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Kansas not looking to back down against North Carolina

Apr 5, 2008 - 10:09 AM No. 1 Kansas (35-3) at No. 1 North Carolina (36-2) 8:47 pm EDT

SAN ANTONIO (Ticker) -- Despite coming off its lowest scoring output in nearly four months, Kansas believes that it can match high-powered North Carolina.

The Jayhawks will try to keep up with the quicksilver Tar Heels when the two legendary programs meet in the national semifinals of the NCAA Tournament on Saturday.

Kansas (35-3) is coming off one of its toughest battles of the season, managing a season low-tying 59 points in a Midwest Regional final victory over upstart Davidson on Sunday. The Jayhawks, who only failed to crack 60 points one other time in a 59-55 win at Southern California on December 2, struggled putting away the Wildcats due to their inconsistent play, committing 14 turnovers against 12 assists.

Kansas also has issues shooting the ball, going 17-of-46 (37 percent) from the field when Sasha Kaun's 6-of-6 effort is taken away.

On the other hand, North Carolina (36-2) has had limited drama in its run to a 17th appearance in a Final Four, shaking off a second-half run by Louisville for an 83-73 victory in the final of the East Regional last Saturday.

So far, the top overall seed has shown to be what made it the top-ranked team for most the season; an offensive juggernaut. The Tar Heels are averaging 93.0 points during the NCAAs behind the relentless play of Tyler Hansbrough and fleetful Ty Lawson.

Yet, getting out in the open court to match North Carolina is a style that Kansas is used to, according to coach Bill Self.

"I think that we have to be who we are and we're at our best when we run as well," said Self, who will be making his first appearance in the Final Four after five trips to a regional final.

"If you look at the times that we've struggled this year, it's been times when it's basically been a low-possession game or we couldn't generate points off a defense or in transition and I think that's what (North) Carolina does better than anybody, is generate points before the defense is set. Of course we don't want the score to be 110-108, unless we have 110, but we do want possessions and we want to play fast because that's who we are. We aren't going to change who we are after 38 games, but we can play smart and we can certainly pick our spots."

Two players that the up-tempo style should benefit are Brandon Rush and Mario Chalmers, who have combined to score 25.8 points and shoot 45 percent on 3-pointers this season.

Even if the Jayhawks can run with the Tar Heels, they will have a difficult time trying to match Hansbrough. So far, the junior forward has lived up to the billing as the top candidate for the national player of the year award, averaging 21.0 points and 9.5 rebounds in the tournament.

While this is his first trip to the Final Four, Hansbrough plans to attack it just like he would a loose rebound.

"We're in the Final Four right now, and it's a new situation for us," he said. "I think we can use that experience that we've been using all along and keep doing those same things. We feel like we're playing really well. We just want to keep on moving."