After an NCAA Tournament filled with upsets and runs from unexpected schools, the two best teams in college basketball will end their season-long collision course with the top-two seeds in the tournament in the Gonzaga Bulldogs and Baylor Bears facing off for the 2021 NCAA men’s basketball national championship.
Here is everything you need to know for Monday night’s game, including the current odds from DraftKings Sportsbook:
Game date: Monday, April 5th
Game time: 9:00 p.m. ET
TV channel: CBS
Location: Lucas Oil Stadium, Indianapolis
Odds: Gonzaga -4.5, Total 160
No. 1 Baylor 27-2 (13-1 Big 12)
First Round: Defeated No. 16 Hartford 79-55
Second Round: Defeated No. 9 Wisconsin 76-63
Third Round: Defeated No. 5 Villanova 62-51
Fourth Round: Defeated No. 3 Arkansas 81-72
Final Four: Defeated No. 2 Houston 78-59
KenPom rating: 2 Overall, 2 Offense, 27 Defense
Leading scorer: Jared Butler (16.6 ppg)
Key stat of tournament: Baylor has shot 41-108 from three-point range in the tournament.
The Bears continued their dominance of the field in the tournament, rolling through the highly-rated defense of the Houston Cougars in a wire-to-wire win in the Final Four. Their 1.34 points per possession was their best rate in the NCAA’s, and their shooting numbers of 29-55 from the floor and 11-24 from three-point range were just outstanding.
No. 1 Gonzaga 31-0 (15-0 WCC)
First Round: Defeated No. 16 Norfolk State 98-55
Second Round: Defeated No. 8 Oklahoma 87-71
Third Round: Defeated No. 5 Creighton 83-65
Fourth Round: Defeated No. 6 USC 85-66
Final Four: Defeated No. 11 UCLA 93-90
KenPom rating: 1 Overall, 1 Offense, 5 Defense
Leading scorer: Corey Kispert (19.0 ppg)
Key stat of tournament: Gonzaga hit this shot to advance to the national championship and you will never forget it.
Game of the millennium? Probably. Jalen Suggs hit a 40-foot bank shot buzzer beater to etch his name in the history books as the Bulldogs knocked off the UCLA Bruins in an unforgettable 93-90 overtime win. Drew Timme led all scorers with 25 points, and the Zags as a team shot 58.7% from the field but still needed an extra five minutes to pull out the unforgettable victory.
It was a win for the ages (h/t Jim Nantz), and Gonzaga had 26 assists and only 10 turnovers. But the No. 8 defense in college basketball via KenPom allowed Johnny Juzang and the Bruins to shoot 57.6% from the floor themselves. No matter, as the display of shotmaking from both teams was incredible.