Final Four 2009: Results

The Final Four of 2009 was filled with storied basketball programs that are filled with loads of tradition. In the 2009 Final Four, there were two teams for the Big East Conference and one team each from the Atlantic Coastal Conference and Big Ten.  

1. The first game of the 2009 Final Four was the Michigan State Spartans taking on the Connecticut Huskies. The  #2 seeded Spartans defeated #1 seed Louisville in the Midwest Region to get to the 2009 Final Four. The # 1 seeded Connecticut Huskies defeated the #3 seed Missouri Tigers to become champions of the West Regional. Michigan State vs. Connecticut was a very closely contested game. At half time, the Spartans led the Huskies 38-36. The Spartans were able to pull away from Connecticut late and win the game by a final score of 82 to 73. Kalin Lucas led the Michigan State Spartans in scoring with 12 points. The Huskies were paced by 17 points from Hasheem Thabeet. This game, along with all of the other games at the 2009 Final Four, was played in front of a packed house at the Ford Field house in Detroit, Michigan, giving the Spartans a home court advantage.
2. The other national semi-final game featured the #3 Villanova Wildcats coming out of the East Region to take on the #1 seeded North Carolina Tar Heels out of the South Region. Villanova defeated the #1 seeded Pittsburgh Panthers to be the 2009 Final Four representative out of the East Region. The Tar Heels defeated the #2 seeded Oklahoma Sooners to get to the Final Four. The North Carolina versus Villanova match up was close for most of the game, yet it was controlled by the loaded North Carolina Tar Heels. The Tar Heels led 49-40 at the half and ended up winning 83 to 69. The Tar Heels, led by Tyler Hansbrough, were the favorites to win the entire tournament coming in, and they did not disappoint in this game. The Tar Heels were led by the performances of Ty Lawson, Wayne Ellington, and Tyler Hansbrough, who scored 22, 20, and 18 points respectively. The Villanova Wildcats were led by Scottie Reynolds who had 17 points and 5 assists.
3. These two games set up a national championship game of huge proportions. Two national powerhouses, the North Carolina Tar Heels took on the Michigan State Spartans. These are two teams that are no stranger to the Final Four. The Tar Heels led this game from wire to wire. North Carolina was up by 21 points with 10 minutes to go in the first half. Michigan State was able to cut the lead down to 13 points with 5 minutes to go, but could not close the gap any further. The Tar Heels were led, once again, by Ty Lawson, who had 21 points and a championship game record of 8 steals. Goran Suton led the Spartans with 17 points and 11 rebounds in a losing effort. This was the fourth national championship for the North Carolina Tar Heels. The 2009 Final Four featured four teams that combined for nine national titles, coming into the tournament. This made the 2009 Final Four, historically, a very impressive conclusion to a very exciting tournament.

Source: 

http://www.ncaa.org/