Pitino's crew in top-notch form heading into UNC showdown

CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- Andre McGee had the ball near halfcourt and he was dribbling it close to the ground. Really close the ground. Then he started spinning. For no reason. He just started spinning and grinning and he was still bouncing the ball, and he seemed happy and joyful and then, all of a sudden, serious.

Reserve Earl Clark leads the Cardinals with 17 points and 12 rebounds. (US Presswire)

Like a football player.

Right at the buzzer.

But it didn't seem like a celebratory spike. Honestly, it wasn't that kind of spike. It seemed more like a statement, like a dare, like a non-verbal message that, if translated, would sound something like, "OK, that's over. Who wants some of this now?"

"The Sweet 16 was sweet," Louisville wing Terrence Williams said. "Everybody enjoyed that."

Well, not everybody.

"We struggled all night long," Tennessee coach Bruce Pearl said. "Louisville deserves a great deal of credit for that."

From those two quotes you can probably guess Thursday's outcome, right?

Louisville 79.
Tennessee 60.

So the Cards have advanced to the East Region final.

They'll play North Carolina on Saturday here at the Charlotte Bobcats Arena. It'll be a road game, if not officially then at least in terms of atmosphere. But at this point it's difficult to imagine Rick Pitino's team being bothered by a hostile crowd or anything else, really, because it is playing as well as it has played all season and better than most anybody else.

Seriously, do you realize what the Cards just did?