LEXINGTON, KY - JANUARY 31: Jay Bilas and Brent Musburger shares a laugh while on air before the start of the Kentucky Wildcats game against the Georgia Bulldogs at Rupp Arena on January 31, 2017 in Lexington, Kentucky. Tonight Musburger is broadcasting his last game of his career. (Photo by Andy Lyons/Getty Images)Baylor and Gonzaga are practically destined to play in the national championship in late April, right? Not if you ask college basketball commentator Jay Bilas.
The Bears and Bulldogs are clearly the top two teams this season. Neither team has lost yet, and it doesn’t appear either is going to during the regular season.
We’ve seen this story before, though, especially from Gonzaga. Mark Few’s team dominates the regular season but almost always underwhelms in the tournament and gets bounced earlier than expected.
The notion that Baylor and Gonzaga are unbeatable is laughable, if you ask Bilas. He thinks Illinois, Michigan and Florida State, potentially among others, are each capable of taking down either the Bears or Bulldogs. As we all know, March Madness is always full of surprises.
“I don’t know where we got this idea that somehow Baylor and Gonzaga are unbeatable,” Bilas said on ESPN’s College GameDay, via 247Sports.com. “They’ve been the best teams, and they’ve been the most consistent, and they have separated. But have we forgotten all about history here? … And Illinois can beat them. Michigan can beat them. I absolutely think that Florida State can beat them. In a seven-game series, would I take Baylor and Gonzaga over the field, if we have that? Yes. But heck, do people forget — maybe folks are too young — but in 1991, UNLV was the best team by a wide margin and got beat. It happens all the time. And there’s a reason we’ve gone since 1976 that we haven’t had an undefeated national champion, cause this is basketball, and it’s different.”
Based on college basketball’s history, it’s highly unlikely both Baylor and Gonzaga advance to this year’s national championship.
March Madness brings about the most unexpected results in all of sports.
The 2021 NCAA Tournament begins in less than a month.
