Michigan vs. UConn is an NCAA championship game built on opposites

There is something different about this men's basketball NCAA championship game. It does not really feel like a title game where someone might squeak through, and one team gets hot at the right time. These teams did not earn their way in. They kicked the door down.How each team made it this far It only makes sense to start with the favorite to win it all, Michigan. Throughout March Madness, they have been blowing teams out and putting up a lot of points. A quick turn and suddenly they have a double-digit lead. They are fast, confident, and have arguably the best offense in the tournament. Michigan makes everything look simple. UConn, on the other hand, has all the patience in the world and can slowly draw you in to their methodical possessions. They make every single possession a battle until you are caught in the mud and unable to catch any kind of rhythm. By then, they are already dragging you into their game. That is why this game has a different feeling to it. Michigan wants the pace; UConn wants control. One is built on quick scores; the other is built on wearing opponents down. One is built to explode out of the gate; the other is built to smother. Neither way is wrong, but only one can win on Monday.Different types of roster builds You can see it in how these rosters came together, too. UConn has leaned on continuity, keeping key players in the program and developing them within Dan Hurley’s system until everything runs without hesitation. Michigan took a quicker path, bringing in new pieces and getting them to click right away. One group has been building toward this for years. The other found its rhythm fast and rode it all the way to the title game. Does UConn's history play a part in Monday's outcome? Now here is the kicker to all of this: UConn, the program that everyone assumes will win this thing as soon as they make the championship, is the underdog. Michigan is the favorite. That sentence alone tells you the kind of tournament run the Wolverines have had. But one has been to this dance enough times to know better than to think anything has been decided. That is where this gets uncomfortable for Michigan. Being the favorite sounds great until you realize who is standing across from you. UConn does not care about odds, or runs, or how hot the other team has been the last two weeks. They have seen it all before and usually end it the same way. Michigan has been the better story up to this point, no argument there. But UConn has made a habit of turning remarkable stories into short ones. And when a team starts expecting to win before the ball goes up, that’s usually when UConn shows up and reminds everyone how this tends to go. So, this is not just a championship game. It is a battle between two distinct identities and what kind of play actually holds up in the end when everything else is stripped away. Speed or control, quick fix, or long-term project; one has to give in a single night. Chris Pownall is a Contributor to Yardbarker covering all major sports, including the NFL, NBA, MLB, college athletics, and the biggest storylines shaping the sports world. His work focuses on timely analysis, strong opinion, and the narratives fans are actually talking about. He also serves as an NFL Analyst for Last Word on Sports, where he provides in depth coverage and league wide perspective on the NFL Get the latest news and rumors, customized to your favorite sports and teams. Emailed daily. Always free!