Minneapolis Gets Top Marks For Final Four, Longtime NCAA Commentator Says

MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) -- They might be the two biggest questions on the minds of most Minnesotans this week: Who's gonna win, and how'd we do as a host city?

The Twin Cities has been in the national spotlight this week. Despite the cool and wet weather over the weekend, it's apparently been very well received by those who are a part of the tournament annually.

WCCO's David McCoy asked Fran Fraschilla, a veteran of many Final Fours who also happens to be the perfect person to tell us what to watch for in tonight's big game. This is Fraschilla's third Final Four in Minneapolis; he was also here in 1992 and 2001.

He said a lot has changed since then.

"The tournament itself is growing in popularity by leaps and bounds, and so obviously this is bigger than back in the early 2000s and the one I think back in '92," Fraschilla said. "Downtown Minneapolis is bigger and better. The hotels, the restaurants, bigger and better. It's a great community to host a big sporting event. They'd done really well."

And then of course other things have also not changed, namely that this is an event Minneapolis does well. Fraschilla went so far as to say "outstanding."

Fraschilla joked he might not be allowed back into Texas, where he lives, if he picked against the Red Raiders, so he has to "go guns up."

And it is indeed expected to be a low-scoring game tonight; the over-under of 118 is the lowest in NCAA title game history.

"It should be great. These two teams are built on defense. They make it tough for you to score," Fraschilla said. "Those naysayers who say it's going to be an ugly game, who cares? ... The beauty of this game, like the entire tournament, is it's reality TV. We tune in because we don't know what's going to happen."