GLENDALE, Ariz. — Kennedy Meeks had just powered his way to another offensive rebound midway through the second half when Jordan Bell reached in to hack the North Carolina forward before Meeks could use his muscular hands for another easy putback.
As players milled about to await the resulting free throws, Bell gestured with his arm in frustration and muttered something to two of his Oregon teammates, presumably about not letting the Tar Heels stomp their way to so much success around the basket.
They apparently didn’t listen.
Meeks bulled his way to a far more meaningful rebound with only four seconds left after a madcap sequence in which four consecutive missed free throws by North Carolina led to two offensive rebounds in the game’s final moments. Meeks threw the ball to teammate Theo Pinson, who dribbled as he retreated toward halfcourt before hurling the ball into the air in triumph at the buzzer.
The Ducks quacked under the might of the moment and a more burly counterpart Saturday evening, falling to North Carolina, 77-76, in an NCAA tournament semifinal at University of Phoenix Stadium.
“I wish I had something I could say to make them feel better,” said Oregon Coach Dana Altman, whose team had rallied from nine points down in the final minutes. “It hurts.”
The Tar Heels (32-7) advanced to play Gonzaga in the championship game here Monday after their missed free throws made Roy Williams want to do something typically colorful.
“Oh, jump off a building,” Williams said of his thought process.
There were plenty of opportunities in the final minutes, some sloppy play by the Tar Heels letting the Ducks stay within range of pulling out an improbable comeback. But Oregon continually missed three-pointers and misfired on other chances, Dylan Ennis unable to connect with Bell while throwing an errant alley-oop pass.
Oregon did cut its deficit to 77-74 with 42 seconds left after Tyler Dorsey’s three-pointer hit the front or the rim, rolled toward the back of the rim before reversing course and dropping through the net. The Ducks (33-6) had an opportunity to tie the score after Pinson missed a jumper during a disjointed possession for North Carolina.
Oregon never got off a shot that could tie the score, however. Ennis hurled a pass underneath the basket to Keith Smith for a layup with six seconds left. The Ducks fouled Meeks on the inbounds pass and he missed both free throws, but Pinson tapped the second miss back out to teammate Joel Berry II.
Berry was fouled with four seconds left and did the almost unthinkable, missing both of his free throws. But Meeks snagged the rebound amid a scrum of players before finding Pinson, and that was the ballgame. Ennis could only crouch at midcourt in disgust.
“If it wasn’t for Kennedy Meeks, we wouldn’t have been in the basketball game,” Williams said. “To miss those two free throws, it just killed him, but he got the last rebound as well.
“He was sensational until the two free throws. But we’re still playing.”
Meanwhile, the title drought continues for the Pac-12 Conference, which has featured a national champion since Arizona in 1997 or a team make the final game of the season since UCLA in 2006. Oregon was trying to get back to the championship game for the first time since 1939, when it won the inaugural NCAA tournament.
Meeks finished with 25 points and grabbed eight of his 14 rebounds on the offensive end. Jackson added 22 points for the Tar Heels, who won despite shooting 36.8 percent to Oregon’s 37.9 percent.
Dorsey nearly went from Mr. March to Mr. April, scoring 21 points to log his eighth consecutive game with at least 20 points. Ennis added 18 points and Bell finished with 13 points and 16 rebounds. It wasn’t enough.
The Ducks appeared to be in good position late in the first half even after Bell landed awkwardly while going for a rebound and hobbled off the court to sit out for a few minutes. Ennis made back-to-back corner three-pointers to give his team a 30-22 lead before the Tar Heels closed the half with a 17-6 flourish, taking a 39-36 lead into the locker room.
North Carolina’s dominance around the basket in the final moments proved even more pivotal.
“The first one got tipped out, they got it,” Oregon guard Casey Benson said of the Tar Heels’ late rebounds. “The second one, they got it again. I wish I could have gone up and gotten it. That was on me.”
