honoluluadvertiser.com

Sponsored by:

Comment, blog & share photos

Log in | Become a member
The Honolulu Advertiser
Updated at 3:48 p.m., Friday, April 4, 2008

Final Four matchup: Kansas vs. North Carolina

By JIM O’CONNELL
AP Basketball Writer

A quick look at tomorrow's Final Four semifinal matchups between Kansas and North Carolina.

TV time: 2:47 p.m. Hawaii time.

Station: KGMB (CBS), channel 9, cable 07, digital 007, high definition 1007

KANSAS (35-3)

ROAD TO THE FINAL FOUR:

Kansas 85, No. 16 Portland State 61

Kansas 75, No. 8 UNLV 56

Kansas 72, No. 12 Villanova 57

Kansas 59, No. 10 Davidson 57.

STARS: Kansas is one of the few teams without a real star as shown by a balanced offense that has seven players averaging between 13.1 and 7.3 points. Brandon Rush, who was expected to be in the NBA this season until knee surgery forced him to return to school, is the top scorer with the 13.1 average.

COACH: Bill Self had been 0-4 in regional final appearances — two with Kansas — until this season. Regardless of this weekend's outcome he was able to shed that hated tag of best coach never to reach the Final Four.

KEY POINT: The Jayhawks make it work with balance and depth at both end of the court. Because there is no real star on whom to concentrate, Kansas is often able to ride the hot hand inside or on the perimeter.

NORTH CAROLINA (36-2)

ROAD TO THE FINAL FOUR:

North Carolina 113, No. 16 Mount St. Mary's, Md. 74

North Carolina 108, No. 9 Arkansas 77

North Carolina 68, No. 4 Washington State 47

North Carolina 83, No. 3 Louisville 73.

STARS: Tyler Hansbrough was a unanimous first-team All-America after averaging 22.8 points and 10.3 rebounds, shooting 54 percent from the field and 81 percent from the line, all while leading the world in hustle plays. Sophomore point guard Ty Lawson missed seven games — including both losses — with an ankle injury, but he appears to be back to full speed.

COACH: Roy Williams is the only coach in the field with a national championship (2005) and he tied for fourth on the all-time list with six Final Four appearances, the same figure as the other three coaches here combined.

KEY POINT: The Tar Heels were the most dominant of the four top seeds, finally being tested by Louisville in the regional final. That was a big win for North Carolina because it erased the memory of last year's devastating overtime loss to Georgetown at the same point in the tournament.