North Carolina Wins Behind Stackhouse : Southeast: He has 18 points, 12 rebounds and six assists in 74-61 victory over Kentucky.

Jerry Stackhouse hadn’t smiled for days, and even when North Carolina clinched yet another final four berth Saturday with a 74-61 victory over Kentucky, he was pushing teammates wearing Southeast Regional champion T-shirts toward the locker room.

After scoring 18 points, grabbing 12 rebounds and handing out six assits, Stackhouse sat their surrounded by TV lights and tape recorders and was told he actually had looked mean all week.

“I can smile now,” he said finally, breaking up himself and the group around him.

So can North Carolina, which is headed to the Final Four for the 10th time under Coach Dean Smith. The Tar Heels (28-5) will meet the winner of today’s Midwest Regional final between Virginia and Arkansas next Saturday in Seattle.

“It feels good. I’ve never been there,” said Stackhouse, a sophmore forward and first-team All American. “The other guys who have been to the Final Four can show me the ropes and how to win it.”

They wouldn’t have had the chance without Stackhouse’s impressive performance in a game that already-thin North Carolina was bothered by more nagging injuries and foul trouble to sophomore center Rasheed Wallace.

The Tar heels also wouldn’t have had the chance without top-seeded kentucky (28-5) going through its worst shooting game of the season, making only 21 of 75 shots for 28%.

“Our biggest weakness the whole season had been our perimter game, not many people figured that out--but Coach Smith did,” Kentucky Coach Rick Pitino said. “I believe our players did havea lack of confidence in the second half and the bad shots in the first half led to that.”

Donald Williams, the MVP of North Carolina’s last Final Four trip in 1993, when it wond the title, finished with 18 points, and Wallace, who sat out the last 9:48 of the first half with three fouls, scored 12 points.

Tony Delk scored 19 points to lead the Wildcats, who were seven for 36 from three-point range. The only Kentucky player to shoot better than 50% from the field was Walter McCarty, who was five for nine while scoring 14 points.

“It wasn’t a particularly well played game by either team,” Smith said. “We have been playing shooters tough for some time and especially so when we are without Rasheed and are soft in the middle. We did want them to take the jump shots ad not drive.”

The game plan threw Kentucky off balance, even when it seemed it should have broken the game open with Wallace on the bench after picking up his third foul.

“I wasn’t too concerned,” Wallace said. “I knew I would have to sit down.”

The Tar Heels managed to take a 34-31 halftime lead without Wallace as Stackhouse had 12 points and six rebounds in the first half.

“At halftime, we were up three and didn’t feel we played real well” said North Carolina’s Dante Calabria, who had eight points and six rebounds. “In the second half, we knew we’d play better and did.”

Kentucky was within one point once in the second half, 36-35, and the last time the Wildcats were within four was on Delk’s three point shot that made it 58-54 with 5.51 remaining.

North Carolina’s next two possessions ended with Wallace scoring in assists by Stackhouse, and Kentucky called a timeout.

“We wanted to keep doing the same things we had been doing the same things we had been doing and maybe make one more pass, and Jerry made two great drives and got it to Rasheed once again.” Smith said.

Wallace said: “It’s just basic basketball.”

North Carolina blew the game open by going six for six from the foul line in the last 1:36 and with dunks by Wallace and Williams in the final 18 seconds.

“We’ve won so many games this year in the last five minutes” Smith said. “We have been a very poised team in the last five minutes and we were again today.”

Kentucky came in with an 11-game winning streak and had won it’s three tournament games by an average of 30 points.

“Tonight, I showed up instead of we.” Pitino said. “I don’t understand it and I can’t explain it. I’ll take the blame for this performance because we didn’t play as a team, and now I have to go back and make sure this doesn’t happen again.”