No. 7 Texas tops OSU to reach semifinals
KANSAS CITY, Mo. — The only thing that could have hurt No. 7 Texas’ odds of landing a top-two seed in the upcoming NCAA tournament would have been an early exit in this week’s Big 12 men’s basketball tournament.
The second-seeded Longhorns (24-8) quashed that possibility Wednesday night at the T-Mobile center with a 60-47 romp over No. 7 seed Oklahoma State in the quarterfinals. Texas (24-8) will face No. 6 seed TCU on Friday in the semifinals.
Even with versatile super senior forward Timmy Allen (right lower leg injury) declared out about 20 minutes before tip, Texas had little problem dispatching the Cowboys (18-15). Wasn’t exactly a thing of beauty, though.
At one point in the first half, Texas and Oklahoma State combined to miss 16 straight shots. The Cowboys actually managed to outscore the Longhorns 8-1 during that six-plus-minute stretch, with every single point produced via free throw.
Graduate guard Sir’ Jabari Rice, elevated from sixth man to starter in Allen’s absence, snapped the cold spell by attacking the rim and drawing a shooting foul. He hit both free throws, then senior forward Dylan Disu hit a pair of field goals as Texas began to pull away.
Nick Moyle
IOWA STATE 78 NO. 10 BAYLOR 72
Gabe Kalscheur hit six 3-pointers and scored 24 points, helping the Cyclones overcome a spectacular performance by Bears forward Jalen Bridges to secure a win in the tournament quarterfinals.
Jaren Holmes added 17 points for fifth-seeded Iowa State (19-12), which followed up a win over Baylor (22-10) on Saturday by beating them for the fifth time in six conference tournament games.
The Cyclones advanced to play third-ranked Kansas in the semifinal round on Friday night.
NO. 3 KANSAS 78 WEST VIRGINIA 61
Playing without ailing coach Bill Self, the Jayhawks got a big offensive performances from Jalen Wilson and Dajuan Harris Jr. along with some stingy defense to pull away from the Mountaineers in the quarterfinals.
Wilson had 22 points and 11 rebounds and Harris had 13 points with eight assists for topseeded Kansas (26-6).
But the Jayhawks will be without Self for the remainder of the tournament after he went to the emergency room Wednesday night for what doctors called “a standard procedure.”
NO. 22 TCU 80
NO. 12 KANSAS STATE 67
Mike Miles and Chuck O’Bannon scored 22 points apiece as the Horned Frogs rode the hot shooting of their two guards to a victory over the Wildcats to reach the semifinals.
JaKobe Coles added 8 points for sixth-seeded TCU (21-11), which had been beaten by Kansas State in four of the past five tournaments but will now play for a spot in the title game.