After several intense rounds of NCAA men’s basketball, four teams have finally emerged to play next weekend in the Final Four. The Final Four teams playing in Detroit this weekend are, UConn, Villanova, Michigan State, and UNC, each team with impressive runs so far in the tournament. Each team has demonstrated that they have what it takes to be college champions, but which two will come out on top and move on to the final round?

Michigan State should enjoy the home court advantage in their game against Connecticut, but UConn is still the expected winner. With UConn’s enormous 7-foot-3 center, Hasheem Thabeet, they expect to have a serious defensive upper hand. In their last two tournament games, UConn won handily. Michigan St. will be coming off their impressive win over the top-seeded Louisville, who was expected to be the overall winner of the tournament by top analysts. Can Michigan overcome the Big East giant (UConn) that is looking to continue crushing their competition?

Connecticut may have the best coach of the four teams remaining. Jim Calhoun has led his team to two final fours and both times his team has won the national title. Perhaps this coaching experience will be an edge over MSU and send UConn to another title game. However, will Michigan’s shooting talent overtake UConn? MSU prides itself on its shooting, with players like Goran Suton who can hit above 50% from beyond the three-point line. This makes the MSU Spartans a definite 3-point threat.

Villanova showed its worthy ability when they won their Elite Eight match up against top dog team, Pittsburgh. Can they overcome star senior Tyler Hansbrough and the explosive UNC Tar Heels? Villanova is the lowest seeded team in the final four, which makes them the underdogs in Saturday’s match. However, Villanova has beaten UCLA, Duke, and Pittsburgh in previous rounds of the tournament. These impressive wins suggest they could upset UNC, a team that is fighting for their fifth national title.

UNC seemed to dominate the ACC this year, and are also the only team with players that have experience in the final four. Dante Cunningham has been a crucial member of the Villanova team this season. Can Cunningham’s powerful offense be enough to sink the high standing Tar Heels?

The Villanova Wildcats have very little pressure to win the title, compared to the two number one seeds remaining that are the uncontested favorites. This underestimation and low-pressure atmosphere could end up being Villanova’s saving grace. They’ll be loose and ready to take on another tough opponent come Saturday.

My prediction? UConn and Villanova will win.

I believe that on Saturday both games will be decided by fewer than 10 points. They will both be hard fought and tough battles. My prediction is that Villanova creates the upset and overcomes the favorite UNC in a shocking game. UConn will have a solid win over MSU, who just won’t have enough power and skill to overcome Thabeet and UConn’s focused defense.