In the men’s NCAA national semifinals on Saturday, April 4, Michigan State plays Connecticut, and Villanova takes on North Carolina. The winners will play for the championship on Monday, April 6.

Andy: With 16 teams left, my entire elite eight was in tact. However, my bracket limped to the final four with only one correct pick: the North Carolina Tar Heels. Despite my busted bracket, I’m still excited for the upcoming final four and am ready to lay down a new set of picks.

I see Connecticut beating Michigan State in Saturday’s first game in spite of the home court advantage the Spartans will have playing in Detroit, only 90 miles from their campus. The Huskies match up better than Louisville, who Michigan State beat to make the final four. Hasheem Thabeet will win the battle inside against Spartans center Goran Suton. In addition, the Huskies have a better supporting frontcourt with experience forwards Jeff Adrien and Stanley Robinson that can provide outstanding help defense when Thabeet is drawn out of the paint. The main reason the Spartans beat Louisville was because they forced them out of their fast-paced offense. Connecticut will not have as hard of a time adjusting to slower play and senior guard A.J. Price: a tournament MVP candidate: will have an easier time controlling the game tempo.

In Saturday’s later match up, I have North Carolina beating Villanova. Scottie Reynolds has led the Wildcats on a tear and was the main reason Villanova upset Pittsburgh in the elite eight, but he’ll have trouble controlling the game against North Carolina’s Ty Lawson. Forward Dante Cunningham of Villanova is also no match for two-time All-America Tyler Hansbrough. Hansbrough’s the most passionate player in college basketball right now and back for his senior year to win a championship at North Carolina. Nothing is going to stop him from getting to the final.

Billy: Your picks sound right to me, Andy. Connecticut will beat Michigan State. The Spartans will need to rely on their guards, including sophomore Kalin Lucas, to provide the offense since their bigs will be going up against that imposing Connecticut front court you mentioned.

I also agree that the Tar Heels will beat Villanova, but they won’t have as easy of a win as you suggest. While match-ups of skill, size and heart may clearly favor North Carolina, we can’t always guess the outcome of a game by evaluating the teams’ strengths and weaknesses in earlier games of the season and tournament. In other words, Villanova is not David going up against Goliath. It’s a talented team that I’m guessing will have the same confidence and focus it had when it beat Duke and Pittsburgh. That said, I still believe North Carolina will win the right to face Connecticut for the championship.

I would love to see Hansbrough win the national championship since he stayed in school to continue playing as hard as anyone. Unfortunately, I’ll give Connecticut the edge because of Price and the frontcourt we discussed earlier. To win, the Tar Heels will need to get the Connecticut bigs in foul trouble and another good game from Lawson, who led them with 19 points against Oklahoma in the regional final while Hansbrough was limited to 8 points.

Andy: I like your pick in the championship game. In the interest of balance, and since I think the title game is a toss-up, I’ll pick the Tar Heels. While Connecticut’s frontcourt depth does worry me, teams with less depth have succeeded in getting the Huskies in foul trouble, which an experience coach like Roy Williams is tactful enough to ensure.

In terms of the backcourt, Price and Lawson seem equally experienced and capable of controlling the game. The x-factor I think will be wing play. The Tar Heels’ duo of Danny Green and Wayne Ellington have not always stepped up in big games, but their three-point abilities can stretch the Huskies’ talented front court across the floor, allowing Lawson to penetrate and Hansbrough to dominate.