Breaking Down the March Madness Final Four, and Looking to the Championship 2025

It’s almost time to settle the Madness. What has been one of the more practicable tournaments in recent memory is coming to a close.

Just a few short weeks ago there were sixty four teams ready to battle for a chance at glory. Now, there are just two.

The Final Four featured all one seeds for the second time in tournament history.

That led to two incredibly exciting matchups between four titans going blow-for-blow. While only two teams came out on top, that doesn’t detract from how hard everyone played.

They all deserved to be there, and it set the stage for a truly great championship game.

Auburn vs Florida

The Gators have a shot at redemption. Though all the one seeds seemed to have flaws going into the tournament, Florida appeared to be the most well rounded out of all them.

The team is balanced at all stages of the court, plays good defense, and knows how to rally.

All of that was on display against a tough Auburn team who entered March with championship aspirations.

The Tigers did a great job of pushing Florida

They came out strong, played big, and went up by eight points at half.

However, while Auburn had a chance to win, Florida continued to do what they did all year: stay calm.

The Gators have been down in plenty of games this season, including most of their tournament wins. Their Final Four match was no exception.

Rather than panic or try to do too much too quickly, Florida slowly ground away at Auburn’s lead.

Eventually the script flipped, and they ended up pushing the Tigers out of the game in a tight 79 to 73 victory

As usual, Florida won on the back of Walter Clayton Jr.

The sharpshooting guard has been unbelievable in the tournament, and he continued his hot streak with a 34 point performance that led his team and buried the Tigers.

Duke vs Houston

With all respect to Auburn and Florida, the game of the night (and quite possibly the game of the tournament) belongs to Duke and Houston.

The two heavyweights almost seemed destined to meet, and when they clashed they did so in tremendous fashion.

Duke, led by likely first overall pick Cooper Flagg, brought it to Houston all night

They leaned on their guards, leveraged their high level play, and managed to keep the Cougars off balance. It was a plan that worked extremely well. At least, until the last two minutes.

While Duke had the upper hand for the entire contest, Houston came surging back right at the end to snatch victory from the jaws of defeat.

They were down seven with just two minutes to go, and then went on a strong run to come out on top 70-67

One of the biggest question marks coming into the bracket was Duke’s inexperience. Though their talent carried them most of the way, they didn’t have the ability to to keep calm down the stretch.

Their lack of seniority showed, and it’s how Houston managed to continue their run.

The Florida Gators

When looking at the two final teams, it’s hard to see a flaw in Florida’s roster.

The team can beat their opponents in a variety of ways. While they might first look like a two man show behind Clayton Jr. and Alex Condon (who had a quiet night against Auburn), they have a variety of strong players.

They aren’t as athletic as Houston, nor do they run the floor as well, but they know how to clamp down, play strong defense, and get big.

If they can win in the paint, they can beat anyone

That will be their key in the championship game. They need to score, and hope Clayton Jr. keeps up his shooting, but games are won inside. That’s certainly the case here.

The Houston Cougars

Where Florida is a team that depends on slick plays and a solid rotation to win games, the Cougars play old school basketball. That is to say, they have an incredibly tough defense that relies on toughness and hustle.

The Cougars know how to score, and can shoot relatively well. Even so, their advantage comes from their ability to keep their opponents away from the rim.

They have a lot of size, and know how to bully their opponents both inside and outside the key

They are definitely going to have their hands full with Florida. The Gators have a balanced attack that is hard to guard. However, Florida also struggles in the first half.

If Houston can build an early lead and clamp down in the second half, they could finish what has been a truly magical year.

If looking for March Madness tournament schedules, matchup breakdowns, and expert picks, head to our March Madness section.