Men’s Final Four: UNC upsets Duke, Kansas tops Villanova
The NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament championship game is set after an action-packed Final Four.
Tipping things off, top-seeded Kansas took down 2-seed Villanova in a commanding double-digit victory, followed by No. 8 North Carolina upsetting rival No. 2 Duke in a showdown for the ages.
Here are the top moments from Saturday's Final Four games.
No. 8 North Carolina 81, No. 2 Duke 77
UNC on the board
Leaky Black nailed a 3-point jumper for the Tar Heels to kick off the scoring.
Watch your heads
Blue Devils center Mark Williams answered with a big-time dunk for Duke's first points of the game.
Wide-open
North Carolina's Armando Bacot proved exactly why he should never be left unguarded.
Showing off his range
Duke forward Paolo Banchero made a huge shot from distance to give the Blue Devils the lead, 11-10.
Going up!
It was a neck-and-neck battle between both squads as the first half continued.
Banchero came up with a massive dunk to set the tone for Duke near the midway mark.
Denied
As UNC made a play to extend its lead, Bacot came up with a huge rejection to keep things close.
Hard-fought first half
The Tar Heels converted on back-to-back buckets to keep Duke within arm's reach late in the first half.
Anybody's game
A big play from Jeremy Roach with a few seconds to spare made it a one-possession game at the break, 37-34. Duke is 99-19 all-time in the NCAA Tournament when leading at the half.
Banchero led Duke with 10 first-half points, while North Carolina's RJ Davis led all scorers with 14 points.
Déjà vu
Banchero and Williams brought the energy early in the second half with a pair of dunks.
Here come the Tar Heels
Just as Duke took its largest lead of the game (seven), North Carolina had a real spark, going on an 11-0 run to take the lead, 47-41.
Tie game
After an all-out effort on both sides, things were knotted up midway through the second half.
Back and forth
Lead changes were the name of the game in the final new minutes, as both teams battled to keep an edge.
Down to the wire
Duke forward Wendell Moore Jr. made a 3-point jumper to give his team a one-point edge, 74-73, with 1:24 to play.
Big-time basket
UNC guard Caleb Love drained a 3-pointer to make it a four-point game, 78-74, with 28 seconds to spare.
Comeback complete
The Tar Heels held on to the lead until the end, punching their ticket to the title game.
No. 1 Kansas 81, No. 2 Villanova 65
Kansas strikes first
Ochai Agbaji drained a pair of 3-point jumpers early in the opening half to help get the Jayhawks off and running in New Orleans.
Reeling it in
Collin Gillespie came up with a clutch shot from deep to get 'Nova in the swing of things.
Oh my, Ochai!
The Jayhawks guard was on fire to start the game, shooting a perfect 4-for-4 from distance for 12 points.
Stayin' alive
Villanova's Caleb Daniels came up with a tough and-one to keep the Wildcats in it.
Pulling away early
Remy Martin sunk a huge 3-pointer, bringing Kansas to 7-for-10 from deep and giving the Jayhawks an 18-point lead.
The KU Show
After a dominating first-half performance, Kansas held a 40-29 edge at halftime.
Agbaji can't miss
In the second half, the Jayhawks picked up right where they left off.
Down, not out
The Wildcats answered with an 8-0 run. Just like that, it was an eight-point game, 50-42.
Too strong
Kansas forward David McCormack came up with a clutch tip to extend the Jayhawks' lead.
Throwing down the hammer
McCormack followed that up with a monster dunk at the midway mark of the second half to keep the momentum on Kansas' side.
Big-time dagger
Christian Braun came up with an unreal triple late in the half, as Kansas ran away with the win.
Wire-to-wire winner
With the win, the Jayhawks are headed to the title game for the first time since 2012, and Kansas becomes the fifth NCAA program to make 10-plus championship appearances.
Each time Kansas and Villanova have played each other in the NCAA Tournament, the winner has gone on the win the title.
