Final Four hoopla

I may sound a bit biased here, but I don’t think there is a finer place to hold the Final Four of men’s college basketball than good ol’ San Antonio.

It was a city I visited often in my childhood and youth. The year I graduated from high school (40 years ago now), HemisFair brought visitors from all over the world and the whole city was refurbished and even more invigorated.

Its history and splendor have always made it a place that keeps me wanting to go back. There is always a festive atmosphere.

The fact that many of the defenders of the Alamo hailed from the Carolinas makes it even more special to me these days.

Unfortunately, I won’t be there this weekend to be part of the UNC faithful who will be pulling for the Tar Heels to bring home a second NCAA title in four years.

Hopefully, the Heels won’t fall on their faces like they did in AlamoDome in the Final Four of 10 years ago.

In the 1998 semi-finals in San Antonio, the Vince Carter/Antawn Jamison-led Heels of first-year head coach Bill Guthridge helped Utah extend a Cinderella climb through the tournament with a 64-59 loss to the Utes.

In the final, Kentucky finally subdued Utah 78-69 in Tubby Smith’s first year as UK head coach.

This year’s Final Four field is deadly all the way around. I feel it’s up for grabs, even though my gut feeling actually tells me that the title is for UNC’s taking.

Having to battle hard against Louisville in the East Regional final last Saturday is probably what Roy Williams’ UNC team needed after zipping through the first three rounds with relative ease.

I can’t imagine any of the three remaining games turning into a blow-out. I see them all being nothing but strong, physical, emotional and exhaustive games to the final buzzer.

The fact that North Carolina has a post player named Hansbrough and probably the quickest transition game it has ever had make me feel the Heels can win it all.

Saturday’s semi-finals are interesting match-ups all the way.

North Carolina and Kansas met in the 1957 title game at Kansas City and the Tar Heels pulled out a 54-53 triple-overtime win over the Wilt Chamberlain-led Jayhawks. The Tar Heels grabbed the win even though All-American Lennie Rosenbluth had fouled out in the final minutes of regulation.

UCLA and Memphis met in the national championship game of 1973 with UCLA center Bill Walton scoring 44 points and grabbing 13 rebounds in an 87-66 Bruin victory, marking a unequaled seventh straight national title for UCLA. The following year, Coach John Wooden’s Bruins bowed to N.C. State in the semi-finals at Greensboro to end the UCLA title streak.

Hopefully, the waters of the San Antonio River will flow Carolina Blue on Monday night.

AND HOW ABOUT THOSE Davidson Wildcats and stalwart shooting guard Stephen Curry?

You gotta love a program like Davidson, which came into the tournament with nothing to lose and knocked off powerhouses Georgetown and Wisconsin, and then came within a field goal to taking down mighty Kansas.