For the first time since the NCAA Tournament expanded to 64 teams in 1985, there will be no number 1 seeds in the Final Four. We will also see a double-digit seed in the Final Four for the first time since 1986. George Mason's run to the Final Four illustrates both the increased competitiveness of the mid-major conferences and the watered down talent level in the major conferences right now. I think it is pretty clear that there are no great teams in college basketball this year. There are no teams like the 2005 versions of North Carolina and Illinois in this year's field. But that is not necessarily a bad thing. It is good for college basketball that a school like George Mason can compete for a Final Four spot. Not only did they compete, they were clearly the best team in that region over the past two weeks. Obviously, the games have been highly competitive. Of the 12 games played in the third and fourth rounds, four went to overtime and two others were decided with baskets in the final 10 seconds of regulation. The average margin of victory in those 12 games was only 6.5 points per game (the difference is only 4.9 if you do not include the overtimes). That is the lowest since 1993. Here are the averages for the past five years -- 2005: 6.5, 2004: 10.3, 2003: 7.5, 2002: 9.0, 2001: 10.8.

Final Four Participants since 1985 (National Champion in boldface)

As usual, Boston College's season ended with a heartbreaking loss. Of the five keys to the game that I outlined last week, BC accomplished two, failed miserably on two and one was a mixed bag. Here are those keys to the game:

1. Minimize the Three Point Deficit



2. Hope for the Right Refs



3. Sean Marshall Needs to Step Up



4. Free Throws, Free Throws, Free Throws



5. Sean Williams Needs to Play More Minutes

On the positive side, BC played outstanding defense, holding Villanova to just 35% from the field and 21% from the three point line. BC actually had one more three point basket than Nova (a Three Point Surplus). One of the few bad defensive plays the entire night was the mental lapse that gave Villanova the winning basket. Another positive was Sean Williams who played 24 minutes and had 7 points, 7 rebounds and 3 blocks. His block on the last play of the second half was sensational. The mixed results came from Sean Marshall who had 10 early points but couldn't find his shot the rest of the night.

On the negative side, the officiating was a nightmare. As I said last week, the last thing BC needed was "touch foul" refs and that is exactly what they got. BC was ahead by about 15 points early but everything changed when this officiating crew decided to take over the game. Pretty much the entire BC eight man rotation was in foul trouble by the first TV timeout in the second half. The touch foul mentality, however, didn't apply to Villanova players whacking away at Craig Smith most of the night. The "traveling" call on Sean Williams with under a minute left in regulation was as bad a call as you will ever see in a tournament game. About the only call they got right the entire night was the goaltending on Williams that gave Villanova the win (why couldn't they blow that one?). The officiating was far from the only reason that BC lost, however. Free throw problems reared their ugly head once again on Friday. BC made only 8 of 17 from the line including three misses on the front end of a 1 and 1. So essentially, they were 8 of 20 (40%). They also committed too many unforced turnovers. BC has had a hard time all year with the full court press but they actually handled that pretty well. Most of the turnovers were lazy passes in the half court offense or fumbles on the fast break. I have not seen BC turn the ball over like that in the half court offense all season. Timing is everything.

In my opinion, Boston College has had seven Final Four caliber teams since 1984. Those teams played in the NCAA Tournament in 1985, 1994, 1997, 2001, 2004, 2005 and 2006. Each of those teams lost heartbreaking games in the second, third or fourth rounds. All of those games were winnable with a minute left in the second half. BC now has the most wins in the NCAA Tournament among teams that have never played in the Final Four.

BC-Villanova wasn't the only game where the referees were an embarrassment. Some of the calls at the end of the UCLA-Gonzaga game were mindboggling. The refs failed to count a continuation basket that hindered UCLA's comeback effort. In the final seconds, they called a ridiculous loose ball foul on Gonzaga's Batista that saved UCLA. Of course, had they not botched the earlier call, UCLA might not have needed saving. Two wrongs don't make a right.

Once again, the Selection Committee failed to balance the regions. The weakest regions always seem to be: (a) the region in the West and (b) whatever region UConn plays in. UConn has two championships largely because of an easy draw to the Final Four in those years. It almost happened again this year. Thank you, George Mason.

Speaking of George Mason, their great performance the past two weeks does not in any way excuse the Selection Committee for bypassing Hofstra and taking George Mason. I am very happy for the George Mason players, coaches and fans but what happened with the Selection Committee makes me sick. One of two things happened: either George Mason's A.D. abused his position on the Committee to get his team in the tournament ahead of Hofstra or the other members on the Committee decided to do a favor for their buddy. When I make my bubble predictions next year, I'll be sure to first check to see who is on the Selection Committee.

Three times in this year's tournament, teams with the same nickname have played: UCLA vs Belmont (Bruins), Villanova vs Arizona (Wildcats) and UConn vs Washington (Huskies).

So much for all of the Big Ten/Big East hype we heard all year. The Big Ten was a Big Flop and the Big East failed to put any of their eight tournament teams in the Final Four. Actually, Villanova and UConn didn't really belong in the Elite Eight. It is looking like an all SEC final but given how things have gone this year, anything is possible. This will be the first year since 2000 that the national champion has not come from the Big East or the ACC. This is the first Final Four appearance by a Pac Ten team since 2001 and the first appearance by an SEC team since 2000. Here is the Final Four breakdown by conference for 2001-2005: ACC 6, Big XII 5, Big Ten 4, Big East 2, Conference USA 2, Pac Ten 1.

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