #14 Harvard over #3 New Mexico ruined brackets across the board (and across the country), and low seeds have continued to surprise throughout the tournament. Louisville’s Final Four opponent will be #9 Wichita State, a team that boasts a tournament resume of knocking off #4-seed Kansas State, #1-seed Gonzaga and #2-seed Ohio State thus far in the tournament. If the Shockers can continue to dominate the glass against the Cardinals, look for another shocker from the Shockers and more broken brackets.

#4 Syracuse, the only other staff pick that remains alive, will have to fend off fellow #4-seeded Michigan if they want to go back to the title game for the first time since 2003. The Michigan Wolverines will be by far the most talented offensive team the Orange have faced thus far, and it will be interesting to see how coach Jim Boeheim responds to the talented three-point shooters on Michigan’s roster. The 2-3 zone is designed to stop the three-point shot, but if Michigan can adjust and create offense in the low post, Syracuse has not shown to this point that they have the man-to-man talent to pull out a win. Taking away anything in the paint will be the Orange’s best bet, and if that fails, they’ll have to hang with Trey Burke and company on offense.

As has been the case all season, there’s hardly a favorite in either Final Four matchup. While Louisville and Michigan have both been dominant forces throughout the tournament, both have their achilles tendons.

Louisville will face a more talented interior defense than they have all tournament, and will have to put together consistent outside shooting if they’re to advance to the Final. Michigan has been terrific on both sides of the ball in their first three games, but Syracuse’s Michael Carter-Williams has been hot as of late and the Wolverines have been inconsistent from behind the arc at times this season. Both games are an absolute toss-up.

Photo Credits: ESPN.com, NBCSports.com, USA TODAY Sports, Gregory Shamus/Getty Images