WSU faces daunting task vs. Tar Heels

CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- Washington State got beat bad Wednesday by North Carolina, absolutely destroyed.

Both basketball teams showed up at Charlotte Bobcats Arena for their mandatory public practices as required by the NCAA Tournament, and the Cougars were treated to mostly 50 minutes of silence from a few thousand fans, with the exception of that lone Southern voice that bellowed disparagingly, "Pack your lunch!"

Two hours later, the top-seeded Tar Heels wandered onto the floor and a revival meeting broke out that would have made the most persuasive televangelist proud.

With the NBA arena maybe two-thirds full now, people laughed, chanted, screamed and reached out to Roy Williams, and the tanned and smiling North Carolina coach reached right back, moving up and down the court chatting up or nodding to anyone who called to him, mesmerizing them.

When this sermon, uh, session, was over, Tar Heels fans stood and gave their basketball heroes a rousing standing ovation while the coaches and players circled the floor, waving and pointing in return before disappearing out a tunnel.

In terms of having an emotional edge for Thursday's East Region semifinal -- not even counting the obvious five-star talent differential -- score one in a huge way for the men in powder blue.

This isn't Tobacco Road, it's a four-lane unfiltered highway seemingly headed in one direction.

"It's kind of funny seeing all that Carolina blue out there," WSU forward Robbie Cowgill said, referring to his workout session, not the other one that increased in fans tenfold. "It's definitely a tremendous challenge. From an outside perspective, you could say the cards are stacked against us.

"We're probably the only people who believe in this group, who are the only ones who think we have a chance."

When these teams meet for the first time at 4:27 p.m., fourth-seeded Washington State (26-8) will be as hard-pressed in dealing with the randy atmosphere as it is trying to stop Tyler Hansbrough and Co. (34-2).

Meantime, all the Cougars can do is put on a brave face and hope their way of doing business, of playing defense and making first-time opponents more uncomfortable than ever (see Notre Dame and Winthrop, combined 81 points last week), can give them a fighting chance for a postseason miracle.

The merging of basketball styles is about as smooth as a jet flying into a swirling thunderstorm. North Carolina is second in the country in scoring at 89.9 points per game, the Cougars second nationally in points permitted at 56.1.

Williams has never been a big fan of the conservatism employed by WSU that was first introduced to the Pac-10 program by former coach Dick Bennett and has been kept in place by his son and successor, Tony Bennett. At the 2000 Final Four, Williams, then Kansas coach, railed against it after watching the elder Bennett's Wisconsin team and Michigan State slug it out to a 19-17 first half.

Reminded about his past preferences and declarations, the North Carolina coach wasn't backing off any as he prepared to meet the Cougars.

"Don't play games," Williams said. "The number of people who enjoy seeing 19-18 (sic) is not as many as the number of people who like to see 61-60. If you were to take a poll, you would pick 61-60. So I made a truthful statement."

Said Hansbrough, comparing the Cougars to the ACC's Boston College, "It's definitely not our style."

The Cougars are doing their best to fit in, shrugging off the disparities in place while showing mild annoyance with their critics.

"People say it's boring, but we don't have to apologize for getting back and playing good defense," WSU guard Derrick Low said. "That's what we have to do to win. It's not for you. It's what we do."

Said fellow backcourt player Kyle Weaver: "Hopefully they've seen our games. They won't be too shocked or nervous to play us. They probably don't know where Washington State is."

If these guys are up to the task, they'll be in Carolina's face, creating turnovers, boring everyone to death with patience.

Tony Bennett is quick to point out his Cougars have played a top-ranked team before, gaining that distinction when they met UCLA in Los Angeles 15 months ago and begrudgingly accepted a 55-52 defeat, and said they won't be in awe.

"That's what a major conference does for you, going into a Pauley Pavilion or a Hec Edmundson Pavilion," the WSU coach said. "We played a No. 1 team in UCLA. You have to play it possession by possession and block out all that other stuff."

Just two steps away from the Final Four, the Cougars say another emotion will come into play, overriding any fear of the big stage -- a sense of urgency. North Carolina routinely competes at this level, this late in the season. WSU does not. Weaver, Low and Cowgill got this team here, and as seniors won't have another opportunity. Those guys won't be coming back.

"We understand we have something special," guard Taylor Rochestie said. "We're going to make the most of this team. We don't know if we're going to come back to the tournament next year. Nothing is guaranteed."

That's not exactly true. A mostly blue-shirted crowd will fill the arena, expecting nothing but victory from their gilded team, and that's a promise.