Kentucky Wins National Title
If, by chance, you were living under a rock for the past 24 hours, you might not have noticed that Kentucky defeated Kansas to win the National Championship last night, 67-59. For John Calipari, his recruitment of one-and-done players has finally panned out with a national title. For the rest of college basketball, it is a bit disappointing that such a non-traditional roster was able to achieve what it did. Still, there is no question that Kentucky was the best team in college basketball in 2011-2012. The team deserves the title.
For most ACC fans, there is little to really complain about. Other than North Carolina and Syracuse, nobody was going to beat Kentucky. Not Duke. Kentucky was that good.
For North Carolina and Syracuse, there is disappointment. A healthy Tar Heels squad would have competed with Kentucky. After all, Kentucky only beat North Carolina 73-72 when both teams were at full strength. Of course, the Tar Heels were not healthy for most of the last several weeks of the season. Ultimately, no rematch happened for the 32-6 Tar Heels.
Syracuse did not suffer injuries, but was plagued by the academic (allegedly) woes of Fab Melo. The Orange battled valiantly without the Big East Defensive Player of the Year. At the same time, the Kentucky front line would have given the 34-3 Syracuse Orange all it could handle. Plus, Kentucky’s outside shooting last night suggested that the zone might not have posed much of a problem–especially without Melo.
In the end, it was Kentucky’s year. Although bittersweet, it is what it is.
The Confidential 