This year’s NCAA tournament has seen many firsts.

This is the first time the field has had 68 teams competing in it, instead of 65. This is also the first time the Final Four will have no number one or two seeds partaking in it.

The Final Four includes a number three seed, four seed, eight seed and for the only the second time ever, an 11 seed.

The first semi- final game pits number three seed and winner of the West Region, UConn, against number four seed and winner of the East Region, Kentucky.

UConn, winners of nine straight games, are coming off a hard fought victory over the Arizona Wildcats and look to carry that momentum with them against Kentucky.

The Kentucky Wildcats have picked the right time to play their best basketball by winning the SEC tournament and beating a very talented North Carolina team to make it to the Final Four.

Uconn’s ability to win big games and the solid play of junior guard Kemba Walker will guide the Huskies to a victory over Brandon Knight and the young Wildcats.

“They are not going to be able to make it back to the Final Four.”

“There is no way they can repeat last year’s success without Gordon Heyward.”

“They may not even beat Old Dominion in the first round.”

These were all comments that were said about this year’s Butler team leading up to the tournament.

But Butler answered those questions and then some with their never-back-down attitude and wins over quality opponents in the tournament.

This past weekend, Butler came back from an 11 point deficit to defeat a talented and number two seed Florida Gators in overtime.

It may be hard to find a more compelling story than Butler, but their Final Four opponent Virginia Commonwealth University may top them.

Many experts said that VCU didn’t even belong in the tournament. They had to prove themselves by playing in one of the first two games against USC in Dayton.

After they defeated USC, they have been playing with a chip on their shoulder.

Led by senior point guard Joey Rodriguez and Head Coach Shaka Smart, VCU has fit the role of Cinderella to a T. They shocked the entire country by defeating Kansas this past weekend to win the Southwest Region.

The winner of this game will be the lowest seed to play in the National Championship game since Villanova won it all in 1985.

This game doesn’t have the glamour and elite school factor as the other, but it may be the most entertaining to watch.

It will be interesting to see if the experience of Matt Howard and Shelvin Mack can lead Butler past the audacious VCU Rams.

I predict that Butler will use their experience from last year’s Final Four to help score a victory, and I predict UConn will defeat Butler in a tight game to win the National Championship.

However, after watching the majority of the tournament, the only thing I can say is to expect the unexpected.