A prevailing question hovered over the program: Without All-America guards Ivory Latta and Camille Little, how far would the Tar Heels -- participants in back-to-back Final Fours -- fall off?

At first, UNC senior Erlana Larkins responded by carrying other's doubts on the court as motivation, trying with every rebound to send the message, as she later said, "If you can't see how good we are, you need to take the blinders off."

Then, about 15 games into the season, she said the team's desire to convince others disappeared, replaced by the desire to convince themselves.

Today at noon, the No. 1-seeded Heels (30-2) face No. 16 seed Bucknell (16-15) in the first round of the NCAA Tournament. When they take the floor at Ted Constant Convocation Center, as ESPN's camera's roll, they hope to broadcast the image of a team in tune with its soul.

"We're past that stage of trying to prove stuff to people," Larkins said. "At some point during the season, we probably did go out to play for others because you get tired of people saying, 'You're not as good.'

"We're not playing for others anymore. The motivation is ourselves, to go out on a good note. We've been disappointed the past two years."

Last season, the Heels reached the Final Four before losing to defending champion Tennessee in the semifinals 56-50. In 2006, the Heels also reached the Final Four, losing to eventual champion Maryland in the semifinals 81-70.

As the 2008 NCAA Tournament opens, the Heels have again targeted the Final Four in Tampa, Fla., on April 6 and 8 as a main objective, though players say this year's team has lost some of the air of invincibility that shrouded past teams as they worked toward claiming the program's second national championship.

UNC coach Sylvia Hatchell said her team has balance and is low-maintenance, even as winners of the ACC's regular-season and tournament titles, finishing league play undefeated (14-0) for the first time in school history.

With five players scoring in double figures, the second-ranked Heels lead the nation in scoring (87.9) and have won 21 of their past 22 contests, including 13 in a row.

North Carolina's only losses this season came on the road at top-ranked Connecticut and third-ranked Tennessee.

"This is a very business-minded team," Hatchell said. "They don't get real, real hyped up. They want to win -- they're very competitive -- but they keep things in perspective."

Larkins said during the past two Final Four runs, the Heels played at times like they were untouchable, overconfident with a lead or trailing. They held the mind-set, she said, that they could always come back.

That overconfidence led to letdowns, Larkins said, particularly against Tennessee in the semifinals last season where they led by 12 points in the second half but became unnerved by the Lady Vols in the second half.

"This year's team, we don't have that," she said. "We know we're good, and we're more humble about it."

UNC senior forward LaToya Pringle, whose calm demeanor serves as just one locker room example, said her team's belief in its depth underscores the humble attitude.

"There's nobody on this team that feels they have to play the hero," she said, "if we get down, that they have to take the shot to try to bring us back by themselves."

The Tar Heels' practice of shutting out the outside world became increasingly tougher last week as the NCAA Tournament selection committee placed them in the New Orleans Regional, where if the seeds were to hold they could face No. 4 seed Louisville in the round of 16 and No. 2 seed LSU in the round of 16 at New Orleans Arena.

Hatchell, whose teams have had to face lower-seeded teams at or near their homecourt during three of the past five seasons, said she will not address the team's regional placement during the tournament.

Prior to Selection Monday, Hatchell said she expected the worst considering her team has had to face Vanderbilt at home in 2006, Arizona State in 2005 and Colorado in 2003.

Instead of lambasting the committee, UNC junior Rashanda McCants thanked them.

"We play better when there's good competition in the field," she said. "It makes us challenge ourselves and play even more as a team. And trust each other more. We vibe off that."

UNC junior Heather Claytor said being underestimated and "unfairly" placed in the tournament have united the team more than ever. Plus, the lower expectations have allowed them to relax.

"You can't let other people talk you down," she said. "We just have to go out and prove ourselves. That's what we've been trying to do all year."

Added Claytor: "They can't keep talking bad about you, if you keep winning."