Tar Heels, Hansbrough on brink of Final Four

North Carolina went from running it up to locking it down. Now the Tar Heels are a step away from the Final Four again, hoping they can avoid another collapse like last year.

Tyler Hansbrough scored 16 of his 18 points in the second half Thursday night and the top-seeded Tar Heels, not known for their defense, held Washington State to 32-percent shooting in a 68-47 win in the East Regional semifinals.

North Carolina, back in the NCAA round of eight for the second straight season, is a win away from its 17th trip to the Final Four. The Tar Heels are tied with UCLA for most all-time.

Danny Green had 15 points to help the Tar Heels (35-2) set a school record for victories in a season while continuing their dominant tournament run. The No. 1 overall seed will play Louisville on Saturday with a clear home-court advantage, playing in an arena located about two hours from its Chapel Hill campus.

North Carolina improved to 24-1 in NCAA games played in its home state, including 7-0 in Charlotte Bobcats Arena. The 47 points were the fewest allowed by the Tar Heels in an NCAA game since 1946.

Now the Tar Heels can focus on erasing the lingering memories from last year's final game: a blown double-digit lead late in the second half in an overtime loss to Georgetown in the regional finals.

Fourth-seeded Washington State (26-9) got little from the perimeter, with Derrick Low, Kyle Weaver and Taylor Rochestie scoring a combined 26 points.

Louisville 79, Tennessee 60

Louisville's suffocating defense has coach Rick Pitino a step away from a sixth trip to the Final Four.

Earl Clark scored 17 points and had 12 rebounds, and Pitino's mix of defenses made life miserable for Tennessee to put the third-seeded Cardinals in the East Regional final.

After two blowout wins last weekend, Pitino's signature zone and pressure limited the high-scoring Volunteers to 34-percent shooting. The veteran coach improved to 8-0 in regional semifinals.

Terrence Williams and Andre McGee each added 13 points and David Padgett had 10 points and eight rebounds for Louisville (27-8).

Chris Lofton scored 15 points for Tennessee.

WEST REGIONAL Xavier 79, West Virginia 75, OT

Three-pointers saved Xavier. Missed free throws doomed West Virginia.

B.J. Raymond made two 3-pointers in the last 1:18 of overtime Thursday night and the Musketeers advanced to the West Regional final with a 79-75 victory over coach Bob Huggins' Mountaineers.

Third-seeded Xavier (30-6) will seek its first Final Four appearance when it plays UCLA in the regional final Saturday.

Raymond, who had made only one field goal all night, hit a 3-pointer from the top of the key to put the Musketeers ahead 75-74 with 1:18 to play. He then shook loose on an inbounds play, took a crosscourt pass and made a 3 with the shot clock expiring with 30 seconds to go for a 78-74 lead.

Josh Duncan scored a career-high 26 points, despite foul trouble, to lead Xavier. Joe Alexander scored 18 and had 10 rebounds for the Mountaineers (26-11).

UCLA 88, Western Kentucky 78

Kevin Love scored a career-high 29 points to help UCLA, which nearly frittered away a 21-point halftime lead, to hang on and defeat Western Kentucky.

Top-seeded UCLA (34-3) will play No. 3-seeded Xavier on Saturday for a trip to its third consecutive Final Four. Love also had 14 rebounds. He hit 10-of-14 shots from the floor and helped rescue the Bruins for the second time in as many games.

-- The Associated Press