Final Four 2017: 5 bold predictions

Mar 24, 2017; Glendale, AZ, USA; The basketball court for the NCAA Men’s Final Four at University of Phoenix Stadium. The court is made from 397 4’ x 7’ panels of Northern Hard Maple, weighing approximately 188 pounds each. Mandatory Credit: Rob Schumacher/The Arizona Republic via USA TODAY NETWORK /

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Mar 26, 2017; Memphis, TN, USA; Mar 26, 2017; Memphis, TN, USA; North Carolina Tar Heels forward Luke Maye (32) makes a basket with .3 seconds left over Kentucky Wildcats guard Isaiah Briscoe (13) in the second half during the finals of the South Regional of the 2017 NCAA Tournament at FedExForum. North Carolina won 75-73. Mandatory Credit: Justin Ford-USA TODAY Sports /

4. Luke Maye Posts Another Double-Double

From the now-viral video of him attending his 8 a.m. class on Monday in Chapel Hill to the numerous pieces about him on various outlets, Luke Mayes’ game-winner for North Carolina to lift them past Kentucky has made him a celebrity. But what might be lost on some people is that he was also pivotal in the Tar Heels rolling past Butler in the Sweet 16. The sophomore forward has been an unlikely integral piece to this run to the Final Four for UNC.

In that win over Butler, Maye posted a monster double-double as he finished 16 points and 12 rebounds. He obviously followed that with the game-winner over the Wildcats, but the forward contributed 17 points overall in the victory as well. Though he’s still a role player that will come off of the bench, I think he again has a big game as he’s actually a bad matchup for the Ducks on Saturday.

Many people wrote off Oregon coming into the tourney because of Chris Boucher’s torn ACL. Obviously it hasn’t slowed them up to this point. But against North Carolina, it’s an issue. It’s going to be a problem against the likes of Kennedy Meeks and Isaiah Hicks, but also against Maye. If Boucher were healthy, he’d be the perfect matchup to lock up Maye. However, now Oregon doesn’t have anyone that can match the size and inside-out presence of the sophomore forward. So it might still be an unlikely star for the Tar Heels, but he’s in a position to come up big once again.

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