Final Four 2015: Schedule, Odds and Elite Eight Predictions

The 2015 Final Four will feature some familiar faces.

It shouldn't come as a surprise that some of the best coaches still stand. John Calipari's Kentucky Wildcats are alive. So are Mike Krzyzewski's Blue Devils. Either Rick Pitino's Louisville Cardinals or Tom Izzo's Michigan State Spartans will advance too.

Of course, the Final Four's version of "Cinderellas" are still around. Notre Dame has the firepower to run with any team in the country. Gonzaga is quite dangerous, now free of its Sweet 16 shackles.

The next round and the end of the madness always sneaks up, so be sure to brush up on all the pertinent info—highlighted by how to take advantage of a quick turnaround to the Elite Eight on some early Las Vegas lines.

2015 Elite Eight Schedule and Odds

Date	Matchup (Odds)	Time (ET)	TV	Pick
Sat., 3/28	No. 1 Wisconsin vs. No. 2 Arizona (-1)	6:09 p.m.	TBS	Wisconsin
Sat., 3/28	No. 1 Kentucky (-11.5) vs. No. 3 Notre Dame	8:49 p.m.	TBS	Kentucky
Sun., 3/29	No. 4 Louisville vs. No. 7 Michigan State (-1)	2:20 p.m.	CBS	Michigan State
Sun., 3/29	No. 1 Duke (-2) vs. No. 2 Gonzaga	5:05 p.m.	CBS	Duke

Odds courtesy of Odds Shark as of March 28 at 1 p.m. ET.

Final Four Schedule

Date	Matchup
April 4	Winner of No. 1 UK/No. 3 ND vs. winner of No. 1 WIS/No. 2 ARI
April 4	Winner of No. 4 LOU/No. 7 MSU vs. winner of No. 1 DUKE/No. 2 GONZ

Elite Eight Top Bets

No. 4 Louisville vs. No. 7 Michigan State (-1)

Talk about fate. 

The Cardinals and Spartans rank right next to one another in ESPN's RPI rankings. Shocker alert—they sit next to each other in KenPom.com's overall rankings too, the only discernible difference being a strength on opposite ends of the court:

Team	ADJ OFF	ADJ DEF
Louisville	64	5
Michigan State	13	47

Louisville put its elite defense to good use to slip past UC Irvine and then blow away Northern Iowa. Its first serious test came in the Sweet 16 against an upset-minded NC State, though.

There, four Cardinals scored in double figures, led by Montrezl Harrell's game-high 24 points.

"We don't want to go home," said Harrell, per The Associated Press (via ESPN.com). "We took our bumps and bruises throughout the season, but we came together at the right time. Everything just jelled at the right time."

The same applies to Michigan State, which sneaked past Georgia, upset No. 2 Virginia and then upset Oklahoma to reach this point. Once again, the fuel for the offense was guards Denzel Valentine and Travis Trice, a duo that scored 18 and 24 points, respectively.

In a defensive battle, look for Michigan State to pull away late. Senior big man Branden Dawson can bang down low with Harrell, while the Spartans guards can pour on the points again in a favorable matchup.

The Spartans just limited Oklahoma's Buddy Hield to 21 points on 7-of-17 shooting. Louisville may fall into the same trap of leaning on one player to carry the team in a volume-based approach, which is what Izzo and Co. prefer.

Prediction: Michigan State 67, Louisville 65

No. 1 Duke (-2) vs. No. 2 Gonzaga

"Fireworks" is the perfect one-word personification of the Duke-Gonzaga showdown.

The Blue Devils and Bulldogs also rank right next to each other at KenPom.com, except in two areas—overall and adjusted offensive efficiency. The former ranks third in adjusted offense, the latter fourth.

Duke's Sweet 16 encounter with Utah should serve as a scary barometer for the remaining teams—freshman sensation Jahlil Okafor scored just six points, but three other Blue Devils reached double digits. The team shot 44.4 percent from the floor and won by six points.

As ESPN Stats & Info points out, the Blue Devils received a major boost from another freshman:

Of course, Gonzaga wasn't anything short of impressive in the Sweet 16, albeit against weaker competition thanks to a matchup with 11th-seeded UCLA. There, four players reached double digits, and the Bulldogs won the battle on the glass 50-39 for a simplistic win.

It's easy to fall into the trap of thinking Mark Few's big lineup can shut down Okafor for the second game in the row.

The problem is, neither Przemek Karnowski nor Kyle Wiltjer is as stout on the defensive end of the court as Utah's Jakob Poeltl. The Sweet 16 was just the second time this year Okafor posted single-digit production, so to expect it to happen again is, well, brave.

Okafor will be back to form. Unlike UCLA, the Blue Devils feature a relentless lineup that includes Justise Winslow, Tyus Jones and Quinn Cook, making collapsing on Okafor more difficult than it sounds.

A deep, growing lineup will be able to trade punches early and pull away from the Bulldogs late.

Prediction: Duke 78, Gonzaga 75

Stats and info are courtesy of ESPN.com unless otherwise specified.