UConn will watch Michigan State and UNC play for the national title on Monday.
The Huskies were on the wrong side of karma. The Huskies had the whole "Yahoo!-we-cheated" thing working against them, Jim Calhoun's defiant "Get-some-facts" taunt that blew up in his face (when Yahoo! got some facts), the continued presence of A.J. "Hot Laptop" Price on the roster and last week's refusal to cut down the nets at the regional final.
DETROIT — Earlier this week, News & Observer columnist Caulton Tudor and I reported on the banners honoring NCAA champions in the lobby of the giant Renaissance Center complex that includes a Marriott and General Motors headquarters.
From our vantage point, we saw banners correctly displaying the years of Duke's three NCAA titles and North Carolina's four NCAA championships. N.C. State's banner listed only 1974, omitting 1983. A day later, a walk around to the opposite site of the banners revealed something else.
DETROIT - Villanova forward Dwayne Anderson calls North Carolina a “machine” on offense, and the Tar Heels’ average of 90 points per game supports his assertion.
By most accounts, No. 1 seed North Carolina (32-4) is a heavy favorite over No. 3 seed Villanova (30-7) in today’s 8:47 p.m. NCAA semifinal game at Ford Field. But the Tar Heels also were favored over Kansas in last year’s Final Four, and we all know how that turned out.
Here are five things to watch Saturday when the Tar Heels meet Villanova:
North Carolina fans should hope Ty Lawson makes wiser decisions Saturday against Villanova than he did earlier this week during the school's trip to the Final Four.
Lawson, a 21-year-old junior widely expected to turn pro this spring, said Thursday that he went to Detroit's Greektown Casino and won $250 at the craps table. Nice haul, but Not Too Smart.
While casino visits and Connecticut’s recruiting habits were hot topics on Final Four Eve, Michigan State coach Tom Izzo ventured outside the mainstream long enough to make an indirect but still interesting prediction — one that runs counter to popular thinking.
DETROIT — North Carolina guard Ty Lawson's revelation that he won $250 playing craps after arriving at the Final Four site Wednesday night spurred a barrage of questions about gambling and college athletes during Friday's media session.
Coach Roy Williams said he gave Lawson and teammate Marc Campbell permission to go to the casino, which was legal. Lawson said the media were blowing the issue out of proportion.
In Chapel Hill, officials want two things in the next few days: A Tar Heel national championship and a celebration devoid of fire.
Thus, Chancellor Holden Thorp's e-mail to students on the issue of the celebratory bonfire. What is it with fire, anyhow?
He writes:
"It's April, and we're in the Final Four. We have so much to celebrate ... the best coach and staff in college basketball, a fantastic team that continues to amaze us, and an athletics department that is a class act and does so much to define Carolina as a great university.
My family and I will be in Detroit cheering our hearts out. I encourage fans here to do the same in the Smith Center. And when you go to Franklin Street to celebrate, have fun.
But don't forget safety. Chapel Hill police have set reasonable rules based on years of experience. Respect that - and think twice about being associated with bonfires, which put innocent people at great risk.
(Check our YouTube Channel, http://www.youtube.com/user/UNCChapelHill, for the facts on bonfires from Dr. Bruce Cairns, director of the N.C. Jaycee Burn Center.)
This has been another great season of Tar Heel basketball. So let's show our team that they have the best fans in the country.
Go Heels!
Sincerely,
Holden Thorp
UNC Chapel Hill Chancellor Holden Thorp will be doing some schmoozing this weekend when he attends the Final Four with his family.
The itinerary, according to a university spokesman: Thorp and his family will fly to Detroit with a donor and return with the team. The athletic department covers the cost of game tickets, lodging and the return flight for Thorp and his wife, Patti. The Thorps will pay for their children to attend and travel.
Thorp will represent the university at official events sponsored by the alumni association, the Ram’s Club and the athletic department, including a pre-game reception Saturday.
Thorp had similar duties last month during the ACC tournament in Atlanta.
Under state ethics laws, the university cannot give away game tickets but state officials can purchase them from the athletics office. As of Friday, the university has received Final Four ticket requests from Senate President Pro Tem Marc Basnight’s office - for two tickets - and from Gov. Beverly Perdue’s office - for four tickets.
Perdue has only requested tickets if the Heels advance to Monday’s national title game, according to the university.
