The competition provided a prelude to Saturday’s long-awaited second game between the Duke Blue Devils and the North Carolina Tar Heels – the first NCAA tournament meeting between Tobacco Road rivals and the possible final act for Duke’s coach and the Hall of Fame. Famer Mike Krzyzewski for what will be the last weekend of his historic career in college basketball. The ESPN team with Myron Medcalf, Jeff Borzello, John Gasaway and Joe Lunardi discussed what went well for Kansas on Saturday, what went wrong for Villanova and what impact a Kansas win over an ACC school on Monday would have. the evening.
What was the key to Kansas’ victory over Villanova?
Ochai Agbaji and David McCormack: the star of the Jayhawks, and their factor X for the whole season (during the career?). Agbaji escaped a brief fall in the second half of the Elite Eight win over Miami and that momentum shifted on Saturday night. He came out of the gates shooting, hitting two 3s in the first three minutes and scored 4-to-4 from deep in the first eight and more minutes. Collin Gillespie’s change to him slowed Agbaji a bit towards the end of the first half, but two more broken 3s to keep Villanova within breathing distance of the second half were huge. 2 About McCormack would always be the key against Vilanova. The Wildcats just weren’t big enough to handle him, so the question was whether he could stay out of trouble, stay on the floor and be effective. And it was not long before Kansas announced its intentions. The Jahox pressed the ball to the crossbar at McCormack early and often. scored two baskets in the first two minutes and had touches in almost every possession. He had 13 points in the first 11 minutes and more. When Villanova started to cause some problems in Kansas defensively attacking McCormack with smaller players, the big one responded by going to work at the other end. Agbaji and McCormack finished with 46 points. – Borzello David McCormack and Kansas took a big lead early on and mostly cruised the rest of the way. Photo by Jamie Squire / Getty Images
What surprised you most about the Jayhawks’ performance?
If you could tell KU fans in November that their national semi-final hero would be McCormack, they would be more than surprised. Stunned can be a better word. There has been a long debate throughout the season about whether the Jayhawks should be small. For at least one night, McCormack was very big in Vilanova. The surprise within the surprise was that it started right away. The first few minutes of the game were a blizzard from Agbaji 3 and they posted feeds to McCormack, who was too much for the Wildcats to handle. The poster dunk, with 25 points in 10 out of 12 shots – all summed up in a great performance. – Gasaway
How does Kansas fit in with Duke and North Carolina?
Watch every NCAA Men’s tournament game live! March Madness Live Unsurprisingly, the Jayhawks probably fit in better with North Carolina than with Duke. Part of it comes from Mark Williams’s defensive dominance around the edge for the Blue Devils. He is capable of defeating McCormack on his own – and given how well McCormack has played in Kansas victories over the last two seasons, that would be a problem for the Jahox. Duke is also vulnerable to teams that can pull Williams away from the basket and force the Blue Devils to shelter for larger areas in space. In terms of staff, the Jayhawks have tested great men under McCormack and Mitch Lightfoot to bring down North Carolina Armando Bacot. They have Jalen Wilson, who is big enough and versatile enough to face Brady Manek in the pick-and-pops that North Carolina wants to run. But I think Tar Heels offensively attacking on the wings with Caleb Love and Leaky Black could cause problems for Agbaji and Christian Braun. None of this means that Kansas can not beat Duke. It’s a potentially tougher game than North Carolina. – Borzello
What will be the legacy of this Villanova team?
The Wildcats continue to show the rarity of excellence in basketball without big football. Villanova and Gonzaga are the only real elite programs in this category. The legacy of Jay Wright and the Wildcats is safe regardless of this Final Four result. In what was arguably the most limited team of four to reach the national semifinals, Wright did another masterpiece, winning the Big East tournament and the NCAA South Regional. The Cats 2021-22 must and will be celebrated among the most beloved teams in the history of the program. And when they build a statue for Wright one day, Gillespie will join Scottie Reynolds, Ryan Arcidiacono and Jalen Brunson as coach’s personal Mount Rushmore. – Lunardi
What would be the historic impact of a victory in Kansas on Monday night?
Bill Self has done everything he can in Kansas, but he knows that the 2008 National Championship is not commensurate with 15 Big 12 titles and an impressive nine No. 1s in the NCAA Tournament. Cutting the Nets in New Orleans permanently changes this narrative. The list of coaches with multiple NCAA leagues is short. And a fourth trophy for the Kansas program would put the Jayhawks just behind five other schools on the all-time list, one of which – North Carolina (6) or Duke (5) – would be their victim on Monday. . Here he says the Jayhawks are to blame. It was the best team in the country two years ago, when COVID-19 derailed their tournament chances and may well be the best team left in 2022. – Lunardi
