While our first East Region Sweet 16 game of the night in South Philly went down to the wire, No. 1 North Carolina cruised to a 101-86 win over No. 5 Indiana in the nightcap.
With the win, the Tar Heels guaranteed that an ACC team will play for the national title. There are four teams left from the conference in the Elite 8 (UNC, Notre Dame, Virginia, and Syracuse), and they’re all on the same side of the bracket. UNC will take on ND at a preposterously late start time (8:50) on Easter Sunday in Philly.
Here's more from the game and the scene down at the Wells Fargo Center:
• UNC is ridiculous on the offensive glass. Kennedy Meeks, Brice Johnson, Justin Jackson, and co. rebounded 15 of the Tar Heels’ 30 missed shots. Indiana is a really good team, but the Hoosiers are only a slightly above average on the defensive glass. That spelled trouble against UNC’s elite frontcourt.
• Marcus Paige knocking down threes probably makes UNC title favorites. Paige is the rare senior that has taken a step back shooting the ball in his final year, but he went 6-9 from deep against the Hoosiers. Paige’s marksmanship complementing the inside dominance of the Tar Heels makes them the most complete offensive team in the tournament:
• Yogi Ferrell finished his Indiana career with 25 points on 6-14 shooting. The four-year starter at point guard was understandably emotional after the game, and the traveling Indiana fans chanted his name as he left the court:
• Sheed was in the house, and the Philly native is such a presence that the 2009 Final Four MVP (Wayne Ellington, another local guy) was basically anonymous sitting right behind him:
• Indiana has some celebrity fans, too. Jim and John Harbaugh’s sister is married to Indiana coach Tom Crean, and watching those two live and die with every possession was worth the price of admission:
• The Wells Fargo Center was a good time tonight. There weren’t any Philly teams on the floor, but it was interesting to see four sizable fan bases travel well and fill our little arena. Judging by what we saw tonight, I would imagine there will be quite a bit of light blue in the stands on Sunday night.
• As a reminder of how well ‘Nova played on Thursday, UNC scored 52 points in the first half and still weren’t as good as them:
• ESPN thinks the Tar Heels are heavy favorites on Sunday:
And I do, too. Here's hoping that the local fans are at least treated to a competitive game.
Follow Rich on Twitter: @rich_hofmann