Michigan State (26-6)

ROAD TO THE FINAL FOUR: Beat No. 12 Old Dominion 89-81, No. 13 Vermont 72-61, No. 1 Duke 78-68, No. 2 Kentucky 94-88, 2 OT.

STARS: Junior center Paul Davis has picked his game up in the NCAA tournament, registering double-doubles in the last three games. Sophomore guard Shannon Brown scored 24 in the win over Kentucky, more than double his season average.

INJURIES: Reserve forward Delco Rowley missed the first two games of the tournament with a sprained knee but returned to see limited action against Duke and Kentucky.

COACH: Tom Izzo's 23-6 record in the NCAA tournament is the best among active coaches.

KEY POINT: The Spartans are one of the most balanced teams in the country, with six players averaging between 13.8 and 9.0 points. As always, they are one of the most dominant rebounding teams in the nation, grabbing seven more per game than their opponents. Point guard is a concern, although freshman Drew Neitzel has been consistent since taking over as the starter 14 games ago.

THE SKINNY: Even with May in the middle, North Carolina will want to run, trying to get the score in the high 80s. Michigan State won't come close to slowing it down, but the Spartans will try to make it more of a halfcourt game.

North Carolina (31-4)

ROAD TO THE FINAL FOUR: Beat No. 16 Oakland 96-68, No. 9 Iowa State 92-65, No. 5 Villanova 67-66, No. 6 Wisconsin 88-82.

STARS: Center Sean May has been arguably the best player in college basketball over the last month with 12 double-doubles in his last 14 games, the last three in the NCAA tournament. He is averaging 21.5 points and 11.8 rebounds in the tournament while shooting 67.3 percent from the field and 80 percent from the free-throw line. Point guard Raymond Felton has 27 assists in the tournament.

INJURIES: Senior forward Jawad Williams has been bothered by a hip injury since the quarterfinals of the Atlantic Coast Conference tournament but has played throughout the NCAA tournament.

COACH: Roy Williams is making his fifth appearance in the Final Four, the first with his alma mater. He led Kansas to the Final Four in 1991, 1993, 2002 and 2003, losing in the championship game the first and last times. He has experience cutting down the nets, however. Williams was an assistant to Dean Smith when North Carolina won the title in 1982.

KEY POINT: The Tar Heels lead the nation in scoring at 88.4 points per game and shoot 49.9 percent from the field and 40.2 percent from the three-point line. Defense has been a concern during the tournament; Wisconsin scored 16 points over its season average in the regional final.

THE PICK: Felton controls the game on both ends as the Tar Heels win 88-80.

Associated Press