It's home sweet home for Heels

But coach insists it's no advantage

Much has been made of North Carolina's travel schedule during the NCAA Tournament. Or the lack of one. The Tar Heels, seeded No. 1 in the East, played their first- and second-round games last week in Raleigh, N.C., less than 30 minutes from the Tar Heels' campus in Chapel Hill.

At this weekend's East Regional, which starts in Charlotte, N.C., tonight, the Tar Heels are less than a three-hour bus ride from campus and will be playing what is tantamount to a home game.

Advantage Carolina, perhaps.

But it's not that big a deal to Tar Heels coach Roy Williams.

"You guys think it's a heck of a lot bigger advantage than I do," said Williams, whose team will face No. 4 seed Washington State in the opener before No. 2 Tennessee and No. 3 Louisville meet. "In 2003, we played in Anaheim and we ended up beating Duke and Arizona. And Arizona and California - those states are fairly close together - it was a huge pro-Arizona crowd, and we won the game because we played better on that day. Everybody told us in '95 [when Williams was coaching at Kansas], 'Gosh, Coach, you've got those first two games to get to Kansas City. Well, we got to Kansas City and Virginia beat our tails.

"I don't believe that crap. You've got to play on game day."

Cal fires Braun

California fired basketball coach Ben Braun following another disappointing season in which the Golden Bears missed the NCAA Tournament.

Braun spent 12 years at Cal with a 219-154 record and made the tournament five times. But the Bears went to the NCAA Tournament only once in his final five seasons, leading to the decision by athletic director Sandy Barbour.

"This was an extremely difficult decision that was undertaken with great care and diligence," Barbour said. "However, in the final analysis, I have determined that it is time for Cal to seek new leadership in our men's basketball program. Competing for conference championships and a place in the NCAA Tournament are goals and expectations that are embraced at Cal."

Cal finished in ninth place in the Pac-10, going 17-16 overall and 6-12 in the conference.

The Bears were knocked out of the NIT in the second round by Ohio State Monday.

Names that have already surfaced include TV analyst and former UCLA coach Steve Lavin, former Golden State Warriors and Sacramento Kings coach Eric Musselman, and Saint Mary's coach Randy Bennett.

A free ride

One of Davidson College's famous perks is the free laundry service for students. Now the school is adding another freebie: watching the Wildcats play in the NCAA Tournament's Round of 16. The school's board of trustees set up a fund to pay for any student wishing to travel from North Carolina to Detroit to see Davidson play Wisconsin in the Midwest Regional semifinals. Students will get free bus transportation, two nights lodging, and a ticket to Friday's game.

BC at the regional

Boston College has a presence at the East Regional, even though the Eagles' season ended with a loss to Clemson two weeks ago in the Atlantic Coast Conference title game. A contingent of BC officials is in Charlotte to study the regional's operations. Why? Boston College will host next year's East Regional at TD Banknorth Garden . . . Tennessee is 0-4 in regional semifinals and senior guard Chris Lofton is nursing a sore right ankle. Volunteer coach Bruce Pearl said there is no question that Lofton will be ready to play, however. "If, according to our trainers, we needed him to play on Tuesday, he would have played Tuesday," said Pearl . . . Louisville is in the Sweet 16 for the 16th time. Only four schools - North Carolina (22), Kentucky (20), Duke (19), and UCLA (17) have appeared more.

Ohio St., Miss. advance

Kosta Koufos scored 21 points and Jamar Butler added 12 in Ohio State's 74-63 victory over Dayton (23-11) in an NIT quarterfinal in Columbus, Ohio. In the semifinals at New York's Madison Square Garden Tuesday night, the Buckeyes (22-13) will face Mississippi (24-10), an 81-72 winner over Virginia Tech (21-14) in Blacksburg, Va. Chris Warren scored 5 of his 22 points during a 9-0 second-half run for Mississippi.

Martin is tabbed

Missouri State has hired Purdue associate coach Cuonzo Martin as its basketball coach. Martin, 36, replaces Barry Hinson, who was fired March 9 after failing to take Missouri State to the NCAA Tournament in nine seasons. Martin was a standout player at Purdue from 1991-95, then played briefly in the NBA for Milwaukee and Vancouver . . . Kevin O'Neill said he expects to return to Lute Olson's Arizona staff and succeed the Hall of Famer when he retires . . . Alabama forward Richard Hendrix has decided to enter the NBA draft, but is leaving the door open to return for his senior season. Hendrix's averages of 17.8 points and 10.1 rebounds this season led the Crimson Tide.

Olson honored

Amherst College senior Andrew Olson was named the 2008 National Player of the Year by the National Association of Basketball Coaches. The award is the highest honor for a Division 3 player. He was also named to the D3hoops.com All-America first team. Olson and his classmates amassed a four-year record of 111-12. He has scored 1,238 points in his career and holds many assists records at the school.

Material from the Associated Press was used in this report.