VCU or George Mason, Which Run More Amazing

VCU became only the third 11 seed to ever reach the Final Four on Sunday, and the first since 2006 when Jim Larranaga and his bunch from George Mason put on that glass slipper and embraced the role of Cinderella. If VCU had played and won on Saturday against Kansas it would have eerily been the five year anniversary to the day of that awe inspiring win over one seed Connecticut. So who had a more impressive and inspirational run, VCU or George Mason?

You take a look at something that is strangely similar, the bashing of the two teams before a game was played in the tournament. Back in 2006 Billy Packer of CBS was very vocal of his displeasure for the Patriots even being invited to the dance, and that ended up biting Packer in the butt as they made their way into the Final Four to face eventual champion Florida. VCU was struck with similar criticism, even more wide spread this time, as you had Dick Vitale, Doug Gottlieb, and Jay Bilas (amongst many others) saying that they should not only not be in compared to other teams resumes, but should not have even been in the consideration. The fuel that naysayers provided the two of them.

Well with the pregame talks out of the way the games had to be played, and that is instantly giving VCU a leg up on George Mason because they had to play in the First Four game. The inaugural First Four experiment has certainly gotten the boost it needed from the Rams, because maybe next year people will be more interested by the teams playing in it. They were able to take on a power conference team, and hold them to only one field goal over the final nine minutes in a 59-46 win. The win was the momentum starter with all that negative talk that the Rams just might have needed to put it all together.

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Then came the round of 64 and a match up with a six seed for the two teams. In that round George Mason was able to take out the tournament juggernaut that is Michigan St., while VCU was able to knock off Big East's Georgetown en route to a third game. The difference here is where Georgetown was coming into this game, on a losing streak and trying to insert senior leader Chris Wright who had missed over a month due to a broken bone in his non shooting hand. They were not the team that had risen to a possible three seed prior to the injury, and it could be said that VCU caught them at a good time, a team that does not really have a good tournament record following their last trip to the Final Four with Jeff Green and Roy Hibbert.

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In the last game of the first weekend George Mason was facing no easy task, as they had the defending champion North Carolina Tar Heels to deal with. They were able to defeat the Tar Heels by slowing them down and making it a grind of a game, pulling it out 65-60. This was their second win against the power conferences and a larger upset than the previous game had been, winning over a three seed in North Carolina. VCU matched up next with Purdue out of the Big 10, getting a third win from a power conference, and winning despite the fact that they were dominated down low going into the game with JaJuan Johnson being one of the nation's top big men. They were able to shut down E'Twaun Moore, only allowing him to get 10 points, in the dismantling of Purdue, outscoring them by 10 in the first half and eight in the second. Given the absolute domination of the Boilermakers, VCU has to get the upper hand in making it to the second weekend.

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So both teams found themselves in the sweet 16, and both were lucky enough to not have to face the two seed in their bracket, as they had already been knocked off. With that being said George Mason got more of a reprieve than VCU, because you can not just look at the seedings. In terms of that, VCU got a 10 seed and George Mason got a seven seed, but the difference was in the competition, as VCU had to play against Florida St., the nation's best defensive team perhaps, and George Mason was facing Wichita St., another mid major. Florida St. came out punching and VCU was able to withstand it, shoot 46% from three as a team, and hold on for a win in overtime against Florida St. George Mason was able to control the game against the Shockers, and win going away 63-55. In terms of the tougher and more impressive win, the edge goes to VCU.

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Finally we have the Elite Eight match ups, both got no reprieve here as they had to face the number one seeds in their region, Kansas and Connecticut. Now VCU was facing a Kansas team yesterday that was clearly among the two best teams in the nation all year with Ohio St., and they were outmatched again at almost every major position, but they were able to shoot their way to a huge lead in the first half, while Kansas could not hit water in the middle of the ocean. They took their nine first half threes and went into the locker room up 14, only to come back out and get hit right in the mouth, Kansas opening the second half on a 19-7 run to cut the lead to 48-46. The Rams then regrouped and shot their way back out of it, gaining a 10 point lead right back, and holding on for an incredible upset, one of the bigger ones in tournament history.

George Mason's upset to reach the Final Four though can not be overlooked, because going into that game Connecticut was a prohibitive favorite and seen as the overall best team in the nation by a good margin. They were loaded with NBA talent, moreso than the Kansas team that VCU beat yesterday, and their top talent was better than the Jayhawks top talent. In that game George Mason was not only able to stay in it in regulation, helped in large part by their outside shooting, but they forced overtime. There you thought that the Huskies would regroup and win this one going away with the extra five minutes. Wrong. George Mason hit 5-6 shots and was able to hold on for the 86-84 victory when Denham Brown missed a three at the buzzer. Given the teams involved in the two games, you have to definitely give the Elite Eight edge to George Mason.

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When it comes down to it the fact that VCU was able to win that extra game, against a power conference school, and beat five power conference schools to George Mason's three, was what put them over the top. They had to win more games against better competition as a whole. Though that win by George Mason to make it into the Final Four over Connecticut could have still almost pushed them in front because that was an upset for the ages. There is no way that they should have beaten that team, but they did, and that is why these two Cinderella stories are so great, taking the criticism and naysayers and just continuing to come out on top.