HOUSTON (AP) – Some things to watch for Saturday when Oklahoma meets Villanova and North Carolina faces Syracuse in the national semifinals at NRG Stadium:
MEET AGAIN: Rematches are far from rare in the Final Four but these four teams have three games between them this season.
Oklahoma blitzed Villanova 78-55 in Hawaii on Dec. 7, and as is expected on Saturday, 3-pointers were the difference.
The Sooners, led by Isaiah Cousins’ 4-for-4 effort, went 14 of 26 while Villanova, with Kris Jenkins and Jalen Brunson both going 0-for-5, was 4 of 32 from beyond the arc.
North Carolina and Syracuse, both members of the Atlantic Coast Conference, faced each other in a home-and-home series and the Tar Heels swept the Orange.