Four teams. Three games. Two days. One champion.
Who will emerge victorious?
The Kentucky Wildcats overcame adversity in 1998, clawing their way back from a 12-point second-half deficit to defeat Cinderella team Utah, 78-69.
In 1999, basketball fans saw underdog Connecticut beat top-ranked Duke 77-74 for its first national championship in its first trip to the Final Four.
Last year, MSU’s campus erupted as the Spartans toppled Florida 89-76 on the way to its first national title since Earvin “Magic” Johnson donned the green and white in 1979.
It’s what championship teams are made of, and on April 2, the nation will anxiously await the emergence of the 2001 National Champions.
The highest honor in college basketball - the NCAA title - has been abound with legendary names like Bill Russell, Lew Alcindor and Michael Jordan; it’s known for the dynasties of UCLA, North Carolina and Duke, and on occasion, a team can win back-to-back titles.
This season, MSU attempts to leave its mark in college basketball by being the first team to repeat as national champs since Duke did it in 1991-92, and only the seventh in NCAA history.
But the question remains: Can the Spartans do it?
In their way stand two huge hurdles; teams that have fought their way through the ranks, each hoping to dethrone the returning champs.
But even more troublesome than the teams they face, the Spartans’ title hopes depend on which team they themselves bring to Minneapolis.
Leadership has been an area of concern throughout most of the season - always surfacing after a tough loss. And with a spot in the Final Four, the topic is sure to come up again.
Last year, energetic Mateen Cleaves assumed the burdensome role, even after suffering a broken foot early in the season.
This year, the returning seniors, those select few that experienced MSU’s previous two Final Four runs, were expected to take over. But even now, it appears there is still a need for someone to take the reigns.
Turnovers also have plagued this Spartan squad this season. Evidence can be found in its early round tournament games - 14 against Alabama State, 16 against Fresno State and 11 against Temple.
While these momentary lapses didn’t prove fatal in those matchups - where the highest-ranked opponent MSU faced was a ninth seed - the Final Four touts teams seeded no lower than No. 3.
Still, as memorable as it would be for the Spartans to repeat, what makes this year’s Big Dance even more exciting are the matchups:
MSU vs. Arizona.
Duke vs. Maryland.
Four teams deserving of a Final Four appearance.
For Maryland, the first team to advance to the Final Four with an 87-73 upset over No. 1 seed Stanford, playing March 31 is a dream come true.
Until this year, the Terps, a school that has been playing collegiate basketball since 1904, have never made it past the Elite Eight.
Duke pulled off a 10-point win over USC in the East Regional Finals to advance for the eighth time in the past 15 years.
MSU, despite struggling with No. 11-seed Temple, makes its third straight Final Four appearance.
And Arizona is back only four years after winning a national championship in 1997.
Even with the highly anticipated matchups, the Final Four could have been so much more.
At least from a historical standpoint.
For the first time in Division I history, four No. 1 seeds could have faced off in Minneapolis.
Also, for the first time, four schools from two conferences - two from the Big Ten in MSU and Illinois, and two from the ACC in Duke and Maryland - could have squared off.
But, despite the lack of history, the tournament will do what it’s always done:
Provide good television.
And reaffirm why March is deemed “madness.”
Tim Mosley, State News sports administration reporter can be reached at mosleyt@msu.edu.
