A near-perfect Final Four, on and off the hardwood

AP
Louisville basketball players react after defeating Michigan during the second half of the NCAA Final Four tournament college basketball championship game Monday

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ATLANTA » The confetti rained down as Louisville celebrated an 82-76 victory over Michigan in the national title game on Monday night.

The Cardinals made their patented run in the first half. Down by 12 with less than four minutes to play in the half, Louisville stormed back behind Luke Hancock’s three consecutive 3s to take a one-point lead. Michigan made two free throws to end the half up one.

Michigan’s Trey Burke, the national player of the year, picked up two quick fouls in the first half, but that let Spike Albrecht go off, as he hit four of four 3s in the first half and scored 17 points. He didn’t score again. Burke had a great second half and finished with 24 points, but it was not enough.

Louisville’s Russ Smith struggled all night on 3-for-16 shooting, but his backcourt mate, Peyton Siva, picked up the slack with 18 points. Both teams shot well and it was a pleasure to see a college basketball game like it used to be — with lots of offense.

Kudos to Louisville, but as a Hawaii fan, it’s hard to cheer for coach Rick Pitino, who set an NCAA record by winning a championship at two separate schools. Maybe Rick will one day come clean about his role in the UH scandal that was revealed during the 1974-75 season, when he was an assistant coach and eventually interim head coach. It took years for UH to recover from the fiasco.

Kudos also to the City of Atlanta. What a show they put on. Police were everywhere, along with volunteers who had a kind word and Southern hospitality for everyone.

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Everything about this Final Four was near perfect; from the weather to the food to the concerts, it was first class. The only thing that didn’t go right was my Orange went home early. But you cant take anything away from Louisville. The Cardinals came in as the No. 1 seed and showed they deserved it. They end the season with 16 straight wins.

Next year, the road leads to Cowboys Stadium in Arlington, Texas. There was a record crowd Monday of more than 74,000. It should be beaten next year. Bring your binoculars.

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Jeff Portnoy’s blog, Hoops Talk, can be read at staradvertiser.com.