Hubert Davis reveals what it means to deliver Coach K's final loss

Hubert Davis has turned North Carolina around from a fringe top-25 basketball team to a Final Four-level club. His historic rookie coaching season added another chapter to its book when his squad defeated the Duke Blue Devils 81-77 in the national semifinals Saturday night, effectively ending Mike Krzyzewski’s career in the process.

“Again, that’s something that I’ve never thought about and would never think about,” Davis said about sending Coach K home for the final time. “All I’m thinking about are these kids, these players. And I told them how happy I am that I get a front-row seat for them to go through this season and these experiences. It’s a blessing for me. It’s a privilege. It’s an honor.

“Those are the things that I’m thinking about. Coach K is unbelievable. And that team is the best team so far that we have played. And we just happened to make some more plays tonight.”

While the national attention over the next 24 hours will be centered around Krzyzewski’s career coming to a close, but Davis and his Tar Heels have to quickly focus on the Kansas Jayhawks and the national championship game Monday night.

“That’s easy,” Davis said when asked how UNC would quickly shift its focus to Kansas. “We’re playing for a national championship. One of the things that these guys have done a really good job at is celebrating a win, but also putting that aside and focusing on the task ahead of us. After we played an unbelievable Baylor team, we were able to set our sights on UCLA. After UCLA, Saint Peter’s, after Marquette.

“These guys have just been fantastic – because I want them to celebrate tonight. I just do. This is a special moment for them. This is a special moment for our program. So I want them to enjoy themselves, and so that’s important.”

For Davis, who spent the last nine seasons in Carolina as an assistant, this run to the Final Four has put the Tar Heels back where they believe they belong. North Carolina had failed to reach 18 wins in each of the past two seasons, and even this year wasn’t considered a contender for the title. But despite entering the tournament as a No. 8 seed, the Tar Heels will have a chance to cut down the nets Monday against the Jayhawks.

Carolina and Kansas will tip off at for 9:20 p.m. ET on Monday for the national championship with TBS carrying the national broadcast.