• Preview
• Recap
• Bleachers

Washington State hopes to slow down North Carolina

Mar 27, 2008 - 1:43 PM No. 4 Washington St (26-8) vs. No. 1 North Carolina (34-2) 7:27 pm EDT

CHARLOTTE, North Carolina (Ticker) - North Carolina has had no problems scoring so far in the NCAA Tournament, while Washington State has not allowed many points through its first two games.

Something will have to give when the top-seeded Tar Heels take on the fourth-seeded Cougars in the East Region semifinals on Thursday.

The Cougars have allowed 80 points in a game just once this season (to UCLA), while North Carolina has scored at least that many points in 29 contests.

North Carolina has scored a combined 221 points through two contests in the NCAAs, which is the third-most in tournament history for the first two rounds.

The Tar Heels dismantled Arkansas in the second round on Sunday, jumping out to a 51-26 halftime lead en route to a 108-77 victory.

"We were pretty doggone good, we really were," Tar Heels coach Roy Williams said. "We are ecstatic to be one of the teams that are still playing."

Wayne Ellington had 20 points in the win, while Ty Lawson and Tyler Hansbrough had 19 and 17 points, respectively.

While North Carolina has racked up points, Washington State's slow and deliberate style of play has been just as effective.

The Cougars outscored Winthrop 42-11 in the second half of their 71-40 first-round triumph.

The team followed up that effort by shutting down Notre Dame's high-octane offense in Saturday's 61-41 victory. The Fighting Irish came into the contest averaging 80.6 points per game.

Seniors Derrick Low and Kyle Weaver are averaging 14.5 points apiece during the NCAAs for Washington State, which is in its first regional semifinal since 1941.

Whatever team moves on will face the winner of Tennessee and Louisville in the regional final Saturday.