The Lads And Lasses Play On

The NCAA basketball tournaments come to their rightful conclusions next week, but the Final Four showdowns in the men’s and women’s competitions take place on Saturday and Sunday, giving us a pair of doubleheaders matching the theoretical best in the land.

The weird part of the broadcast schedule is that all of the games are on cable. TBS shows the men on Saturday and ESPN gets the women on Sunday. All four games are recommendations for your Weekend TV Six-Pack.

Saturday’s first game tips at 6:09 p.m. and should be a high-scoring one. Oklahoma and Villanova are similar in style but Oklahoma has Buddy Hield and you need to watch him shoot 3-pointers. Villanova’s starting five are all virtually double digit scorers (Jalen Brunson averages 9.8 points a game, but we were taught to round up).

Second game goes at 8:49 p.m. (but probably later) and matches North Carolina and Syracuse. The Cuse is the only No. 10 seed ever to reach the Final Four. The Tar Heels are the only surviving No. 1 seed.

Sunday we get the women’s Final Four, and three of the teams – Syracuse, Oregon State and Washington – have never before been this far. The other, mighty Connecticut, is seeking its unprecedented fourth straight title and is undefeated. It’s Oregon State-UConn at 6 p.m. and Washington-Syracuse follows at 8:30 p.m.

You may also feast your eyes on figure skating. The world championships in Boston wrap up on Sunday and are on NBC Sports at 2 p.m.

We also welcome the start of the baseball season on Sunday. Tune in at 8:37 p.m. on ESPN for a rematch of the World Series – the New York Mets at Kansas City Royals.

Hey, there’s also golf and auto racing, but they will be there for you next week as well.

Watch responsibly. Remember – you’re a role model.
 
 
Post By: Larry Weisman, a longtime sportswriter for USA TODAY, blogs for Twistity.com. Follow him on Twitter @MrLarryWeisman