2021 NCAA Tournament West Region roundtable, key questions

5. What is your prediction for the Finals of this region?

Sinodhinos

It is irresponsible not to predict Iowa and Gonzaga having a rematch of their Dec.19, 2020 game in the Elite 8. Creighton could get hot and shoot their way past Gonzaga from beyond the arc, but the Bulldogs’ bigger guards should be able to handle them, and if not Creighton, Virginia stands in Gonzaga’s way, who are a team Gonzaga beat already.

Coach Bennett will be using the early games in the tournament to prep for Gonzaga, but the Bulldogs should win. Kansas seems like the only threat to Iowa, but McCormack will have trouble defending Garza outside the paint, whereas, if USC were to face Iowa, Garza is just too big for Mobley. It may not be groundbreaking, but Iowa versus Gonzaga is my West Final.

Mauro

Gonzaga and Iowa with Gonzaga winning.

Bernstein

My finals for this region is No. 1 Gonzaga against No. 2 Iowa. These two teams met back in December where Gonzaga defeated the Hawkeyes 99-88. The Zags core of Corey Kispert, Drew Timme, and Jalen Suggs took college basketball by storm.

This past season, the trio is responsible for averaging nearly 52 points per game. For the first since 1987, Iowa has earned the No. 2 seed in the tournament. This year was an extremely tough year for the Big Ten Conference. but, the Hawkeyes still dominate the year finishing with a 21-8 record.

This Hawkeyes team is deep throughout with talent and will potentially make a big run. Joe Wieskamp, Jordan Bohannon, Luka Garza, and CJ Frederick all shoot over 38.9 percent from deep and are playmakers. If we get this matchup, we are in for a real treat.

Loose

At the end of the day, this region will come down to Gonzaga and Iowa; two of college basketball’s very best teams this season. Luka Garza had 30 points in a double-digit loss, but perhaps things will be different in the rematch. Still, I find it hard to pick against this Gonzaga team and would expect them to make the Final Four.