Detroit, MI (My Sportsbook) - North Carolina will play for its fifth NCAA Tournament title, and this time the final hurdle will be a rematch against a team the Tar Heels throttled in December.
Ty Lawson scored 22 points, pulled down seven rebounds and dished out eight assists, as the Tar Heels bolted to a big first-half lead and disposed of Villanova, 83-69, in the Final Four at Ford Field.
Wayne Ellington added 20 points and nine boards for the Tar Heels (33-4), who will play Michigan State for the NCAA Tournament championship. The Spartans downed Connecticut, 82-73, in the first national semifinal.
Tyler Hansbrough tallied 18 points, 11 rebounds and four steals, while Danny Green notched 12 points for North Carolina.
Monday will mark the second meeting this season between the Tar Heels and Spartans, at the same venue. It was back on December 3 when top-ranked North Carolina blew out the then-No. 13 Spartans, 98-63, as part of the ACC/Big Ten Challenge. The Tar Heels limited the Spartans to 7-of-35 shooting in the second half in that game, as Hansbrough led the way with a 25-point, 11- rebound effort.
"The impact of the last game really doesn't have anything to do with the next game because they had a couple players that were hurt, and also they came off of like a long road stretch of games," said Lawson. "I know they're a better team right now."
In fact, UNC is 4-0 all-time against Michigan State in the NCAA Tournament, but there will be plenty of green in attendance at Ford Field for Monday night. UNC, going, after its second title in five years, beat Michigan State in last year's NCAA tourney and in 2005 topped the Spartans in the Final Four.
"We are a confident team, but we will not be overconfident Monday night," said UNC coach Roy Williams. "We will not be, okay? That's just not gonna happen. We'll be intense. We'll have a sense of urgency. We'll have a tremendous amount of respect for what Michigan State has done."
As for Saturday's game, the Tar Heels were in control most of the way. In the Final Four for the second year in a row and the third time in the last five years, the Tar Heels, seeded No. 1 from the South Region, didn't face much of a challenge down the stretch, as Villanova shot just 32.9 percent from the field.
Scottie Reynolds scored 17 for the Wildcats (30-8), who were on a magical run just like the 1985 team that upset Georgetown to win the national title. Villanova, which was seeded third in the East bracket this year, made it to the Final Four thanks to a win over top-seeded Pittsburgh, but the clock struck midnight on the Wildcats' run Saturday night due in part to a 5-of-27 effort from three-point range.
Conversely, UNC finished 11-of-22 from three-point range, led by Ellington's 5-of-7 showing.
"They did a lot of things well, and they did a great job of mixing it up, whether it was penetrating, putting it in the post, or reversing the ball and shooting the three," said Reynolds. "They did a great job of coming up with big-time lose balls, offensive rebounds, second-chance points. That kind of put us kind of down."
Rollie Massimino, coach of Villanova in the 1985 title run, sat stone-faced in the crowd at Ford Field, but the Wildcats were just overpowered by the Tar Heels, who have won each game in this tournament by at least 12 points.
Reggie Redding scored 15, Corey Fisher 13, while Dante Cunningham chipped in 12 points and 12 rebounds in a losing effort. Dwayne Anderson also had 11 rebounds, but poor shooting was the downfall for the Wildcats, who went 10-of-38 from the floor in the second half.
"We had a great season," said Redding. "We're not going to try to let this loss like spoil the great season we had. But, of course, it hurts right now. All the hard work we put in all year, us coming together as a team. If you're not hurting right now, then I don't think you're a player. You don't care that much."
Villanova trailed 49-40 at the half, but cut the deficit to 50-45 with 18:12 remaining after Shane Clark's jumper from the right baseline. The Wildcats then went ice cold from the field, missing 11 consecutive three-pointers.
Meanwhile, UNC quickly built its lead back to double-digits. Hansbrough exited with a cut on his left forearm at the 16:35 mark, but it surely didn't slow the Tar Heels. Green banged in a three-pointer, and Hansbrough came right back in the game and hit a free throw for a 59-45 difference.
"This is where I think they're just really a good team," said Villanova coach Jay Wright. "There was a time we got it under 10, and they missed a free throw, and they got the offensive rebound on a foul shot. They didn't just rely on making shots. They got to loose balls. They did a lot of little things that didn't allow us to make that run."
Villanova missed 11 straight shots before Fisher put in a layup, and then he added a jumper for a 10-point margin. But North Carolina remained in total control, quickly pushing the lead to 16 on a Lawson three-pointer with 11:15 left, and the double-digit cushion stayed the remainder of the contest.
North Carolina made seven of its first 10 shots from the field and scored nine in a row at one point for a 19-8 lead. A Reynolds three cut the deficit to 31-23 inside nine minutes left in the half, but UNC came back with the next nine points.
"I think it was big for us to come out and share the basketball and get easy ones," said Ellington. "That's what we did. We took open shots. They were going in for us. We built some confidence, and we went from there."
Game Notes
This is UNC's NCAA-record 18th trip to the Final Four...UNC is 101-39 in NCAA Tournament games, extending its record for most tourney wins in history...Villanova was making its fourth appearance in the Final Four and its first since winning the national championship in 1985...UNC holds a 10-4 lead over Villanova in the all-time series. The Wildcats beat the Tar Heels in 1985 to reach the Final Four...Looking ahead to Monday, UNC is 8-3 all-time against the Spartans.
