Keeping with the current national political tone, Buddy Hield could sell himself as the orchestrator of a popular groundswell. The sharpshooting Oklahoma senior takes the microphone and tells a cheering throng of supporters that it’s time “To Make College Basketball Great Again,” inciting roars while restoring fond memories to the forgotten — those old enough to remember when freshmen knew their place and patiently waited their turn.
The seniors got their Final Four back.
There could be as many as 10 seniors among the 20 starters Saturday night at NRG Stadium in Houston. There will only be two freshmen starters in the Final Four.
The McDonald’s All-America freshman gives way to the Old Country Buffet all-you-can-eat senior.
This is more singular moment than revolutionary movement. Put away the iPhone and dust off the old Polaroid snapshots. But it’s refreshing that this Final Four accurately reflects an overall college basketball season that contradicted convention. Those wrongly punished for staying and learning … and improving … are receiving their rightful reward.
Hield is the best player in the tournament. He’s the best player in the country. He should be a top-five NBA draft pick this summer, especially considering the repeat high lottery offenders getting burned regularly by physically and emotionally fragile 19-year-olds. According to the NCAA, Hield became the first senior, since Georgia Tech’s Dennis Scott in 1990, to average more than 25 points a game and advance to the Final Four. His tournament has already drawn comparisons to Steph Curry’s mind-blowing 2008 run to the Elite Eight with Davidson. Hield’s 37-point mastery of Oregon in the West Regional championship game Saturday night was legendary. Afterwards, Hield called his four-year career “a work in progress.” He proved — much to the utter horror of NBA scouts — that an assassin’s eye as well as heart can be honed through high-pressure situations at the collegiate level.
There were five freshmen starters in the 2013 and 2014 Final Four. There were six freshmen starters in last year’s Final Four just between Duke and Kentucky. All six were selected in the first round of last year’s NBA draft.
Villanova point guard Jalen Brunson and Syracuse’s Malachi Richardson are the only freshmen starters next weekend. Richardson was the biggest reason for the Orange’s amazing second-half comeback against No. 1 seeded Virginia Sunday night, putting the 10th seed on his young back. But neither was a high profile signee and neither gets mentioned with other first-round selections in the various mock drafts.
This Final Four validates what many already believed through the course of a long season:
The ACC was clearly the nation’s strongest conference. North Carolina will take on Syracuse in an all-ACC national semifinal next weekend.
A No. 2 seed — either Oklahoma or Villanova — will play for the national championship. There really wasn’t much separation between the top eight seeds in the tournament. The Sooners and Wildcats each toppled a No. 1 seed in their respective regional finals.
Three of the Final Four teams held to the No. 1 rankings nationally at some point during the regular season. How’s that for parity?
But the strongest validation is that the lack of dynamic freshmen didn’t diminish the game’s overall star power as many feared. Seniors proved they’re more than capable of shining when the mood strikes. It’s unlikely that future freshmen will look upon this season as little more than an aberration. But you hope they’re watching Hield this weekend, appreciating that they’ve got options other than turning their college experience into a quickly spinning revolving door.
Contact Drew Sharp: dsharp@freepress.com. Follow him on Twitter @drewsharp. To read his recent columns, go to freep.com/sports/drew-sharp/.
The Final Four
When: Semifinals — Saturday. Final — April 4.
Where: NRG Energy Stadium, Houston
TV: All three games will be shown on TBS, truTV and TNT.
The semis
Sooners vs. Wildcats
Matchup: No. 2 seed Villanova (29-5) vs. No. 2 seed Oklahoma (25-7).
Line: Wildcats by 2.
Orange vs. Tar Heels
Matchup: No. 10 seed Syracuse (23-13) vs. No. 1 seed North Carolina (29-6).
Line: Tar Heels by 9 1/2.
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