[Tommy]

By Michael Robinson.

The most celebrated program in college basketball goes for their 12th national championship tonight when UCLA meets Florida at 9:21 p.m. EST. Florida is part of the new breed of elite college hoop teams, and they hope to start a long legacy of their own.

Bet Now: UCLA (+1.5) vs Florida

Frontcourt

Florida’s big man tandem of Joakim Noah and Al Horford had their way with the George Mason duo of Jai White and Will Thomas in the Final Four game. A big reason was that they are superior players, but they also enjoyed a big height advantage.

UCLA center, Ryan Hollins was limited to just 17 minutes of action in their Final Four game against LSU, but he should see more time tonight. The 7’0” Hollins along with 6’7” Luc Richard Mbah a Moute should do a much better defensive job down low than George Mason.

Edge: Florida

Backcourt

Florida point guard, Taurean Green and shooting guard Lee Humphrey combined for 34 points against George Mason, and shot 50% (9-18) from beyond the arc. Small forward, Corey Brewer also added 19 points in that game. If Florida gets close to that scoring production tonight from those three players, UCLA will not have the offense to keep up.

UCLA depends on their backcourt of Jordan Farmar and Aaron Afflalo to carry the offensive load, but the Bruins have proven they can win even when those two are struggling shooting. Swingman, Cedric Bozeman seldom lights up the stat sheet, but he should be able to stay with Brewer and not give him many wide-open looks.

Edge: Push

Coaching and Bench

UCLA’s Ben Howland and Florida’s Billy Donovan are both at the top of their games right now, and they will continue to build their respective programs to greater heights.

Edge: Push

UCLA’s Lorenzo Mato had eight rebounds off the bench against LSU filling in for Hollins. Mato also is important in this game from a defensive perspective and he will not be afraid to mix it up with Noah and Horford. The Bruins proved last game that they are unafraid to go nine deep, and they will use their bench a lot more tonight than Florida.

Edge: UCLA

The Skinny

If you look at this game just from a talent perspective, the nod goes to Florida who have the two big men that UCLA can’t match.

The reason that this game has such a small spread is due to UCLA’s chemistry and intangibles. The Bruins are not just a hungry team right now, they are downright starving. And while Florida is a good defensive team, the Bruins have made defense an art form in this tournament.

The million dollar question is whether UCLA’s defense can offset the offensive advantage of Florida. The good news is that we only have to wait a few hours to find out.

http://edge.vipsports.com/