2019 Men's NCAA Championship Preview

MATCHUP: No. 1 Virginia (34-3) vs. No. 3 Texas Tech (31-6)

This March Madness ends in a matchup that the tournament has never seen. Texas Tech will face Virginia in the final and this is the first time that either team has reached this feat.

The game will be played Monday night at 8:20 P.M. CT on CBS. Both teams have had their best season in program history and hope to get that first championship. This is the first time that two teams have faced off making their debut in the final game since 1979 when Larry Bird and Magic Johnson faced off when they were playing with Indiana State and Michigan State.

The Red Raiders celebrate their first ever national championship appearance.

The Red Raiders have the best defense in the country and have controlled the tempo of every game they have played in the tournament. I think this game will be interesting because Virginia has done the same with their spectacular half-court offense. Their slow-paced play will be going up against a very tough Texas Tech defense who held Michigan State to only 51 points.

Virginia has found a way to use their embarrassing loss in the first-round last year to fuel this tournament run. Although they have made it this far their win against Auburn comes with some controversy at the end of regulation. There were some questionable calls that went in their favor such as a possible traveling violation that went unnoticed with less than ten seconds in the game. It took a buzzer beater three-point attempt and foul shots to give them the lead after they saw the Tigers go on a run at the end.

Kyle Guy nails three free throws at the end of the game to give his team the lead.

My predictions for the Final Four games were completely wrong and I had envisioned an Auburn vs. Michigan State matchup in this game. Anyway, I am going to make a prediction for this game that Texas Tech comes out on top. Their run in this March Madness is more impressive to me. Taking down Gonzaga, Michigan and Michigan State with the help of their Sophomore standout Jarrett Culver has them fully prepared for this matchup.

I am going to guess that the score is going to be 78-71 in favor of the Red Raiders.