1. #1
    bigboydan
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    LSU/UCLA preview

    They call it March Madness for a reason, and anyone filling out a NCAA Tournament bracket just a few weeks ago knows why. The 2006 Final Four will not have a number-one seed hitting the RCA Dome floor in Indianapolis for the first time since 1980.

    Sportsbook.com opened Louisiana State as a two-point ‘chalk’ over UCLA in Saturday’s semifinal, with the total set at 121. CBS Sports will provide coverage of this contest beginning at 8:45 p.m. ET.

    Louisiana State (27-8 straight up, 15-15 against the spread) entered the Atlanta Region as the four-seed behind top-seed Duke, second-seed Texas and third-seed Iowa. The Hawkeyes were dispatched in a first-round upset, but the Tigers had to plow through the top-two seeds.

    LSU began its NCAA Tournament run with its opening-round victory over Iona as a 7 1/2-point favorite, 80-64. The Tigers followed that effort by slipping past Texas A&M in the second round as a 4 1/2-point ‘chalk,’ 58-57.

    The Bayou Bengals then proceeded to upset the Blue Devils in the Sweet 16 as a 5 1/2-point underdog, 62-54, before knocking off the Longhorns in overtime during the Elite Eight as a three-point ‘dog, 70-60. LSU’s Final Four run has seen the ‘under’ occur in all four of their tournament games, even its overtime victory versus Texas.

    The Tigers outscored the Longhorns in overtime, 18-8, and prevailed despite getting outrebounded for the game, 45-36. LSU did manage to shoot 42 percent (28-of-66) from the field while limiting Texas to just 30 percent (21-of-69).

    Forward Glen Davis paced the offense with 26 points on 11-of-19 shooting along with grabbing nine rebounds, while Tyrus Thomas contributed 21 and 13. The Bayou Bengals are not terribly experienced with just one senior, guard Darrel Mitchell, while starting three freshman. LSU also isn’t blessed with a ton of depth, as its bench managed just two points and three rebounds versus the Longhorns.

    The Tigers are making their first Final Four appearance since their magical run back in 1986 when they advanced to the national semifinal as an 11th-seed. LSU also advanced to this stage back in 1953 and 1981, but recent history hasn’t been as kind. The Bayou Bengals were first-round fodder in 2003 and 2005 while missing the tournament entirely during the 2004 campaign.

    The Tigers led the powerful SEC this season in scoring margin, rebound margin, points allowed, field-goal percentage defense and blocked shots. One of the chinks in LSU’s armor is ball handling, where the team committed more turnovers than its opponents in league play.

    UCLA (31-6 SU, 21-12 ATS) enters the Final Four riding an 11-game SU winning streak (9-2 ATS) that includes the Pac-10 Tournament title. The second-seeded Bruins in the Oakland Region have had a tough NCAA Tournament road to hoe after blowing out Belmont in the opener as a 17-point ‘chalk,’ 78-44.

    Coach Ben Howland’s team held off 10th-seed Alabama in the second round as an 8 1/2-point favorite, 62-59, before rallying past third-seed Gonzaga in the Sweet 16 as a four-point ‘chalk,’ 73-71. UCLA then knocked off top-seed Memphis in the regional final as a three-point Oakland underdog, 50-45.

    The Bruins shot a dismal 35 percent (14-of-40) versus the Tigers, while limiting them to a subpar 32 percent (17-of-54). Both teams combined for 35 turnovers in the defensive struggle, while UCLA struggled once again from the free-throw line by shooting a poor 51 percent (20-of-39). The free-throw problems almost cost this team against the Crimson Tide, and will catch up with the Bruins should this trend continue.

    Guard Arron Affalo led all scorers with just 15 points on 2-of-9 shooting, connecting on 9-of-10 from the charity stripe. Center Ryan Hollins poured in 14 points and grabbed nine rebounds, but hit only 2-of-11 from the free-throw line. The bench provided 12 points and 11 rebounds in the regional final victory.

    The Bruins have seen the ‘under’ go 3-1 during their tournament run, with the lone ‘over’ occurring in the Gonzaga contest. UCLA’s latest effort versus Memphis saw the combined 95 points never seriously threatened the 135 1/2-point closing total.

    UCLA is quite simply the most dominant NCAA Tournament team in terms of history, appearing in 15 Final Fours while winning 11. The Bruins dynasty was at their apex during the 1960's and 70's, but the school raised their last banner back in 1995. UCLA didn’t advance to the tournament during the 2003 and 2004 seasons, and was knocked out last year in the first round as an 11th seed by Texas Tech.

    The Bruins can cut down the nets in Indianapolis if they correct their poor free-throw shooting and get a balanced scoring effort. That will depend on point guard Jordan Farmar, as the team averaged barely 63 points during their last five losses during the regular season. The old adage says that defense wins championships, and that is UCLA’s strong point.

  2. #2
    pags11
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    Join Date: 08-18-05
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    these teams are very, very similiar...I'd say the slight edge on defense goes to UCLA and the slight edge in offense goes to LSU...also a slight coaching edge to UCLA...LSU has the combo of Thomas and Big Baby which will be tough to stop, but Jordan Farmar finds ways to win his teams games (Aflalo seems to hit some big shots as well)...a true toss-up here, should be a great game...

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