Who will win the men's basketball championship?

North Carolina

North Carolina began and ended the year as the No. 1 team in the country, and they will close it out with a national championship. With Ty Lawson healthy, they have four players who are among the best in the country. Tyler Hansbrough's tenacity at both ends of the floor will overwhelm Hasheem Thabeet and the 3-point-shooting from Danny Green, Wayne Ellington and Lawson will make them champions.

UConn

There is a reason why UConn was the only team not to cut down the nets after its regional final victory. It is going to be the one cutting down the nets in Detroit. The third UConn team to ever make the Final Four will cap off its magical season with one shining moment in the Motor City. Head coach Jim Calhoun and the Huskies will be a perfect 3-for-3 in Final Fours and be crowned National Champions. A.J. Price, Jeff Adrien, Craig Austrie and Hasheem Thabeet will all get to leave Storrs with rings on their finger.

Matt McDonough: UConn beat an ACC team in the '99 and '04 title games and it'll happen again this year. To coin Calhoun's favorite phrase, "Quite frankly," UConn is better. It is a perfect 2-for-2 in Final Fours, while North Carolina, having made many more, is a measly 4-for-17. Tyler Hansbrough and his team laid a big fat egg last year against Kansas. There is no doubt that Baby Blue will crumble on the big stage again.

Kevin Vellturo: While UConn has had success against the ACC in both '99 and '04, the fact remains that history is irrelevant in this case. North Carolina began and ended the regular season at No. 1 for a reason. With a healthy Ty Lawson, it is the best team in the country.

Matt: North Carolina has looked like the team to beat as of late, but the Huskies haven't looked too shabby either, even without their star Jerome Dyson. Kemba Walker and Craig Austrie have taken pressure off A.J. Price as of late. It is fitting the Final Four is in the Motor City because Walker will motor right by Lawson to the basket.

Kevin: Although the UNC defense has been much maligned, that argument doesn't fly anymore. In its Elite Eight game against Oklahoma, the Sooners only managed 60 points. Consider that 28 of those points were from Blake Griffin and it is more impressive. And the Huskies don't have a reliable, consistent scorer like Griffin.

Matt: UConn is a team, and teams, not players win championships. Oklahoma was a one-man show, that's why it is going to be watching the Final Four from home. Without a reliable scorer the Huskies have made it this far, and unlike other teams unlikely players step up for them in the biggest moments.

Kevin: By that logic, the Tar Heels should be a shoe-in to win. Lawson, Wayne Ellington, Danny Green and Tyler Hansbrough all average double-digit points, with Hansbrough averaging more than 20. Lawson, Ellington and Green are all capable of hitting 3s, which is something (outside of the occasional A.J. Price streak) that the Huskies do not have - a constant threat from outside.

Matt: When it is all said and done, the Huskies will win it, igniting pandemonium all over Storrs. Thabeet will emulate Emeka Okafor and make Hansbrough look like Luke Schenscher, carrying out his preseason promise that Hansbrough "ain't nothing." Whether the game ends with a loose ball grabbed by Craig Austrie, like Rashamel Jones did 10 years ago or Price dribbles out the clock and throws the ball into the sky like Taliek Brown five years ago; this UConn team will cement themselves among the best.

Kevin: I hate to say it but Hansbrough will silence Thabeet's ill-advised preseason talk. The reigning player of the year plays too physical for the softer Thabeet's. Not only that but this North Carolina team has been there before - just last season. The Tar Heels experienced, they are healthy and they are you're national champions.