(Andy Lyons/Getty Images)
By Anthony Payero
(INDIANAPOLIS) The Final Four plays out on Saturday as the teams will collide to determine who gets to play in Monday's National Championship game at Lucas Oil Stadium.
Baylor (No.1 seed, South Region) and Houston (No. 2 seed, Midwest Region) are scheduled to face off in the first matchup at 5:14 p.m. on CBS.
The Baylor Bears (26-2) return to the Final Four for the first time since 1950. The Houston Cougars (28-3) have not played in the Final Four since 1984, when the team was widely known thanks to Phi Slama Jama.
Baylor head coach Scott Drew makes his Final Four debut, while Houston coach Kelvin Sampson makes his second appearance as a coach, his first since 2002 when he coached the Oklahoma Sooners.
The Bears have one of the most successful backcourts in the nation thanks to Jared Butler, MaCio Teague and Davion Mitchell. The three standouts are a key reason for Baylor's high three-point shooting percentage, which leads the country at 41%.
The Cougars are thought to be one of the best defenses remaining in the tournament, with the nation's highest field goal percentage defense, USA Today reports. Houston has successfully kept opponents to an average of 55.7 points in the 2021 tournament. This was a recurring theme for Sampson's Oklahoma teams, so expect Houston to challenge Baylor's guards on the perimeter.
Player to watch on Baylor: Davion Mitchell
Mitchell will be a key player who can aggressively focus the team and encourage Butler and Teague to get to the basket. His tenacity is fun to watch and can affect his team positively.
Player to watch on Houston: DeJon Jarreau
Jarreau earned the defensive player of the year award in the American Athletic Conference this season and has been a strong defensive player all tournament long. His defense helped lock up Syracuse's Buddy Boeheim in the Sweet 16 and Oregon State's Ethan Thompson in the Elite Eight. The 6-foot-5 senior guard will have a tough time trying to contain Baylor's three guards who take on the bulk of the scoring.