UNC Are Champions in Motor City Mismatch

In case you were hiding under a rock, I'll deliver the big news to you: The North Carolina Tar Heels destroyed the upstart Michigan State Spartans on Monday night in the National Championship game.

They left no doubt in anyone's mind that they were the best. They jumped out early and never looked back.

Michigan State had employed a workman-like style to upset two No. 1 seeds (both from the Big East) in impressive fashion. They entered Monday night as the hottest team, on a mission, playing in front of a home crowd, but they left dismantled.

MSU's trademark through the Dance had been hard-nosed defense and patient, pinpoint-accurate offense, but on Monday night, they were beat at their own game. In previous '09 tourney games, had been able to secure the ball on offense, out-rebound and out-hustle their opponents; they'd slowed the game down to a pace they were comfortable with and allowed it to speed up at their choosing.

Until Monday night, MSU had played basketball the way they wanted.

Until Monday night, the Spartans had been able to frustrate guards of opposing teams, but UNC's Ty Lawson was a difference-maker here. He was able to set a Championship Game record with eight steals, and MSU had no answer for him. He controlled the game from beginning to end.

Tyler Hansborough was able to further cement his name in the history of college basketball as he added a Championship added to his list of accomplishments. He is one of five players all-time to not only compile  2000-plus points and 1000-plus rebounds but also walk off the court victorious after his last-ever college game.

He leaves Carolina as a part of the winningest senior class in the school's history, and that's a pretty impressive feat when you think about the names included in the UNC alumni.

Danny Green and Wayne Ellington were knocking down their shots, and Carolina's big men dominated the painted area of the court.

This was, through and through, a dominant Tar Heels team that made it through the adversity of the season's injuries to have their names listed among the elite of college basketball.

Congrats to the North Carolina Tar Heels and their fans. They proved to be the best college basketball had to offer this year.