How Each Final Four Team Could Win The National Championship

Because seeding no longer predicts winners.
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The 2016 Final Four is upon us, which means most of the madness is unfortunately coming to an end. Your bracket is probably busted and Warren Buffett won't be dishing out that cool million bucks your way, but there's still some basketball left to watch. Here's a look at what each remaining team needs to do if it wants to cut down the nets in Houston next Monday night.

Syracuse

Freshman guard Malachi Richardson has been instrumental for Syracuse down the stretch.
Freshman guard Malachi Richardson has been instrumental for Syracuse down the stretch.
Jonathan Daniel via Getty Images

The Orange have defied logic -- not just because they're the first ever 10-seed to reach the Final Four, but because even head coach Jim Boeheim didn't plan on making it this far. This is a Syracuse team that lost to lowly St. John's and Georgetown, and was swept in three games by Pittsburgh, including early on in the ACC Tournament.

And yet, the Orange are here because of two highly gifted wings: freshman Malachi Richardson and senior Michael Gbinije, the Duke transfer. Both can score, and maybe just as importantly, both combine to give Boeheim's patented 2-3 matchup zone tremendous length on the perimeter. This limits high post entry passes and in turn, limits the 3-pointer, a classic weakness of any zone. From an offensive standpoint, however, shooting less than 37 percent from the floor -- as the Cuse did against Virginia in the Elite Eight -- won't suffice. The Orange get about 35 percent of their offense from the long ball, and for a team that has struggled to put the ball in the hoop all year, Syracuse desperately needs to be hitting from deep to notch the second title in school history.

North Carolina

Senior roommates Brice Johnson (left) and Marcus Paige have the Heels thinking title No. 3 under Roy Williams.
Senior roommates Brice Johnson (left) and Marcus Paige have the Heels thinking title No. 3 under Roy Williams.
Streeter Lecka via Getty Images

Arguably the most talented and the deepest team in the field, Carolina relies heavily on its senior-laden roster, similarly to how it did during its 2005 and 2009 title runs under Roy Williams. The key for the Heels is quite simply not to change -- their average margin of victory in the tournament is 16 points. A renewed commitment to defense has been crucial for a team that ranks first nationally in adjusted offensive efficiency, per KenPom. Moreover, the Tar Heels rank first in the nation in 2-point attempts and makes. Because of their sensational offensive prowess, they're under a lot of pressure to score against UNC.

They'll need to play a nearly flawless offensive game. Consider that a hyper-efficient Notre Dame team connected on 50 percent from deep, 55 percent from the floor and 78 percent from the stripe, and yet lost by double digits in the regional final. Senior trigger-man Marcus Paige has finally discovered his shooting stroke, senior forward Brice Johnson (Paige's roommate and close friend) just notched his school record 23rd double-double of the season (ranking fifth nationally) and ACC Sixth Man of the Year Isaiah Hicks continues to present a host of matchup issues with his vast skill set. Carolina is 17-2 this season when the junior power forward scores 10 points or more.

Oklahoma

Buddy Hield is first in the country in made 3-pointers, but has elevated his game even more during the tournament.
Buddy Hield is first in the country in made 3-pointers, but has elevated his game even more during the tournament.
Harry How via Getty Images

Buddy Hield is the best player in college basketball for a laundry list of reasons: Nobody has made more threes (154), nobody draws more attention defensively and nobody has galvanized a team quite like Hield. His 25.5 points per game is second best in America, and yet it's his remarkable efficiency that stands out. Hield is Curryesque when it comes to the college landscape. He converts over 50 percent from the field, 47 percent from distance and 88 percent from the stripe. But what makes OU a real contender is the balance of Lon Kruger's club.

Flanking Hield in the backcourt is Jordan Woodard and fellow senior Isaiah Cousins, who switched positions with one another before the season. The 6-foot-4 Cousins is the lead guard now, responsible for running the show and distributing to Hield and Woodard, who himself made a Herculean leap this year. As a sophomore, Woodard made a miserable 25 percent of his 3-point attempts. As a junior, that clip has jumped to 46 percent.

As a result, Oklahoma scores about 20 points per game in transition, and has become the second best 3-point shooting team in the country. Kruger is just one of two coaches to take five schools to the tournament, and his willingness to rely on the long ball has been the ultimate coup for the Sooners.

Villanova

Jay Wright and senior point guard Ryan Archidacono are hoping to bring Villanova its second ever national title, and its first since 1985.
Jay Wright and senior point guard Ryan Archidacono are hoping to bring Villanova its second ever national title, and its first since 1985.
Kevin C. Cox via Getty Images

The Wildcats know how to win. Their 95 wins over the past three seasons are tops nationally, and don't forget about the three consecutive Big East regular season championships. Villanova features a wonderful defensive group that grinds out late game stops as well as anybody. As a whole, they rank seventh in adjusted defensive efficiency, per KenPom -- and think about the hurt they just put on Kansas, the top overall seed and itself a great offensive team. KU shot just 27 percent from 3 and scored a season-low 59 points. The full-court press that Villanova employs presents a litany of problems. It turns you over and speeds you up.

Jay Wright's team, back in the Final Four for the first time since 2009, can also score the ball. Third-Team All-American swingman Josh Hart (15 points, 7 rebounds, 2 assists) is a terrific two-way player who creates a ton of offense from the middle of the floor. Senior point guard Ryan Archidacono may be the toughest player Wright has ever coached, and he's playing the best basketball of his career. And 6-foot-6 Kris Jenkins (11-24 from 3 in the tournament) has enjoyed a shooting terror that has extended opposing defenses much farther away from the basket than they would like.

Watch my latest for Bleacher Report to find out how Monday night's title game will be won and the winners and losers of the Final Four.

Email me at jordan.schultz@huffingtonpost.com or ask me questions about anything sports-related on Twitter at @Schultz_Report, and follow me on Instagram at @Schultz_Report. Also, check out Bleacher Report Video for my full college hoops analysis throughout the entire tournament. And tune in to my SiriusXM Radio show Tuesdays and Thursdays from 3-6 p.m. EST on Bleacher Report channel 83.

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