Final Four 2016: Predicting Last 2 Teams for Updated Bracket

Even in an NCAA tournament that has seen a slew of unforeseen upsets, most of the top contenders remain alive in the hunt for the national title with the Final Four on the horizon.

Matt Draper of ESPN.com reported zero of the 13 million brackets submitted in ESPN’s tournament challenge were perfect just midway through the second day of action. 

But even with the onslaught of upsets in the first two rounds, as is mostly the case by this time in the tournament, some of the best teams in college basketball remain in the hunt.

All four No. 1 seeds reached the Elite Eight for the seventh time since seeding was installed in 1979, according to STATS LLC (h/t Dan Gelston of the Associated Press). In the South and West Regions, both the No. 1 and 2 seeds were a win away from the Final Four. 

The collision course culminates in Houston next week, and here are the predictions for the teams that will play for the title.

North Carolina Tar Heels

Nick Lisi/Associated Press

North Carolina has looked like a well-oiled machine en route to its 24th Elite Eight in program history, averaging 89.6 points per game—tops in the tournament among the remaining teams. 

The Tar Heels are looking like the team many had envisioned they were when the Associated Press Top 25 and USA Today Coaches Poll ranked them No. 1 in the preseason. 

UNC’s dominance down low has been its catalyst all season, as it has controlled the glass against just about every opponent. 

But this March, the Tar Heels are also finding success from beyond the arc—an area where they struggled with a 32.1 percent connection rate during the regular season. 

That figure ballooned to 55 percent in their Sweet 16 win over Indiana, via NCAA March Madness:

The Tar Heels have no doubt benefited from an easier path to the Final Four than the rest of the remaining teams. Should they reach Houston, none of their wins in the Big Dance would have been against teams ranked higher than a No. 5 seed. 

But they don’t need to apologize for exploiting a weak schedule—it was a reward for being a No. 1 seed, which they earned for their convincing path to the postseason. 

Villanova Wildcats

Andy Lyons/Getty Images

Except for North Carolina, Villanova has been the hottest team in the tournament, upending top overall seed Kansas 64-59 in the Elite Eight on Saturday. 

Adding to their monumental win over the tournament favorite, the Wildcats convincingly dismissed UNC-Asheville, Iowa and Miami on their road to the Final Four. 

A tall test awaits in Buddy Hield and the Oklahoma Sooners next Saturday, but Villanova has proved with a march of consistency and poise that it is capable of taking on the nation’s best player and his strong supporting cast. 

The Wildcats reached college basketball’s biggest stage with fundamental efficiency, as ESPN’s Mike Greenberg noted:

Stewart Mandel of Fox Sports added Villanova’s first meeting with Oklahoma is all but irrelevant at this point:

Jon Rothstein of CBS Sports also noted how the Wildcats turned things around after failing to win their conference tournament:

This is Villanova’s first Final Four since 2009. In their last trip, the Wildcats fell to UNC in the national semifinal as the Tar Heels went on to win the title. In a potential rematch, the Wildcats will be out for revenge. 

Check out Bleacher Report's live updating bracket to track your picks along the road to the Final Four.