ST. LOUIS - They are circling in opposite spheres this week, at least so far.

Roy Williams seeks the only win he needs to make his resume complete. Rick Pitino goes for another national title to solidify his standing among the greats.

The two Final Four coaches are on opposite sides of the bracket in Saturday's semifinals.

To set up a meeting for the championship, Pitino must figure a way to oust Bruce Weber, the AP coach of the year, and Illinois (36-1), without question the best team in the country since December.

Williams must defeat Tom Izzo, one of the best coaches in modern tournament history, and Michigan State (26-6), a team here for the fourth time in the last seven years.

"It's just been the same coach Williams," North Carolina forward Jawad Williams said of the way his coach has approached this, his latest chase for the title. "If you ask me, not much has changed."

Roy Williams has parsed his way through these issues at each of his four previous Final Fours, all with Kansas. The quest for a championship, he says, does not keep him up at night. A title won't make him happier. And it most certainly won't make him a better coach.

"If we do happen to get lucky one year and win one, I'm not going to quit the next day," Williams said. "It's not going to change my life, either."

Or so he says.

Memorable are the scenes of him crying after his championship-game loss to Syracuse in what turned out to be his last game with Kansas in 2003 ... and after almost all the losses that have terminated his previous 16 seasons shy of the ultimate goal.

The pain wasn't so much in the losing, he insisted, but rather in saying goodbye to those who had played their last college game.

Now, with the Tar Heels (31-4) close again, people wonder if anything has changed.

"The pressure, I honestly don't feel the pressure from anybody except what I put on myself," Williams said.

On the other side of the bracket is Pitino, who fashioned a turnaround at Louisville (33-4) and became the first coach to take three programs to the Final Four.

He has already won his championship, in 1996 with Kentucky. This is his fifth trip to the Final Four and, he insists, by far the most enjoyable.

"This Final Four, to me, has been the most fun because I'm 52, and I just look at the guys and how happy they are, how the fans are so happy," Pitino said. "You just witness the elation of all the people around you, friends and family."

Like Williams, Pitino has learned over the years that life is about more than just basketball.

His first trip to the Final Four, in 1987 with Providence, was marred by the death of his infant son.

"A dark time and a sad time for us," Pitino called it.

He has been to the NBA and back, been castigated for joining Louisville after coaching at archrival Kentucky.

"Traitor Rick," they called him.

In 2001, he lost his brother-in-law, one of his best friends, in the World Trade Center terrorist attacks. His mother died last December.

Now, Pitino says, it's easy to see that "basketball is just a meaningful distraction for me, for life."

The coach he faces Saturday, Weber, also has had perspective thrust upon him this year. His mother's death three weeks ago has been a uniting theme for his team, his family, all the Illini fans.

"One of the last times I talked to my mom ... she said, `I see you on the TV all the time. It's amazing. I'm just in awe of people calling me,' " Weber said. "She said it's like a fairy tale.

"We've had a fairy-tale season. Now we've got to finish with the last chapter."

Whether they'll admit it or not, Williams and Pitino would like to write that same ending, too.