The field of 65 is now down to the final two after last night’s national semifinal games. And, after last night I don’t think anyone can doubt that the final game includes the two best teams in the country. Memphis easily handled a very popular UCLA team in the first game 78-63 and Kansas took a huge lead early and held off a North Carolina comeback to win 84-66, setting the stage for a Memphis/Kansas final on Monday evening.

The Memphis Tigers were led again by their two All-American guards, freshman Derek Rose and junior Chris Douglas-Roberts who combined for 53 of the 78 Memphis points. These two players, who are destined for NBA stardom, are that much better than any other guard tandem in college basketball and are a serious match up problem for any team they play. Of their 53 combined points, 20 of them came from the charity stripe on 23 attempts. Rose went 11-for-12 and Douglas-Roberts went 9-for-11. Interestingly, the two players were the only Tigers to get to the line. Maybe this was Coach Calipari’s strategy for fixing their free-throw woes (61% for the year), only allowing his two best-free throw shooters to get there (Rose and Douglas-Roberts, 71%). Senior Joey Dorsey did not score any points, but made his contribution by bringing down 15 rebounds, six of them on the offensive side. Forward Shawn Taggart came off the bench for 22 minutes and scored seven points and grabbed seven boards.

UCLA led 12-11 four and half minutes into the game, but Derek Rose’s lay up put Memphis in the lead for good. UCLA kept it close during the first twenty minutes of the game going into halftime 38-35, but a 10-2 run to start the second half put Memphis up by 11 and UCLA couldn’t fight their way back. UCLA was led by sophomore guard Russell Westbrook who scored 22 points on 10 for 19 shooting. Freshman Kevin Love, who most likely played his last game for UCLA, finished with 12 points and nine rebounds. This was UCLA’s third straight final four appearance and the third straight time they finished empty handed.

The nightcap featured another future NBA star Brandon Rush and his Kansas Jayhawks. On 11-for-17 shooting, Rush dropped in 25 points including 12 in a 40-to-12 run to start the game. The lead looked too big for any team to come back from, especially with the way Kansas was out-everthinging (made up word?) UNC. But, with five minutes left in the first half, Tarheel junior Danny Green sparked a 15-to-4 run with eight points on his own to close the half at 44-27.

The comeback didn’t stop there. With UNC not slowing down any, they came out firing, cutting the lead to 54-50. However, coming back from a deficit that big spends a lot of energy and the Tarheels couldn’t get any closer. Kansas finally regrouped and again took control of the game getting the lead back to 10 points, 71-61, with four and a half minutes left to play. Kansas guard Sherron Collins came off the bench with 11 points, four assists and four rebounds. AP Player of the Year Tyler Hansbrough finished with 17 points and nine rebounds. Wayne Ellington led all UNC players with 18.

Monday night’s game will feature two of the best guards in the country squaring off against each other with Kansas’ Brandon Rush and Memphis’ Chris Douglas-Roberts. Both are 6-6 and can play inside and outside. The winner of this battle could ultimately help lead their team to a national title.

For the first time in NCAA Tournament history, all four number one seeds advanced to the final four. While most are commending the selection committee for their brilliant seeding this year, I view the glass as half empty. This is the only time since 1985 (first year with 64 teams) that the selection committee got it right. The brackets are supposed to protect the best teams in the country and allow them the easiest route to the Final Four. Shouldn’t all number one seeds represent the Final Four more often? After three sentences, I now view the glass as half full. This is the beauty of the single-elimination NCAA Tournament. Any team can catch a hot hand and send the loser packing. In a five-game or seven-game series, the better team almost always prevails.

The Philadelphia 76ers would have won the NBA Championship in 2001 if the Finals were only one game, but they played a seven-game series and the Lakers won the next four. The Lakers were clearly the better team. In that same year, Jamaal Tinsley’s number two seed Iowa State Cyclones (25-6) lost to the number 15 seed Hampton Pirates in one of the biggest upsets in tournament history. And that was it. Iowa State went home and Hampton advanced. That is the beauty of this tournament. One and done. Would Iowa State have won in a five or seven-game series? Most likely, but college teams need to out-play, out-hustle, out-gut, and play their best in every single game or they’re going home. This is what makes the 2008 NCAA Tournament so special. The four best teams in the country all season long did out-play, out-hustle, and out-gut every opponent and they are the lone teams left standing. Each team is playing at their best with only three more games left to play. Furthermore, there is no clear-cut favorite which makes this one of the most anticipated Final Fours in tournament history.

Let’s take a look at who is left.

