Jayhawks’ gritty effort nets Sweet 16 berth
FORT WORTH — Two blueblood programs rolled into Dickies Arena out of the eight teams invited to the regional, and two blue bloods strolled out still swinging in the NCAA Tournament.
Top-seeded Kansas defeated ninth-seeded Creighton 79-72 on Saturday to advance to its first Sweet 16 since 2018. Earlier in Dickies Arena longtime blueblood but No. 8 seed North Carolina toppled top-seeded Baylor 93-86 in overtime to advance to its first Sweet 16 since 2019.
The Jayhawks, who led nearly the entire second half, clutched a 73-72 lead with 1:44 remaining before busting the contest open by scoring the final six points on a dunk by Ochai Agbaji following his steal, and two free throws each by Remy Martin and Jalen Wilson.
“You’ve got to win games when it’s kind of ugly,” Kansas coach Bill Self said of the Jayhawks’ unglamorous approach to a secondround victory. “I don’t know that we could have won this game two months ago, playing this way. We defended and rebounded, for the most part, most of (the game).
“And then we had some guys step up and make some big free throws, and some plays late.”
While the Jayhawks didn’t exactly sculpt a masterpiece in their meticulous victory, their performance at the free throw line was a work of art. Kansas made 19 of 20 free throws with Wilson and Martin making all four of their attempts. Agbaji had the lone miss, and he still made 80 percent of his free throws (4-of-5).
“The little things down the stretch,” Martin said of coming up big in clutch situations, “are magnified.”
Martin led the Jayhawks with 20 points. Kansas (30-6) only lost consecutive games once this season: late in February at Baylor and early in March at TCU.
To that end the Jayhawks’ last
loss was in Fort Worth, but they won two in Cowtown when it counts most. Kansas manhandled Southwestern Athletic Conference tournament champion Texas Southern 83-56 on Thursday in the first round of the NCAA Tournament.
“This has been a team that has scored easier than we’ve actually defended,” Self said of why he believed Kansas might not have won the Creighton showdown earlier in the season. “We didn’t defend great (against the Bluejays), don’t get me wrong, they still got over 70. But when the offense was bad, we defended and did some toughness things, especially in lategame possessions, which I thought were very positive.
“They played us different than anybody’s played us all year long
defensively, and we never really figured it out. But we had enough guys make shots and make enough plays that we were able to overcome it.”
The defensive idea, Creighton coach Greg McDermott said, was to “plug up the lane and make some of those driving lanes and passing lanes a little more difficult.”
“Because of the shortness of our bench, we couldn’t have (the Jayhawks) have quick possessions where they just … did whatever they want,” McDermott said. “Then it becomes a track meet. And the team with more players at their disposal was probably going to win a track meet.
“We tried to plug some things up and do something unconventional. When you’re playing a
team as good as Kansas and you’re shorthanded … you have to take some desperate measures sometimes.”
For his part Self, who turns 60 in December, has perhaps entertained some desperate measures along the way to keep Kansas relevant this time of year, and in his 19th season coaching the Jayhawks.
For all their success in Big 12 regular season play and the league tournament — 25 combined conference titles under the native Oklahoman — the Jayhawks have fizzled more than they would care for in mid-March.
Don’t tell that to McDermott, whose Bluejays (23-12) earned an NCAA berth as an at-large entrant out of the Big East and beat San Diego State in overtime in the first round of the NCAA Tournament.
“(We) fought one of the best programs in college basketball tooth and nail for 40 minutes,” McDermott said of Kansas. “And we got the ball inside of two minutes with a chance to take the lead. That’s all you can ask for. … We lost to a championship program today — we certainly have nothing to be ashamed of.”
Kansas has won three national titles overall and one under Self: In 2008 in San Antonio’s Alamodome. The Jayhawks lost the 2012 title game to fellow blue blood Kentucky.
Kansas will face Providence in the Sweet 16 in the Midwest Regional in Chicago for the chance to advance to its first Elite Eight since 2018, when the Jayhawks also made their third Final Four under Self.
“We’re still yet to be at our best,” Self insisted. “We’ve got another gear — another step — we can take.”