"Man, Sean was absolutely just killing those guys," North Carolina guard Melvin Scott said. "I wish we could have gotten him the ball 12 extra times and gotten him 50."
Even when Illinois surrounded him with double teams, May couldn't be stopped. He threw a nifty crosscourt pass to set up a 3 by Williams to give North Carolina a 60-53 lead, then May had a chance for a three-point play on the next possession after making a jumper over Ingram.
Missing the free throw didn't slow him down. May converted 3-of-4 at the line to make it 65-55 before adding his final points on those free throws to set up the finish.
"They play really good defense, but they extend so much, it leaves a wide gap," May said. "Our guards did a great job getting me the ball, and they just kept feeding me."
He also had a hand in helping the Tar Heels take the lead for good, getting good position alongside teammate Marvin Williams when Rashad McCants missed a reverse layup. May and Williams both jumped for the tip, but Williams was credited with it, and the Illini couldn't recover.
"You know, it's not supposed to be easy," May said. "We have to tip our hats to them. They played well, but we didn't give up. We wanted to win."
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