East regional winner: North Carolina Tar Heels
They are the overall number one seed in the tournament and it’s no surprise to see them in the final four. Their lineup is stacked and their bench could’ve probably formed another team to play in the tournament. They are led by All-American and ESPN.com Player Of The Year Tyler Hansbrough. He is the heart and soul of this team with an endless motor. In their victory over Louisville it was Hansbrough who scored seven straight points when Louisville tied the game at 59. And it was Hansbrough who made consecutive two-point jumpers that helped his team withstand the Cardinals comeback when they had cut the lead to five with three minuets left to play. Hansbrough is leading his team with 21 points and 9.5 rebounds per game. With Hansbrough and teammates Ty Lawson and Wayne Ellington (both averaging 15 points per game in the tournament) all possibly leaving next year for the NBA, this could be their last shot at a National Championship.

Midwest regional winner: Kansas Jayhawks
They ended Stephen Curry and Davidson’s Cinderella run. It wasn’t easy, but in a balanced effort led by center Sasha Kaun’s (off the bench) perfect effort from the field going 6-6 for 13 points and six rebounds the Jayhawks advanced to the final four for the first time under coach Bill Self. Kansas is one of the best defensive teams in the country. Mario Chalmers and Russell Robinson have combined for 18 steals in the tournament and the Kansas team has held their opponents to 57 points per game. Chalmers also leads his team in scoring averaging 15 points per game and junior Brandon Rush is averaging 14.5 a game. The Jayhawks are going to play against their former coach, Roy Williams, next weekend in San Antonio. Williams started coaching Kansas in 1988 until he left for UNC in 2003. This only adds to the drama of a matchup that already has a storied history.

West regional winner: UCLA Bruins
The Bruins advanced to their third straight final four with their convincing victory over Xavier on Saturday 76-57. The Bruins are led by freshman Kevin Love who probably is the best player in the country. The 6-10 center understands the importance of having an inside prescence and plays effectively with his back to the basket. He can score, pass, and rebound with the best of them. Love is averaging 21.8 points (61% shooting) and 11 rebounds per game. Guards Russell Westbrook and Darren Collison have combined for 94 points to help support their big man’s dominance. Similar to UNC, UCLA’s window for the National Championship could be getting shut after with Love, Westbrook, and Collison all considered possibilities for the NBA draft next season.

South regional winner: Memphis Tigers
Despite one game where they had trouble on the free throw line (Mississippi State) the Tigers have completely dominated their opponents in the tournament. Their most impressive win was their 85-67 victory over Texas yesterday in front of almost 30,000 Longhorn fans. They jumped out early and never looked back behind their star-studded backcourt featuring Chris Douglas-Roberts (25 points) and freshman Derek Rose (21 points). Rose could be one of the top three picks in this years NBA draft. This Memphis team will give any one of the other teams left serious matchup problems. Douglas-Roberts (6-7), Rose (6-3) and Antonio Anderson (6-6) are three big guards. And forwards Robert Dozier (6-9), Joey Dorsey (6-9), and Shawn Tagger (6-10, off the bench) are huge bodies that take up space in the paint. This is the reason that Memphis has only lost one game this season and this is the reason that Kevin Love and UCLA face their biggest task in San Antonio next weekend.

The state of Tennessee plays host to the NCAA’s regular season game of the year Saturday night for the 1-2 showdown at FedEx Forum, home of John Calipari’s Memphis Tigers (26-0).

The second ranked Tennessee Volunteers (24-2), coached by Bruce Pearl, are traveling across the state in attempt to repeat their 76-58 win over the Tigers from last year.

However, this is not last year. Memphis is going for perfection. They are going for the first perfect season since Bobby Knight’s ’76 Indiana Hoosiers, when they went 32-0.

Memphis has been unbeaten on their home court for 47 straight games, but Tennessee brings one of the deepest teams in college basketball to the FedEx Forum. They are led by two long-range snipers in senior guards Chris Lofton and JaJuan Smith, who have drained 156 combined three pointers. Their front court is led by two sophomore forwards, Tyler Smith and Wayne Chism, who are two big men that love to run the court in up-tempo games.

Tennessee has scored over 90 points seven times this season with their only two losses coming on the road against Texas and Kentucky.

For Memphis to continue on their road to perfection, junior guard Chris Douglas-Roberts, who shoots at an amazing 55 percent from the field, will need to defend the three point arch all night long. His help will come from one of the best freshman guards, Derrick Rose, who is averaging 14 points, four rebounds and four assists per game. Memphis also has two guys that love to pound it down low in junior Robert Dozier and senior Joey Dorsey. However, this is going to be a run-and-gun game where sophomore guard Doneal Mack could flourish.

If you are a fan of basketball, college or pro, this is the game to watch Saturday night at 9 p.m. on ESPN. FedEx Forum will be rocking with Tiger fans and a few Volunteer fans, Peyton Manning included, that dare to make the trip. The Southeastern Conference against Conference USA. Let the best team win.