Heels thrash Oregon

LAHAINA, Hawaii — The last two North Carolina teams to win the Maui Invitational have gone on to advance to the Final Four. With Tyler Hansbrough back in the lineup, it looks as if the top-ranked Tar Heels could repeat both feats, again.
 
Technically, Carolina didn’t need Hansbrough’s 16 points or four rebounds to blow out Oregon 98-69 in the eight-team tournament’s semifinals Tuesday night at Lahaina Civic Center. Not with forward Danny Green setting a career high for three-pointers (five) in the first half, and freshman Ed Davis coming off the bench to grab the second double-double of his career.
 
But the senior All American added much-needed depth in the lane, and that special brand of “Psycho T” aggressiveness that was missing when he sat out three of UNC’s first four games with a stress reaction in his right shin.
 
And now that he’s warmed up, his presence will be particularly needed tonight, when the Tar Heels (5-0) play No. 8 Notre Dame — which survived a last-second comeback attempt by seventh-ranked Texas in the other semifinal game — at 9:30 EST in the title showdown. Hansbrough, the reigning national player of the year, will likely match up with 6 feet 8 Irish forward Luke Harangody, the reigning Big East player of the year.
 
Hansbrough scored UNC’s first points against the Ducks (3-2), tipping in a shot to tie it 2-2. UNC never trailed after that.
 
By halftime, the forward was so tenacious that had passed seven players on the NCAA list for attempted free throws; he made 8 of 10 attempts and was ranked 11th at the break.
 
Getting to the line was just part of Carolina’s early domination.
 
After Oregon’s Tajuan Porter made a three-pointer to cut his team’s deficit to 18-11 with about 13 minutes left in the first half, UNC sprinted on a 17-1 run during which Green buried one of his five first-half three-pointers and the Ducks missed everything from outside shots to tips.
 
Davis, meanwhile, was trying to grab every missed shot in sight — and he got a lot of them. He had seven rebounds by the half, and Green had 15 points, all on three pointers. His previous high from behind the arc was four.
 
The Tar Heels led 51-22 at halftime, and never let up.
 
They took a 30-point lead when Wayne Ellington buried a three-pointer for UNC’s first bucket of the second half.
 
And despite some sloppiness that had coach Roy Williams’ scream of “Hey! Play smarter than that” richochet across the small arena, there was no reason to worry about a comeback.
 
Williams pulled Hansbrough with 11:56 left, after he buried two more free throws. In the end, he made 2 of his 4 field goals and was 12-for-14 from the line.
 
Green, who had a career-high 26 points against Chaminade on Monday night, finished with 21 points and eight rebounds; he has now recorded the two best two scoring days of his career in this tournament. Davis finished with 11 points and 13 rebounds.
 
UNC’s walk-ons entered the game with 3:30 left, and Michael Dunigan led Oregon with 18 points.
 

AP photo