Sat Mar 29 15:48:42 2008

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Tar Heels cling to win over Louisville

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New Orleans, LA (Sports Network) - LaToya Pringle converted a pair of free throws with 26 seconds remaining to help the North Carolina Tar Heels secure a 78-74 win over the Louisville Cardinals in the New Orleans Regional Semifinals of the NCAA Tournament at New Orleans Arena.

Pringle finished with a double-double consisting of 27 points and 11 rebounds for the top-seeded Tar Heels (33-2) who will now confront the winner of the Oklahoma State/LSU battle in the regional finals on Monday night. Also scoring in double figures for UNC were Cetera DeGraffenreid with 13 points, Rashanda McCants 12 and Jessica Breland 11 points in the come-from-behind victory.

Leading the way for the fourth-seeded Cardinals was Angel McCoughtry who tallied a game-high 35 points and ripped down 13 rebounds. Candyce Bingham accounted for 17 points and a game-high 20 boards, followed by Chauntise Wright who dropped in 13 points. Before fouling out, Patrika Barlow handed out a game-high 11 assists and recorded seven steals, but she failed to score a single point.

North Carolina struggled for much of the first half, trailing by as many as 18 points with six and a half minutes to play in the frame. The Heels shot just 34.2 percent from the field in the period, allowing Louisville to post a 46-37 advantage at the break.

In the second half Wright converted a layup for the Cardinals in the opening moments, but from there UNC went on a 16-5 run to knot the score at 53-53 at the 13:49 mark. Louisville then had an issue with field goal shooting, making only 32.4 percent, including a mere 3-of-14 beyond the arc, as North Carolina squeezed out the four-point triumph.

Although the Tar Heels made just 16-of-29 at the free-throw line in the second half, the squad still outscored the Cardinals at the charity stripe overall, 25-6, as they picked up their 16th straight win on the day.

UNC survived 25 turnovers, nine of which were charged to Erlana Larkins who cleared a team-best 12 rebounds, but shot a mere 2-of-12 from the floor.