As far as Atlantic Coast Conference games in the Carrier Dome go, North Carolina State versus Louisville started out as a regression from the mean.

While ACC teams spent January and February chucking shots over Syracuse’s 2-3 zone — with some faring better than others — the Cardinals and Wolfpack shot a combined 42.5 percent from the field in the first half, with Louisville thriving inside and N.C. State from beyond the arc.

And after the next 20 minutes of basketball, it was Louisville’s attack of the rim that propelled the fourth-seeded Cardinals past eighth-seeded N.C. State and into the Elite 8. With the 75-65 win, made possible by a game-high 24 points from Motrezl Harrell and a double-double from Terry Rozier, the Cardinals advance to play the winner of third-seeded Oklahoma and seventh-seeded Michigan State for a trip to the Final Four on Sunday.

After N.C. State and Louisville traded 3s at the end of the first half, Anthony “Cat” Barber — who’s paced the Wolfpack throughout the postseason — broke an 0-for-7 start with back-to-back triples.

But the Cardinals answered Barber’s one-two punch with a 16-2 run spurred by Rozier and heightened pressure on the defensive end. To answer, the Wolfpack worked the ball inside and trailed 47-45 at the under-12 media timeout. Rozier finished with 17 points, 14 rebounds and four assists.

The game stayed on a see-saw from for close to eight minutes, with the teams trading runs and pushing their fan bases into a shouting match across the court. Louisville had trouble against N.C. State’s 2-3 zone — not the first time this season that a zone stalled the Cardinals in the Dome — and the Wolfpack stayed afloat with a mix of looks at the rim and daggers from deep.

Then Anton Gill, a reserve Louisville guard who hadn’t scored since Feb. 28, dropped seven unlikely points before a three-point play from Rozier capped a quick Cardinals spurt heading into a timeout with 3:05 to play.

At that point, Louisville held an eight-point lead that N.C. State couldn’t overcome.

The Wolfpack’s last gasp for air came on a highlight-reel dunk from Caleb Martin around the one-minute point. And from there, the Cardinals and Rick Pitino coasted to the finish while the rowdy N.C. State fan section put their butts in their seats.

After flopping hard against Syracuse in the Dome in mid-February, it was a balanced offensive effort that led the Cardinals to at least one more game.

Published on March 27, 2015 at 9:59 pm

Contact Jesse: jcdoug01@syr.edu | @dougherty_jesse