“When I got there, I thought they were really good kids,” Williams said. “But they had some turmoil, and during that turmoil I think it’s human nature to try to grab onto something that you can be a little more successful with. A lot of times in basketball, that’s an individual thing. So the primary focus for us was to be focused on that name on the front of the jersey, not the name on the back.”

North Carolina’s players are well aware of their coach’s record — and the one thing that’s missing from his resume.

“It’s something I think about at night,” center Sean May said. “Coach has been through a lot. I respect everything that he’s done. I want to be on that team when 20 years from now ... when he’s getting ready to retire, thinking about the things he’s done in his career, I want to be on that 2005 team that he thanks for finally getting him that first championship.”

But this is not an individual quest by any means. The North Carolina seniors — Jawad Williams, Jackie Manuel and Melvin Scott — began their careers with that 20-loss season and could go out with a championship.

“I don’t think we’re trying to win a championship for coach Williams — we’re trying to win a championship for ourselves,” Jawad Williams said. “It’s something we haven’t done, either. Hopefully, we can meet halfway and get this thing done together. “

NCAA TOURNAMENT A look at the men guiding teams in St. Louis

Standing in the way: a Michigan State team that made a surprising run through the regionals, becoming the first school ever to beat Duke and Kentucky in the same NCAA tournament. With two more wins, the Spartans would join UCLA, Kentucky, Indiana, North Carolina and Duke as the only teams with at least three national titles.

Not a shabby list.

Then there’s Izzo, who could claim a special place in the profession as a two-time champion. Already, he’s just the second coach in NCAA history to reach four Final Fours in his first decade.

“Getting to this Final Four definitely puts him in elite company,” senior guard Chris Hill said. “Winning a national championship would put him with a very select few that have won more than one. We know how important that is to him. It would mean as much to us to win one for him as it would be to win one for us.

“I think he knows that.”