By Evan Rafferty
Well, well, well. Look who’s back. Your bracket is busted, your hopes and dreams have been ground into little chunks, and you need some last-ditch betting advice to afford a rose for your wife before she leaves your dog ass for a man who paid off his mortgage with St. Peter’s money line bets. Have no fear, my friend! This helpful guide will tell you all you need to know about the last four teams remaining in this year’s NCAA tournament, and which team will end up winning it all.
Game #1. Duke vs. UNC
We should have all seen it coming. A storybook ending so perfect that it physically brings me pain to think about how cliché the world is. Coach Michael Krzyzyzyzyzewski, perhaps better known as Coach Mike, has taken his beloved Duke to the Final Four in his last season as a head coach before he retires. The roster is stacked. Even a DWI couldn’t stop Paolo Banchero from getting to the basket. AJ Griffin is unstoppable from beyond the arc. Mark Williams gives me nightmares. With star power and a deep bench, Duke could go all the way for the final ride.
Unfortunately, the team that stands between them and a chance at the championship game is their eternal rival: the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Brady Manek is the quintessential white guy that every team needs to make it to the Final Four, and he shows no signs of slowing down- or cutting his hair. Armando Bacot is a walking and talking double-double, while the cool name department is filled by Leaky Black and Puff Johnson. UNC could be the hottest team in the nation, on a monstrous run of impressive wins after losing to the worst team in the history of amateur basketball, the Pittsburgh Panthers. One of those wins, of course, was against Duke just a few short weeks ago.
Can Duke learn from their past mistakes and come out on top? All narrative signs point to yes. The plot is too perfect, the tale is too well told. I didn’t believe it at the start of the tournament, but maybe I should now. Unfortunately, as a man of God, I can’t in good faith support a team bearing the mark of the D*vil, whether red or blue. The UNC mascot shoots and kills Coach K in the parking lot behind the stadium afterward.
Game #2: Kansas vs. Villanova
Out of the Big East, the Big Villanova Big Wildcats are back in the big dance. Bigly. The #2 seed led by prominent white boys Gil Lespie and Archie Diacono is here yet again, after recent championships in 2016 and 2018. But, does this storied program have what it takes to finish the job? Villanova is a pretty cool name, and their mascot is named Will D. Cat. I’m in love. However, I’m not so sure about how well they’re going to play defense against an elite team, and can they assert their tempo (ranked 345th in BIGBALLS per 36) throughout the game?
What even is a Jayhawk? A disgusting mutation of a blue jay and a hawk? A hawk that looks like the letter J? Something even more moronic? You know what, I don’t care. Kansas sucks. Possibly the worst state out of all of them, but it’s close. Looking at you, Delaware. I mean I guess they have some pretty good players- Ochai Agbaji is cool, Remy Martin is named after the rat from Ratatouille and Martin from Martinique, but I’m just not convinced. In March, you need to be completely, 100% sure. Also, a wildcat would totally beat the hell out of a half-bird, half-bird thing. The Villanofuns stick it to Kansass and blow them out of the water.
Championship Prediction: Duke vs Villanova
Why are you still reading this? You know, just for that, I’m giving you the worst possible advice. Using metrics based on complete witchcraft, predictions from the rat that my landlord refuses to make pay rent, and seeing who claps more for either team, I have finally decided on who will absolutely, definitively, NOT win the championship game.
Unfortunately, Duke will be suffering the ultimate defeat at the hands of the Wildcats, because, if you remember, Coach K was assassinated after the UNC game. How’s that for continuity? So either the scientific method is legit, or I’m a goddamn prophet. Take your pick, universe- I’m losing money either way.
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