NCAA Bracket 2011: Final Four Preview and Prediction

Butler vs. VCU: Saturday, April 2, 6:09 p.m. EST, CBS

I highly underrated both teams coming into the NCAA tournament. Butler had showed some strength, but surely no one could see the Bulldogs making another run into the Final Four. On the other side of the matchup, over half of the casual sports fans had no idea what VCU (Virginia Commonwealth University) even stood for until the Rams started making noise in this tournament

The VCU faithful and players will have a little extra to cheer and play for this weekend. News broke Tuesday afternoon that VCU coach Shaka Smart’s grandfather, Walter King, passed away. King was very influential in Smart's life and helped him develop his appreciation for the game of basketball.

This is the kind of feel-good story Americans love to hear about, a team rallying around someone, and VCU may have just added another couple hundred thousand people to its  fanbase for whatever is left of its run. The Rams will need to continue utilizing their speed and outside shooting.

Butler plays a very tough style of basketball and uses its stellar defensive play to lead to easy transition baskets. The Bulldogs have a two-headed offensive attack with Matt Howard (16.7 PPG, 7.4 RPG) and Shelvin Mack (15.9 PPG, 4.3 RPG, 3.6 APG). 

Butler is going to need to rely on Howard and Mack to put up points and its defense to slow down VCU's up-tempo offense, which often goes on big-scoring runs due to excellent three-point shooting.

My Pick: VCU. I’m going to keep riding this "Cinderella story." VCU wins in what is bound to be a great game to watch.

Connecticut vs. Kentucky: Saturday, April 2, 8:49 p.m. EST, CBS

UConn has now won nine straight games and seems to be rolling on all cylinders after taking out its first two tournament opponents with ease, upsetting No. 2 seed San Diego State and defeating a very tough Arizona team last weekend.

Kentucky, on the other hand, has not won a single game in the tournament by more than eight points and knocked off Ohio State and North Carolina, two of the better teams in the nation, in back-to-back games. The Wildcats have a chance to continue taking out the big boys on Saturday.

We all know the main man for the Huskies: Kemba Walker, is averaging just under 27 points a game in tournament play, including a 36-point performance against Arizona. Freshman Jeremy Lamb, a possible future star for UConn, has been making quite a name for himself.  Lamb has put up good numbers in his past couple games: 24 points against SDSU and 19 against ‘Zona.

Kentucky is a very young team led by three freshman starters. Despite the Wildcats' youth, many people thought UK had potential for a Final Four run from the get-go. The leader of that freshmen trio is Brandon Knight, who has developed into a game changer throughout this tournament. His team-high 22-point performance against the Tar Heels and game-winning jumper against Ohio State have proven that he is the go-to guy in the clutch for the Wildcats.

My Pick: UConn. The Huskies are just too talented and have proven that throughout this tournament. Kentucky has had some tougher games in this tournament, and that will help them get this game down to the last minute, but I just can’t pick against Walker and the Huskies in this one.