NEW ORLEANS (AP) — The Big (blue) Easy has one more bit of bedazzling in store.
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By JOHN MARSHALL - AP Basketball Writer
NEW ORLEANS (AP) — The Big (blue) Easy has one more bit of bedazzling in store.
North Carolina and Kansas, basketball blue blood running deep in their veins, are headed to the national championship game.
The Tar Heels got there by spoiling Mike Krzyzewski's fairytale ending with a gritty performance in an historic rivalry game. Kansas put coach Bill Self in position to win the second title he's waited so long for with a 3-point barrage against another national powerhouse.
The first course was delightful. The main could be extraordinary.
“You come to Kansas for big games, but you don’t come to Kansas to play in the Elite Eight,” said Jayhawks guard Christian Braun, who had 10 points against Villanova. “You don’t come to Kansas to play in the Final Four. You come to play for a championship.”
Same at North Carolina.
The Tar Heels (29-9), third on the wins list and the all-time leader with 21 Final Four appearances, pulled out a back-and-forth 81-77 victory over Duke to end Coach K’s 47-year career with a loss to his biggest rival. The Jayhawks (33-6) have more wins than any Division I team in history, up to 2,356 after beating Villanova 81-65 in the first national semifinal Saturday night.