LSU at UCLA

Prior to the 90's it was long believed that that guards took you far into the tournament and big men won near the end (around the Final 4). Then, in the 90's, the big men started to leave school early and go to the NBA and that slowly lead to great guards taking teams all the way through the tournament. While the conventional wisdom says back the Bruins here with their great guards, I see it a bit different. We have a unique situation in this game because LSU's big men did not 'check out' to the NBA and as a result we get NBA quality big men still playing in college. Speaking of big men, LSU has a forward by the name of Tyrus Thomas who is 6'9" but could jump through the roof if he wanted to. While an underclassman, he could be a lottery pick right now. He is arguably the best player left in this tournament and is accompanied by a group of forwards who have led this LSU team into this Final Four spot. They have the most agile 310lb player in the game("Big Baby" Davis) who made a 3 pointer against Texas and played wonderful defense against LaMarcus Aldridge. Also, a small forward in Tasmin Mitchel who can make the 3 or go down low and hit the boards. Any or all of those three forwards have the chance for a double double on any given night. They aren't just strong with their forwards on the floor, but also from the bench also; mainly Darnell Lazare but also Magnum Rolle. UCLA has gotten here on defense. But, LSU is a team that can break through that stingy defense by beating it in low. LSU has scored more ppg, shot better free throw percentage and gets more rebounds per game than UCLA. Anyone who has been following college basketball and more specifically following March Madness basketball knows that these are 3 of the key factors needed to win games. LSU has the edge in all of them. Look for Thomas to get a few blocks and surely a chance that Davis shoots up a 3 pointer as these forwards continue to play as a solid unit and are too much for UCLA to handle when the game ends. I see LSU and their outstanding front-court play dominating as they win and cover against UCLA. Sure, UCLA has a very talented backcourt with Farmar and Affalo and a great defense. But as LSU showed against JJ Redick and Duke, they can play some tough defense too if they need to. LSU moves on here.