PHILADELPHIA– The magic drained out of St. Peter’s early.
North Carolina had too much size and talent for the tiny 15th seed Jesuit school from Jersey City, defeating the Peacocks 69-49, in the NCAA East Region final here yesterday in sold out Wells Fargo Center.
St. Peter’s had become America’s team the past two weeks, upsetting mighty second seed Kentucky, seventh seed Murray State and third-seed Purdue to advance to this point. But they could get over that one final mountain.
“We just wanted to play North Carolina basketball,” Tar Heels’ forward Leaky Black said. “They hang their hat on punching teams in the mouth, being the underdog. We just had to let them know it wasn’t going to happen tonight. That’s
pretty much it.”
The Final Four didn’t have room for ay giant slayers this year, which should please TBS, which has the games.
College basketball fans can focus instead on a third Duke-North Carolina Armageddon and another semi-final between two more blue bloods Villanova and Kansas.
All four programs have won multiple national championships.
North Carolina has won six. Duke has won five and Villanova and Kansas three apiece.
Duke has been on a pilgrimage to give their 75-year-old, coach Mike Krzyzewski one final championship before he retires. ACC archrival North Carolina, which spoiled Coach K’s overhyped final home game at Cameron Indoor Stadium, stands in the way. No one expected the eight seed Heels to be here at midseason after they lost to Miami by 28, Wake by 22 and Duke by 20. But the Heels have discovered late season chemistry under first year coach Hubert Davis as versatile big men Armondo Bacot, Brady Manek and guards Caleb Love and RJ Davis emerged as explosive post season scorers in a perimeter offense. Love had 30 in a Sweet 16 win over UCLA. Davis had 30 in a second- round overtime win against top seed Baylor. Bacot had 22 points and 20 rebounds against St. Peter’s and Manek had 28 points in a first- round win over Marquette. The accomplishment left first year coach Hubert Davis in tears
:”It’s been a roller coaster ride,” Davis said. “We’ve been laughed at by the media. It feels good to have the last laugh.”
Carolina dominated St. Peter’s in all aspects, outrebounding the Peacocks, 48-30, and limiting them to just 30 percent shooting and overwhelming them in the paint. They jumped out to a 47-20 lead, then coasted the rest of the way, ignoring the distractions that come with a North Jersey fairytale.
Hubert Davis will have five days to prepare for a Duke team that enters the national semi-finals as the favorite to win the title.
The Blue Devils, who are making their 13th Final Four appearance under Coach K, have five starters who are future NBA players, including 6-10, 250-pound freshman Paola Banchero, who should be the first pick in the N/BA draft. Banchero, who is averaging points and rebounds in post season, is a triple threat scorer from the inside, mid-range and perimeter who been nearly unstoppable and has opened up scoring opportunities inside for 7-0 Mark Williams and on the wings for freshman forward AJ Griffin and junior Wendell Moore for the Devils won 13 of their 15 games. Krzyzewski, a master of adaptability, has finally found the answer at the point when he inserted sophomore Jeremy Roach into the lineup at the start of the tournament, which has ignited an efficient offense that didn’t miss a shot in the final five minutes of a second- round comeback victory over Michigan State and scored 87 points and shot 71 percent in the second half in a Sweet 16 victory against Texas Tech, arguably the best defensive team in the tournament.
Kansas the only No, 1 seed remaining, may have had a relatively easy journey, beating a 16 Texas Southern, an 8 Creighton, a 6 Providence and a 10 Miami to get here, but Bill Self could have the most complete group left now that point guard Remy Martin, a transfer from Arizona State, is playing to his potential and first team All American Ochai Agabi, who had 18 points in a 76-50 Elite Eight win over Miami, is back soaring. The Big 12 Jayhawks have played dominant stretches of basketball against lower seeded competition.
Finally, there is Villanova, the perennial Big East champion which is brilliantly coached by recently minted Hall of Fame inductee Jay Wright and is making its third Final Four trip in the last six years. The Cats do not have any NBA first- round draft picks but they are smart, experienced, locked in defensively and rarely beat themselves because they are shooting a lethal 82 percent from the line and rarely turn it over. They get great leadership from fifth year seniors like point guard Collin Gillespie, a two-time Player of the Year in the Big East; and forward Jermaine Samuels, the MVP of the South Region. Sadly, they will not be at full strength after guard Justin Moore, the team’s second leading scorer, tore an Achilles driving the lane with 35 seconds remaining in a 50-44 Elite Eight victory against Houston and will have to get 30 plus minutes from their starters.
St. Peter’s will be watching the action on TV after their dreams were shattered.
“I really thought we were going to win this game,” Peacocks coach Shaheen Holloway said. “I’ll be honest with you. No disrespect to them. I just thought we could match up with them.”
Holloway is expected to be named the new head coach at Seton Hall this week. But he seemed more concerned with the players in his locker room who became the first 15 seed to advance to an Elite Eight. “They shocked the world,” he said. “You’ve got guys that’s going to be remembered for things they can tell their grandchildren It’s a story within a story. I’m super proud of these guys. They came in and made history. Point, blank, period. No one has done it.”
