The North Carolina Tar Heels improved to 5-0 with an 87-62 over the South Carolina Gamecocks in the semifinals of the 2011 Las Vegas Invitational Saturday night at Orleans Arena. This sets up a Saturday battle for third place and a battle for USC, as the Trojans will battle the Gamecocks.
Harrison Barnes led the Tar Heels with 21 points and P.J. Hairston added 19 points. North Carolina shot 44.3% for the game, including eight of 12 from beyond the arc. John Henson scored 16 points and pulled down seven rebounds for the Tar Heels.
R.J. Slawson led a balanced scoring effort for South Carolina with 13 points, one of four Gamecocks in double figures. Malik Cooke and Damien Leonard scored 12, and Anthony Gill scored 10 and grabbed eight rebounds.
North Carolina battles host UNLV in the tournament final on Saturday night at 7:30 p.m. PST on ESPN2.
For more USC basketball news and notes, be sure to read Conquest Chronicles.