Posted: Thu March 26, 1998 at 1:05 PM ET

Rick Majerus is the only Division I college basketball coach I have ever interviewed naked.

That is, Majerus was naked. This was November, 1996, and I was, uh, probing the Utah coach on his feelings about his team. Despite the fact that I had flown 3,000 miles to ask these questions for a piece I was writing for SI's college basketball preview issue, Majerus didn't quite set aside enough time for me to interview him in his office. So I had to do it in the meticulously messy hotel suite that serves as Majerus' home in Salt Lake City. Having just come from practice, Majerus was getting ready to go to a Utah Jazz game, and while I don't remember much about what he said, I do remember standing in his bathroom while he was in the shower telling me a story about Keith Van Horn.

The point is, I will stop at nothing, not even dignity, to bring you, the mouse-wielding college hoophead, the naked truth about this year's Final Four. It's hard not to root for a guy like Majerus, but then again, it's hard not to root for any of this year's coaching quartet. They are all Final Four first- timers, all good guys, and all capable of hitting the showers Monday night as champions.

Personally, I'm still getting over the shock of the Utes' thrashing of Arizona last weekend. Sure, Majerus assembled a savvy gameplan with his triangle-and- two, but Utah won because its execution, particularly against the Wildcats' full-court pressure, was flawless. If the Utes had played poorly for two or three minutes in the second half, Arizona could have made it a ball game. But as well as Utah played last weekend, it will have to be even better if it is going to pull off another quantum upset in the Alamodome Saturday night.

Why? Well, in the first place, North Carolina's style will be much more difficult for the Utes to counter. The Tar Heels can get out on the break as well as anyone, especially when the ball is in Ed Cota's hands, but unlike Arizona, they are more comfortable in the halfcourt game. Michael Doleac, as expected, gave the Wildcats all they could handle in the paint, but if I may go out on a limb here, I think it's safe to say that Antawn Jamison will be a more formidable defensive presence than Bennett Davison and A.J. Bramlett. It will take more than just a big game from Doleac for Utah to win this one.

But that doesn't mean the Utes can't do it. In the first place, Andre Miller has certainly distinguished himself as one of the premier players in America, and not a moment too soon. Miller is quiet and utilitarian, not exactly your typical late-20th-century point guard, but he's also big. Ed Cota has had problems at times this year going up against big guards. If Miller can get into the lane on offense and keep Cota at bay on defense, the Utes stand a chance. But they'll also need help from North Carolina, either by way of a cold-shooting night from Shammond Williams (not likely) or foul trouble (paging Mr. Ndiaye, Mr. Makhtar Ndiaye). Either way, Utah is operating on a small margin for error. Majerus will be able to keep things close if he slows the tempo, but in the end, I think North Carolina wins going away.

Picture this scene: Tubby Smith is standing against a wall, about 45 minutes after Kentucky's stunning comeback win over Duke in the South regional final. As Smith leans back against a wall prepared to field reporters' questions, Cameron Mills walks out of the locker room with a bag over his shoulder. "Yeah, Smitty!" Mills yells, his voice echoing down the halls. "Yeeaaahhhh!!!" Tubby doesn't even crack a smile.

Can you imagine Mills yelling "Yeah, Pitty!" at Rick Pitino. Hardly. Sure, Pitino got his players to win, but Smith gets his players to win and have fun doing it, which is quite an impressive exacta in Bluegrass land. It's hard not to like this group of players. There is no star system in Lexington right now, but every player has an important place in the universe.

Kentucky's depth isn't just good for wearing out opponents. It gives Smith a variety of options. Against Duke, he won by going small. If he wants to go big - - which he'll have to do against Stanford -- then he can play Nazr Mohammed and Jamaal Magloire together. He's got a playmaking point guard in Wayne Turner and a variety of players -- Jeff Sheppard, Allen Edwards, Cameron Mills, Scott Padgett, Heshimu Evans -- who can stroke the jumper. And his team has that air of destiny about it, which is hard to foil come March.

Stanford has a better chance of keeping this game close than Utah does against North Carolina. The Cardinal also has a top-notch point guard in Arthur Lee, but he's going to need some shooting help this time from Kris Weems and David Moseley to stretch Kentucky's terrific defense. Also, the Cardinal, like Utah, has to keep the game from becoming a track meet. That will make life easier inside for Mark Madsen, who despite Lee's heroics against Rhode Island is Stanford's most important player. Finally, the Cardinal could really use a big offensive game from 7'1" junior Tim Young. Young is more skilled than either Kentucky center, and if he's aggressive, he can draw the Wildcats into foul trouble. Thing is, for every problem Stanford can pose, Kentucky appears to have the answer. That should be enough for the Cats to extend their season one more game.

If I'm right -- and what are the chances of that, anyway? -- that means we'll see our first-ever Kentucky-North Carolina final. If I'm wrong, well, I'll just have to put it out of my mind, work hard in practice and stay focused, taking things one game at a time. So check us out again on Monday for all the sights and sounds from San Antonio, as well as my championship game preview. If all goes according to plan, I'll be reporting live from Rick Majerus' bathroom. Sure hope they have extra-large towels in there.