VCU Meets Butler, One Will Play For The Title

You have probably heard it a thousand times by now, "What would you say if I told you that either Butler or VCU would be playing in the national championship game at the beginning of the tournament? You would call me nuts!" Well it has happened, and we have to deal with it. The great thing is, come tonight around 10 after six o'clock, we will probably have a great game of two teams on great tournament runs. Butler has had close games in all four of their match ups, and VCU has had probably the greatest NCAA Tournament run of all time, beating teams from the Pac 10, Big East, Big 10, ACC, and Big 12. Absolutely amazing. So who will win the meeting of the under dogs?

VCU has shot the ball incredibly well from behind the arc in this tournament, they really beat Kansas because of the number of first half three pointers they made. They need to maintain that hot shooting because Butler's defense is so stout, so physical, that they need to hit the open shots when they get them, like they have been all tournament long. They have to use their athleticism over the Butler players in certain match ups, especially since many times in the tournament they have not had that advantage at many positions. Joey Rodriguez has to control this game and its tempo, because he is the biggest reason on the court as to why they have made it this far. He has controlled the pace of their games, found the open man, made the open shots, and just made the correct play almost every time he was put in position to make a play. They need him to continue to play that way, because they know that Shelvin Mack is going to everything in his power to get back to that championship Monday.

Butler has to do one thing to win, play Butler tournament basketball, because that seems to work very well lately, a half an inch away from a 10 game tournament win streak. The key to Butler has been their defense, and if they are able to play that defense on VCU, and get the team concept to really get into the space and faces of the shooters, then VCU should find it difficult to keep up their hot shooting. The Bulldogs also have to make sure they hit the defensive glass, the last thing you want to give VCU is second chances, third chances and so on. The fewer possessions you give them the better, so they need to control the boards. Lastly, get Mack going early. He is a player that can take a game over, and if he is able to get started early, and he is a guy that thrives on the spotlight, then it could be a long day for the Rams, because he has that killer instinct, and he has it often.

I think that VCU comes out of the gates and really jumps out in front. They are hyped, energetic and really bring it to the Bulldogs on the offensive end. I think Mack and Matt Howard settle the guys down and they chip away at the lead, and their team defense figures out their slides and plays more cohesively as the game continues on. I see Butler coming out with the win, in another pretty close game.

Butler 67 VCU 61