In one of the most anticipated matchups of the NCAA Tournament so far, North Carolina Tar Heels head coach Roy Williams will battle against his old team in the Kansas Jayhawks as the second round of the NCAA tournament starts to wind down on Sunday night at the Sprint Center in Kansas City.
The Jayhawks are a number one seed in the tournament and are considered by many to be a Final Four favorite, but their former coach will be ready on Sunday for whatever they can bring. Williams has won a national championship while with the Tar Heels, but his team is ranked eighth in the tournament this year and enters the game after losing three times to Duke this season.
Williams was with the team nine years ago and since then both teams have won national championships and the winner of the game on Sunday could potentially win another. Kansas has won 2,100 games in their history after taking down Western Kentucky in the first round on Friday, while North Carolina defeated Villanova to advance. Williams took Kansas to four Final Four appearances and two national title games during his time with the Jayhawks.
North Carolina and Kansas have ties to each other besides the coach after playing 11 times, including in the 1957 national title game that saw the Tar Heels win in three overtimes. The two have played recently as well, with Kansas defeating UNC in 2008 in the Final Four on their way to winning the national championship.
Kansas went 30-5 this season and 14-4 in the Big 12 on their way to winning the conference tournament. The team ranked 24th in scoring with 75 points per game and were 16th in rebounding. The team was 19th in assists with over 15 per game, while the team shot 48 percent from the field to rank 14th in the nation. The team has won 11 of its last 12 games heading into Sunday's contest.
North Carolina went 25-10 this season and 12-6 in the ACC and ranked 14th in scoring with over 77 points per game. The team is ranked 14th in rebounding and is third in assists with over 17 per game. The team is ranked 111th in field goal percentage and is shooting 44 percent from the field.