Play Now <br> <a href="https://picks.cbssports.com/college-basketball/ncaa-tournament/bracket" class="">Men's Brackets</a> <br> Play Now <br> <a href="https://picks.cbssports.com/college-basketball/ncaaw-tournament/bracket" class="">Women's Brackets</a> <br> <a href="/podcasts/the-early-edge-a-daily-sportsline-betting-podcast/" class="">A Daily SportsLine Betting Podcast</a> <br> <a href="/podcasts/fantasy-football-today-podcast/" class="">NFL Draft is coming up!</a> <br>The national championship game which will conclude the the 2024 NCAA Tournament has been finalized after No. 1 seed <a class="Annotation-link" href="https://www.cbssports.com/college-basketball/teams/PURDUE/purdue-boilermakers/">Purdue</a> knocked off No. 11 <a class="Annotation-link" href="https://www.cbssports.com/college-basketball/teams/NCST/nc-state-wolfpack/">NC State</a> in wire-to-wire fashion and No. 1 overall seed <a class="Annotation-link" href="https://www.cbssports.com/college-basketball/teams/UCONN/connecticut-huskies/">UConn</a> eliminated No. 4 seed <a class="Annotation-link" href="https://www.cbssports.com/college-basketball/teams/BAMA/alabama-crimson-tide/">Alabama</a> in the Final Four games on Saturday. The reigning champion Huskies have opened as a 6-point favorite in the game which will take place Monday night at 9:20 p.m. ET on TBS. <br><strong>How the Boilermakers got here</strong>: After falling to No. 16 seed <a class="Annotation-link" href="https://www.cbssports.com/college-basketball/teams/FDU/fdu-knights/">Fairleigh Dickinson</a> in last year's NCAA Tournament, Purdue has an opportunity to write a similar redemption script as <a class="Annotation-link" href="https://www.cbssports.com/college-basketball/teams/UVA/virginia-cavaliers/">Virginia</a> in 2019. The Boilermakers defeated No. 16 seed <a class="Annotation-link" href="https://www.cbssports.com/college-basketball/teams/GRAM/grambling-st-tigers/">Grambling</a> in the first round, No. 8 seed <a class="Annotation-link" href="https://www.cbssports.com/college-basketball/teams/UTAHST/utah-state-aggies/">Utah State</a> in the second round, No. 5 seed <a class="Annotation-link" href="https://www.cbssports.com/college-basketball/teams/GONZAG/gonzaga-bulldogs/">Gonzaga</a> in the Sweet 16 and No. 2 seed <a class="Annotation-link" href="https://www.cbssports.com/college-basketball/teams/TENN/tennessee-volunteers/">Tennessee</a> in the Elite Eight. In the first national semifinal on Saturday, Purdue superstar big man <a class="Annotation-link" href="/college-basketball/players/3178244/zach-edey/">Zach Edey</a> powered his team to victory with a late surge in the second half as the Boilermakers led by as many as 20 points in the closing minutes of the win over NC State.<br><strong>How the Huskies got here</strong>: The reigning national champions are not only winning in the NCAA Tournament but doing so in a commanding fashion. UConn opened the NCAA Tournament with a 91-52 win over No. 16 <a class="Annotation-link" href="https://www.cbssports.com/college-basketball/teams/STETSON/stetson-hatters/">Stetson</a> and defeated No. 9 seed <a class="Annotation-link" href="https://www.cbssports.com/college-basketball/teams/NWEST/northwestern-wildcats/">Northwestern</a> 75-58 to advance to the second weekend. In the Sweet 16, a title game rematch from last season, the Huskies knocked off No. 5 seed <a class="Annotation-link" href="https://www.cbssports.com/college-basketball/teams/SDGST/san-diego-state-aztecs/">San Diego State</a> 82-52 and then steamrolled No. 3 <a class="Annotation-link" href="https://www.cbssports.com/college-basketball/teams/ILL/illinois-fighting-illini/">Illinois</a> 77-52 in the Elite Eight. No. 4 seed Alabama offered the toughest to this point, but UConn pulled away down the stretch for the 86-72 win.<br><strong>How UConn and Purdue match up</strong>: This game will come down the showdown in the paint. On one side, you have the unstoppable force (Edey) who just became the first player in at least 50 years to reach six consecutive NCAA Tournament games with at least 20 points and 10 rebounds. On the other side, you have the immovable object (UConn center <a class="Annotation-link" href="/college-basketball/players/28953860/donovan-clingan/">Donovan Clingan</a>) who is moving up draft boards thanks to his <a href="https://cbssports.com/college-basketball/ncaa-tournament/">March Madness</a> performance. Clingan will be the best defensive-minded big man Edey has faced all season. Edey had five turnovers against NC State, and most of those came when the Wolfpack collapsed on him inside. While UConn could install a similar gameplan, Clingan is more than capable of guarding him one-on-one. Purdue is one of the top 3-point shooting teams in the country, and they may have to rely on that more and more if Clingan neutralizes Edey.<br><strong>What's at stake</strong>: Purdue is seeking its first national championship in program history. UConn is looking to become the first team to win back-to-back championships in men's basketball since <a class="Annotation-link" href="https://www.cbssports.com/college-basketball/teams/FLA/florida-gators/">Florida</a> in 2006-07. The Huskies could tie <a class="Annotation-link" href="https://www.cbssports.com/college-basketball/teams/UNC/north-carolina-tar-heels/">North Carolina</a> for the third-most championships all-time behind <a class="Annotation-link" href="https://www.cbssports.com/college-basketball/teams/UCLA/ucla-bruins/">UCLA</a> and <a class="Annotation-link" href="https://www.cbssports.com/college-basketball/teams/UK/kentucky-wildcats/">Kentucky</a>. UConn's Dan Hurley has already cemented himself as one of the best coaches in the sport, but a win on Monday would raise his profile even further. On the other side, Purdue coach Matt Painter came into this tournament as one of the best coaches never to have made a Final Four appearance. Now that Painter is out of that club, he can add a championship to his résumé and help his alma mater become the first Big Ten program to win a national title since Michigan State in 2000.<br>© 2004-2024 CBS Interactive. All Rights Reserved.<br>CBS Sports is a registered trademark of CBS Broadcasting Inc. Commissioner.com is a registered trademark of CBS Interactive Inc.<br>Images by Getty Images and US Presswire<br><br><a href="https://news.google.com/rss/articles/CBMikAFodHRwczovL3d3dy5jYnNzcG9ydHMuY29tL2NvbGxlZ2UtYmFza2V0YmFsbC9uZXdzLzIwMjQtbmNhYS1iYXNrZXRiYWxsLWNoYW1waW9uc2hpcC1nYW1lLXVjb25uLXZzLXB1cmR1ZS1tYXRjaHVwLXNldC1hcy1tYXJjaC1tYWRuZXNzLWNvbmNsdWRlcy_SAZQBaHR0cHM6Ly93d3cuY2Jzc3BvcnRzLmNvbS9jb2xsZWdlLWJhc2tldGJhbGwvbmV3cy8yMDI0LW5jYWEtYmFza2V0YmFsbC1jaGFtcGlvbnNoaXAtZ2FtZS11Y29ubi12cy1wdXJkdWUtbWF0Y2h1cC1zZXQtYXMtbWFyY2gtbWFkbmVzcy1jb25jbHVkZXMvYW1wLw?oc=5">source</a>
