Lawson Returns and Leads Tarheels (1) Over LSU (8)

North Carolina will move on to the third round of the tournament, the Sweet Sixteen, and will play the winner of Western Kentucky and Gonzaga later Saturday evening.

ACC player of the year and Tarheel Ty Lawson (pictured) returned, after missing three games with a jammed big toe. Lawson scored 21 of his 23 points after halftime.

The game was tight until only eight minutes were left in the second half, when UNC managed to pull away from LSU.

Wayne Ellington scored 23 points to tie Lawson in leading the Tar Heels (30-4) in scoring. UNC ran off 11 straight points in the second half to take control and move on to next week’s regional semifinals in Memphis.

Marcus Thornton led the LSU Tigers (27-8) with 25 points.