CONNECTICUT HUSKIES
Record: 32-2.Road to St. Petersburg: Beat No. 16 Texas-San Antonio 91-66; beat No. 9 New Mexico 78-56; beat No. 5 Iowa 78-58; beat No. 10 Gonzaga 67-62.
Last Final Four: none.
Hot player: Swingman Richard Hamilton, first-team All-America and co-Big East player of the year, averaged 23.5 points in the four tournament games and has shown there are no lingering effects from the deep thigh bruise that limited him toward the end of the regular season.
The positive: The Huskies were buoyed in the regional semifinal by the return of Albert Mouring from an injury. He went 3-for-4 from 3-point range. Power forward Kevin Freeman has been his usual solid self up front. He had 13 points and 15 rebounds in the regional final.
The negative: Point guard Khalid El-Amin was 0-for-12 from the field against Gonzaga and center Jake Voskuhl, who has averaged 21.5 minutes in the tournament, still doesn't seem 100 percent as he continues to recover from a stress fracture in his foot.
OHIO STATE BUCKEYES
Record: 27-8.
Road to St. Petersburg: Beat No. 13 Murray State 72-58; beat No. 12 Detroit 75-44; beat No. 1 Auburn 72-64; beat No. 3 St. John's 77-74.
Last Final Four: 1968.
Hot player: Point guard Scoonie Penn, the co-Big Ten player of the year, averaged 21 points, 7.3 rebounds, 4.6 assists and 4.5 steals over the last three games of the tournament. Backcourtmate Michael Redd isn't far behind, averaging 21 points in the tournament and going 5-for-11 from 3-point range.
The positive: The fourth-seeded Buckeyes have become the emotional favorite as they continue the turnaround from last season's 8-22 record. The team was considered all Penn and Redd until the St. John's game when 6-foot-11 junior center Ken Johnson became a force in the middle with seven blocked shots.
The negative: Penn is the only player on the roster to have played in a post-season game before this season and the pressure has got to be building on the only non-No. 1 seed to reach the Final Four.
DUKE BLUE DEVILS
Record: 36-1.
Road to St. Petersburg: Beat No. 16 Florida A&M 99-58; beat No. 9 Tulsa 97-56; beat No. 12 Southwest Missouri State 78-61; beat No. 6 Temple 85-64.
Last Final Four: 1994.
Hot player: Trajan Langdon missed the last two games of the Atlantic Coast Conference tournament and the NCAA opener with a sprained foot. The rest was apparently what the fifth-year senior needed. He scored 24 points in the regional semifinal and 23 in the final on 15-for-21 shooting, including 9-for-12 from 3-point range.
The positive: The Blue Devils have already been declared national champions by just about everybody. They are on a 31-game winning streak, and only two of the wins have been by fewer than 10 points. Duke leads the nation in scoring (92.9) and scoring margin (25.9) and is second in shooting (51.8 percent).
The negative: The Blue Devils have already been declared national champions by just about everybody.
MICHIGAN STATE SPARTANS
Record: 33-4.
Road to St. Petersburg: Beat No. 16 Mount St. Mary's 76-53; beat No. 9 Mississippi 74-66; beat No. 13 Oklahoma 54-46; beat No. 3 Kentucky 73-66.
Last Final Four: 1979.
Hot player: Super sub Morris Peterson averaged 12.3 points and 9.3 rebounds in the tournament, including his third double-double of the season with 19 points and 10 rebounds, nine offensive, in the win over Kentucky.
The positive: The Spartans have won 22 straight games and are one of the two teams to stay within 10 points of Duke in the regular season, losing 73-66 in December. All-America guard Mateen Cleaves has been one of the nation's best all season at taking over at the end of close games.
The negative: Michigan State's players have just about as much post-season experience as Duke's, but coach Tom Izzo is in his first Final Four while Duke's Mike Krzyzewski is in his eighth.