They've already exceeded most peoples' expectations. At the beginning of the year, I thought making the Sweet Sixteen would be a reasonable goal. They made that (barely)--and (now) then some.
They say the key to the tournament is "survive and advance." The Purdue and North Carolina State games were clunkers, and the Jayhawks were lucky to win both. That bit of b-ball bile out of their system, they played great today--the closing run was the best three minutes they've played since the first three minutes they played against UNC back in '08.
Tyshawn was back on track and led the team with 22 points. Withey was great inside, and the whole team played excellent second-half defense. UNC was reduced to shooting threes, which is the one basketball talent they're not that good at.
Elijah Johnson, again, played a key role. It was his three-pointer that ignited the final rally. Johnson has tended to show up in a big way when the game is on the line, especially of late.
Sometimes, you just have a team's number. For a long time, KU couldn't beat UCLA to save its life. We could have the better team and somehow psych ourselves out. I'm wondering if KU doesn't have North Carolina's number. Maybe it's too early to say, but Bill Self is 2-0 against Roy Williams.
Photo: Tyshawn hoists the Midwest Regional trophy. KU sports.
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