Rihanna - Live Your Life (March Madness Festival | LIVE)
Mike McGinnis/Getty Images
Duke and Wisconsin are set to face off for the 2015 NCAA tournament championship at Lucas Oil Stadium on Monday night (9:18 p.m. ET on CBS). Notably absent is Kentucky after its bid for a perfect season ended at the hands of the Badgers in the semifinals.
The two teams met back in early December. The Blue Devils managed to go out on the road and escape from the Kohl Center with an impressive 80-70 victory. A lot has changed since that point, however, and the rematch falls firmly in the toss-up category.
Let"s check out how the March Madness bracket looks now that the final two teams have been decided. That"s followed by the odds and predictions for the championship game.
2015 NCAA Tournament Bracket
March Madness Championship Odds
2015 NCAA Tournament Championship Game April 6 Duke vs. Wisconsin Even 140Odds via Odds Shark
Predictions for Title Game
Champions: Wisconsin
Clearly, the odds set this up as an extremely evenly matched contest. It"s hard to argue. Both sides came into the tournament as No. 1 seeds in their respective regions, and in the KenPom.com rankings, Wisconsin is third and Duke is fourth.
The formula used by FiveThirtyEight also points toward a close game, with a slight edge to Wisconsin:
ESPN Stats & Info notes its BPI ranking has a little more confidence in the Badgers:
Even without the eye-popping level of talent on Kentucky"s roster, the title game still features its fair share of star power.
The main attraction will be Frank Kaminsky and Jahlil Okafor, probably the top two players in college basketball this season, going head-to-head. Frank the Tank handled the size and athleticism of the Wildcats tremendously in the last round, scoring 20 points and grabbing 11 rebounds.
Moreover, these are two players who are going to proverbially jump out of the gym. They are technically strong post players. Okafor is more polished on the interior and Kaminsky can better stretch a defense, but they both win with substance more than flash.
Mike Wise of TheUndefeated.com spotlighted the battle:
The other matchup that will go a long way in deciding the champion is Sam Dekker against Justise Winslow.
Dekker has been on fire for the Badgers, connecting on 15 threes in the tournament. Winslow represents his toughest defensive foe, however. If the Duke freshman can limit those momentum-building shots from his counterpart, Wisconsin will likely struggle to find consistency on offense.
Which team is your pick in the 2015 title game?Ultimately, no matter how you break things down, all signs point to a game that"s still up for grabs in the final minutes. Wisconsin showed what it"s capable of in crunch time against previously undefeated Kentucky. Duke hasn"t been tested to that extent in any of the previous tournament games.
In these toss-up situations, the safest route is usually siding with the best player on the floor. Not the one with the most natural talent. Not the best long-term NBA prospect. But the most effective college player at this point in his career.
That"s Kaminsky. The Badgers are the pick in what could be an instant classic.
Most Outstanding Player: Frank Kaminsky
If Wisconsin does win the championship, it"s hard to imagine somebody other than Kaminsky or Dekker taking home the MOP award. While it"s certainly been a collective team effort, they have been the driving force behind the run to the final.
Kaminsky"s story is a great one. In an era where one-and-done college players steal the spotlight and the obsession is normally focused on what a player can become rather than what he currently is, he"s gone through college the old-school way.
Who will win the Most Outstanding Player?The Illinois native started as a little-used freshman averaging less than two points per game. He made slow and steady progress. He opted against entering the draft as the hype began to grow last season, and it paid off with his most complete season to date as a senior.
It"s a story worth pointing out to those thinking about making the jump early when perhaps they aren"t completely ready. Gaining more experience as a prominent player in college can really help the development process.
Jim Polzin of the Wisconsin State Journal passed along comments from Kaminsky before the Final Four about his path to this point and what it meant to be named the AP Player of the Year.
"It means a lot," Kaminsky said. "It"s been a long journey. It wasn"t easy at times, but I just believed in the process and believed in myself and had a lot of people who also believed in me. They really pushed me. My teammates really helped me by making me a better player every day in practice. I"ve just got to be thankful to all the people who helped me."
Now he"s one game away from ending his collegiate career on a perfect note. He could head home from Indianapolis with a lot more hardware for his resume.
Source: http://bleacherreport.com/articles/2420821-march-madness-2015-final-bracket-ncaa-title-game-odds-and-predictions
