So patient for 20 years, Kansas had no problem working an extra five
minutes to bring a long-awaited
championship back to the heartland.
Mario Chalmers hit a 3-pointer with 2.1
seconds left in regulation to push the
game into overtime, and the Jayhawks
grinded it out from there for a 75-68
victory Monday night over Memphis in one
of the best title games in recent
memory.
Chalmers' shot pulled Kansas into a
tie after being down nine with 2:12
left. Memphis left the door open by
missing four free throws down the
stretch. And in a game where every point
counted, Derrick Rose's two-point shot
off glass that was initially ruled a 3 -
and correctly overturned - also made a
difference.
Chalmers' 3-pointer was never in
doubt.
``We got the ball in our most clutch
player's hands, and he delivered,''
Kansas coach Bill Self said.
It gave Kansas its first title since
1988, when Danny Manning, now an
assistant coach for the Jayhawks, led
them to an upset of Oklahoma. And the
shot earned Chalmers the most
outstanding player honor.
The most memorable performance in
this one, though, came from Rose, the
Memphis freshman, who completely took
over the game in the second half,
scoring 14 of his team's 16 points
during one stretch to lift the Tigers to
a 60-51 lead with 2:12 left.
But Kansas (37-3) used the strategy
any smart opponent of Memphis' would -
fouling the heck out of one of the
country's worst free-throw-shooting
teams - and when Rose and Chris
Douglas-Roberts made only one of five
over the last 1:12, it left the door
open for KU.
It also proved all the Memphis
critics right - that free-throw shooting
really can cost you games, or a
championship in this case. That was a
theory coach John Calipari scoffed at
during his team's run through the
tournament, almost all his wins
runaways.
Hustling the ball down the court with
10.8 seconds left and no timeouts,
Sherron Collins handed off to Chalmers
at the top of the 3-point line, and
Chalmers took the shot. It hit nothing
but net and tied the score at 63.
Robert Dozier missed a desperation
shot at the buzzer, and Rose went
limping to the bench, favoring his right
leg. Brandon Rush, Darrell Arthur and
Darnell Jackson scored the first six
points of overtime to put Kansas ahead
69-63. Memphis, clearly exhausted,
didn't pull any closer than three the
rest of the way.
Arthur was dominant inside, finishing
with 20 points and 10 rebounds, lots on
dunks and easy lay-ups off lob passes.
Chalmers finished with 18 points. Rush
had 12 and Collins had 11 points, six
assists and did a wonderful job shutting
Rose for the first 28 minutes.
Rose wound up with 18 points in a
game that showed how ready he is for the
NBA. He was 3-for-4 from the line,
however, and that one miss with 10.8
seconds left is what almost certainly
would have sealed the game and given the
Tigers (38-2) their first title.
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