Tar Heels hold off Ducks, move on to final against Zags
A year after having their season end with a buzzer-beater through the heart in the championship game, the North Carolina Tar Heels will once again play for a sixth national title Monday night following Saturday’s 77-76 win over the Oregon Ducks in the second semifinal game at University of Phoenix Stadium.
There they will have a chance to exorcise the ghost of Kris Jenkins and Villanova.
First, though, they had to overcome their own foibles.
Oregon’s Tyler Dorsey hit a three-pointer that seemed to touch every part of the rim before slipping through the net with 45 seconds left – “It bounced around, bounced around, went below the rim and crawled back over the top and went back in,” North Carolina coach Roy Williams said of the shot – and Keith Smith made a transition layup with seven seconds remaining to trim a 10-point deficit some eight minutes earlier to a single point, 77-76.
Oregon would never possess the ball again, though, despite four straight missed free throws by North Carolina in the final 5.8 seconds. Kennedy Meeks missed the first two, and the ball was tipped out to Joel Berry II for an offensive rebound with 4.0 seconds remaining. Then Berry missed his two foul shots, and it was Meeks’ turn to grab the rebound. He outlet-ed the ball and the Ducks could not foul anyone before the clock ran out.
“I got down on myself when I missed the two free throws, because it definitely could have been good for us,” Meeks said. “But my main focus was if Joel missed the second free throw, hit the offensive glass hard... Jordan Bell kind of went in a little more than I thought he would, so I just got behind him and the ball fell in my hand.”
Williams said he felt like “jumping off a building” because of the misses.
“We feel very lucky and very fortunate that we’re still playing,” Williams said, “but the fact of the matter is that we’re still playing.”
They will face Gonzaga for the national championship Monday night, a dichotomy of lineages between one of college basketball’s most successful programs and a first-time participant.
It was appropriate that Meeks secured the final loose ball, since it was his play that led the Tar Heels (32-7) the entire night.
He came in averaging 12.3 points and took just four shots in last weekend’s win over Kentucky, but against Oregon, he shot 11-for-13 and had 25 points and 14 rebounds.
“I just knew that we had to be aggressive in the paint,” Meeks said. “Coach told us it was going to be a man’s game, and us big men had to do a great job on the inside.”
Dorsey scored a team-high 21 for Oregon (33-6), which was making its first Final Four appearance since winning it all in the very first tournament in 1939. Dylan Ennis had 18 and Bell had 13 points, 16 rebounds and four blocks.
North Carolina did not only overcome those late missed free throws, it also overcame two of its key players – forward Isaiah Hicks and Berry, a guard – shooting a combined 3-for-26 from the field.
It didn’t take long after the game for the questions about last year’s loss to pop up. It’s not like they were absent to begin with.
“I think this is maybe like the 50th time that we’ve kind of answered a question about that,” North Carolina junior forward Justin Jackson (22 points) said when asked the inevitable. “At the end of the day, it’s a different team, a different year.” But it is a lot of the same players. “I think you’re always going to have that in the back of your mind because it was a heartbreaking experience for us,” Meeks said. “We came so far last year.”
Now they’ve matched that, come just as far this year.
A little further, and there will finally be something else to ask them about. (Newsday/TNS) On TV: NCAA Tournament Championship Game: North Carolina vs Gonzaga (live on ONE at 4:15 a.m. Tuesday morning)