By Keith Taylor
Special to NKyTribune
MEMPHIS — Kentucky gave top-seeded North Carolina all it could handle, but couldn’t beat the Tar Heels for a second time this season in another thrilling finish between the two storied programs.
The defending national runner-up edged the Wildcats 75-73 Sunday to advance to the Final Four for the second straight season. Kentucky had a 14-game winning streak snapped and finished with a 32-6 record. North Carolina (31-7) advances to the nationa semifinals and will play Oregon Saturday in Phoenix. The Tar Heels lost to Villanova in last year’s national championship game.
Malik Monk scored 12 points in Kentucky’s loss to North Carolina Sunday in Memphis (Regina Rickert Photo)
Kentucky sank three 3-pointers in the final minute, inlcuding a trey by Malik Monk that tied the score at 73-73 with 7.2 seconds remaining, but North Carolina had enough time to get a shot off on its last meaningful possession. Luke Maye’s jumper from the left corner with three tenths of a second remaining sealed the deal for the Tar Heels. Maye finished with 17 points.
“It’s amazing that we were in that game where they practically fouled out my team,” Kentucky coach John Calipari said. “Amazing that we had a chance. So proud of how these guys fought. These were two teams just slugging at each other.”
In the first meeting between the two teams, Monk pieced together a memorable performance, scoring a career-high 47 points in Kentucky’s epic 103-100 victory in the CBS Sports Classic in Las Vegas. Monk tallied just six points in the first half and finished with 12 points.
Fox scored a career-high 39 points against UCLA in the regional semifinals and led the team in scoring during the previous five postseason contests. Fox finished with 13 points againt the Tar Heels. Fox scored five of Kentucky’s first seven points, but only played eight minutes in the opening half because of foul trouble.
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Kentucky senior Dominique Hawkins picked up the slack in Fox’s absence and tallied 10 points in the first half. Hawkins finished with 10 points in his last game with the Wildcats.
The Wildcats missed their last six field goals of the first half, while North Carolina went scoreless in the final 3:26 of the half, but held a 38-33 lead at the break.
Kentucky scored the first six points of the second half and led briefly at 39-38 but the Tar Heels scored the next six, capped by Justin Jackson’s rare four-point play and regained the lead, increasing the margin to 47-41 with 13 minutes remaining.
In addition to Hawkins, Humphries also gave the Wildcats a big lift off the bench and finished with a career-high 12 points. Humphries scored eight during a three-minute stretch that gave Kentucky a 64-59 advantage with five minutes remaining.
“Can you imagine his first real opportunity to do thus was this game and he performed?” Calipari said. “Amazing.”
The lead didn’t stand as North Carolina scored 10 straight to regain the lead for good and overcame Kentucky’s late heroics.
Kentucky’s starting freshman trio — Fox, Monk and Bam Adebayo — combined for just 12 points in the first frame. Monk scored eight, but made just two field goals on five attempts. Adebayo scored 13 points after netting just two against UCLA Friday night.
Jackson led the Tar Heels with 11 points in the first half and paced North Carolina with 19 points. Joe Berry II chipped in with 11 points.
Looking ahead
Monk and Fox are projected to be first-round lottery picks in the NBA Draft this summer according to recent projections by draftexpress.com. Monk is projected to go fifth in the draft, followed by Fox at No. 6. Jackson, a junior, is projected to be an early pick, while Adebayo is considered a late first-round pick at No. 30.
Although not official, Monk, Fox and Adebayo are expected to declare for the NBA Draft, but all three enjoyed a successful season with the Wildcats. Calipari said all three contributed to the team’s late success after the Wildcats lost three of four games in February.
“It’s a process and you can’t skip steps,” Calipari said. “You can’t play in December, November like it’s March, because it’s not possible. It’s going to be a process and you’ve got to really trust your kids and the only way you can trust them is if they trust you. You’ve got to be about them, their successes and growth more than anything else. If not, they’re not trusting you.”
Caliapri also praised the impact his seniors — Hawkins, Derek Willis and Mychal Mulder had on the program.
“You want them to leave this situation or this experience and take it with them and it’s man, we did this together,” Calipari said. “We learned to share. We talk about servant leadership in this program. It means you’re more about your teammate than yourself. That’s what it means and we try to teach that and we try to live that and these kids have done that.”
Keith Taylor is a senior sports writer for KyForward, where he primarily covers University of Kentucky sports. Reach him at keith.taylor@kyforward.com or @keithtaylor21 on Twitter
