Before the season, who'd have thought of last year's Final Four teams that Butler would be the one going back.

Leading off

What's more impressive:

1. A school that was in the play-in game playing for a shot in the Final Four today?

2. A school from the Horizon League making the Final Four in back to back years?

3. A school winning five straight in the Big East Tournament followed by four straight in the NCAA Tournament?

It's been a pretty amazing March to here.

Fearless prediction:

Kentucky over North Carolina

What to look forward to today:

More VCU magic? We can only hope.

Question I don't know the answer to:

Will its relatively easy path hurt Kansas if it makes the Final Four? It would likely be a different level of intensity.

Recommended reading:

Mike DeCourcey on Matt Howard.
Pat Forde has VCU following the George Mason script to this point.
Nice look at Josh Harrelson by Dan Wetzel.

Buzzer beaters:

No matter what happens today, Shaka Smart should take the job. Whichever is the best job he gets offered. Sign the contract and move on. Because it will never be this good again at VCU. 

This will forever be the season against which all future Rams teams will be judged. It will be an unfeedable beast. There will be boosters that assume.

So run, Shaka, run.

...6 hours til VCU-Kansas...