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Red-hot North Carolina to face difficult test with Louisville

Mar 29, 2008 - 1:34 PM No. 3 Louisville (27-8) vs. No. 1 North Carolina (35-2) 9:05 pm EDT

CHARLOTTE, North Carolina (Ticker) - Two of the hottest teams in the NCAA Tournament meet when top-seeded North Carolina faces third-seeded Louisville in the East Regional final Saturday.

The Tar Heels (35-2) have won their three tournament games by an average of 30.3 points, while Louisville has won by 22.3 per contest.

North Carolina topped the 100-point plateau in each of its first two contests, before defeating Washington State, 68-47, in the regional semifinals on Thursday.

"We're ecstatic; we played really well during stretches," Tar Heels coach Roy Williams said. "Defensively, we played them really good, although we missed some shots as well. I thought we were really good on the backboard."

Tyler Hansbrough scored 16 of his 18 points in the second half and Danny Green had 15 off the bench to lead the Tar Heels, who held Washington State to just 32 percent (18-of-57), including a woeful 12.5 percent (2-of-16) on 3-pointers.

The Cardinals (27-8), who have also rolled in the tournament due to their defense, figure to be North Carolina's toughest challenge to date.

Louisville won its first-round game by 18 points over Boise State, defeated Oklahoma by 30 and then smothered second-seeded Tennessee, 79-60, in the regional semifinals on Thursday. The Volunteers shot just 34 percent (19-of-56) from the field, including 5-of-20 from the arc.

The Cardinals have shot over 50 percent in each of their Tournament wins, making 56 percent (87-of-156) from the floor. Louisville is also 25-of-55 from the arc during the three games.

"The last three games, our offense and defense have all been clicking," Louisville coach Rick Pitino said. "There have been other games where our offense has clicked and our defense has clicked. Our defense has stayed constant most of the year, and this is a team that we have tremendous respect for. Guys prepared hard for a week."

Reserve Earl Clark has led the team in scoring in each game, and led five Louisville players in double figures with 17 points and 12 rebounds against the Volunteers.

Each team is looking to make its first Final Four appearance since 2005. North Carolina won the national championship that season, while Louisville lost to eventual runner-up Illinois in the national semifinals.