Sports Blog

Playing in front of some 50,000 Spartan fans, and with the streets of Detroit hosting a sea of green-clad faithful all weekend, the North Carolina Tar Heels left little doubt which team was No. 1 in college basketball this season with a convincing 89-72 win at Ford Field Monday night.

The Spartans, hoping to complete a dream tournament run by winning the championship in their own backyard, were outmatched from the opening tip. The Tar Heels, keying on a number of unforced Spartan turnovers, jumped to a 22-7 lead early on, led by a tournament final-record 21 points at halftime, and never looked back. In fact, Roy Williams’ team was so dominant in the first half, its 55-point total in the first half is a new tournament final record as well.

Where Spartan point guard Kalin Lucas was fast, his Tar Heel counterpart Ty Lawson was faster. Where MSU center Goran Suton (who didn’t play when North Carolina destroyed MSU back in December in this same venue) was strong, NC’s Tyler Hansbrough was stronger. And where the Spartan bench was deep, the Tar Heels were deeper. Lawson led all scorers with 21 points, Wayne Ellington followed with 19, and Hansbrough finished with 18. The championship was the fifth all-time for the Tar Heels, moving the school into a third-place tie with Indiana for the most titles in history. Only UCLA and Kentucky have more.