Keeping It Heel
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UNC Basketball: Tar Heels slip by Kentucky into the Final Four

By Brandon Griffin

Mar 26, 2017; Memphis, TN, USA;North Carolina Tar Heels forward Justin Jackson (44) reacts against the Kentucky Wildcats in the second half during the finals of the South Regional of the 2017 NCAA Tournament at FedExForum. Mandatory Credit: Justin Ford-USA TODAY Sports
Mar 26, 2017; Memphis, TN, USA;North Carolina Tar Heels forward Justin Jackson (44) reacts against the Kentucky Wildcats in the second half during the finals of the South Regional of the 2017 NCAA Tournament at FedExForum. Mandatory Credit: Justin Ford-USA TODAY Sports /
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The North Carolina Tar Heels advance to the Final Four. What did Carolina do to win the game against the Wildcats?

Apparently, Sunday is Heart Attack Sunday for Tar Heels fans.

A week after coming back to finish off Arkansas after trailing by five, the Tar Heels did it again this week against a different SEC team.

UNC beat Kentucky 75-73 with a last second bucket and advance to their second straight Final Four.

So what happened in the game?

First Half

The first half was about fouls. Seven players finished the first half with two fouls each. This included four starters for Kentucky.

Of course, the fouls didn’t matter as neither team could hit their free throws. The two teams combined to hit 12 of the 24 free throws attempted. That is not a great percentage.

Good news for the Tar Heels is that Justin Jackson and Joel Berry II carried over from the Butler game. The two combined for 20 points on 7-of-17 shooting, though they were a combined 0-of-4 from behind the arc.

In fact, the Tar Heels only hit one three in the first half, from the new King of Memphis Luke Maye. Maye only had one first half rebound, but the Tar Heels got 24 in the first half, led by nine from Kennedy Meeks.

Kentucky’s back court of DeAaron Fox and Malik Monk combined for just 11 first half points and four fouls. However, they did get 10 from bench senior Dominique Hawkins.

On the negative side, the Tar Heels had seven first half turnovers. Both teams finished the half going scoreless for the final two minutes.

Mar 26, 2017; Memphis, TN, USA; North Carolina Tar Heels forward Luke Maye (32) reacts with guard Joel Berry II (2) and forward Kennedy Meeks (behind) after making a basket with .3 seconds left against the Kentucky Wildcats in the second half during the finals of the South Regional of the 2017 NCAA Tournament at FedExForum. North Carolina won 75-73. Mandatory Credit: Nelson Chenault-USA TODAY Sports
Mar 26, 2017; Memphis, TN, USA; North Carolina Tar Heels forward Luke Maye (32) reacts with guard Joel Berry II (2) and forward Kennedy Meeks (behind) after making a basket with .3 seconds left against the Kentucky Wildcats in the second half during the finals of the South Regional of the 2017 NCAA Tournament at FedExForum. North Carolina won 75-73. Mandatory Credit: Nelson Chenault-USA TODAY Sports /

Second Half

The scoreless streak continued for the Tar Heels to start the half. Kentucky took the lead and the game was a back and forth affair for the rest of the half.

Both teams an unsung hero stepped up and had a career game.

For Kentucky, it was Isaac Humphries who had a career-high 12 points and five rebounds.

The big man from Australia score four points to give Kentucky a five-point lead with five minutes left.

For the Tar Heels, it was Luke Maye. After having a career- high 14 against Butler, Maye decided to up himself with 17 points for the Tar Heels.

No shot was bigger than the two-pointer he hit with .3 seconds remaining to give UNC a two point lead.

North Carolina gets six days to get ready for their next showdown against the Oregon Ducks in Phoenix. The Tar Heels are the only team that has reached the Final Four before of the remaining teams.

Next: VIDEO: Luke Maye hits game-winner

This will be their 20th overall and fifth for head coach Roy Williams at UNC.

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