HOUSTON — North Carolina will compete for its first national title since 2009, and the program’s sixth over all, after defeating Syracuse, 83-66, in the Final Four at NRG Stadium on Saturday night.
The Tar Heels, the only No. 1 seed remaining in the N.C.A.A. men’s basketball tournament, had thumped their four previous opponents by an average of 16 points, and had beaten the Orange twice already this season.
Syracuse, the first No. 10 seed ever to reach the Final Four, could not prolong a miraculous tournament run that included dramatic come-from-behind wins in its previous two games, against Gonzaga and Virginia.