No. 6 Kansas Tops Colorado 82-78 in Final Conference Trip to Boulder
Jan. 25, 2011
BOULDER, Colo. –
Box Score in PDF Format 
Freshman guard Josh Selby led four Jayhawks in double-figure scoring pouring in 17 points to lead the No. 6 Kansas basketball team to an 82-78 victory at Colorado Tuesday evening in a close contest that came down to the final seconds of the game.
With the win, KU’s 16th straight versus CU, the Jayhawks improved to 19-1 on the season, including 4-1 in Big 12 play. Kansas is now 38-6 following a loss under head coach Bill Self. Colorado dropped to 14-7 overall and 3-3 in conference games while suffering its first loss at home this season.
KU led by as many as eight points in the final minute of play but Colorado battled back to cut its deficit to two points twice in the last 30 seconds.
With just 53 seconds left in the game and in front of CU’s third largest crowd in program history (11,203), junior Tyshawn Taylor sank two free throws to give KU a 78-72 lead. However, the Buffaloes hit a jumper in their next trip down the court. Taylor was then called on back-to-back fouls to give CU a one-and-one opportunity at the free throw line where it proceeded to sink two charity shots to make the score 78-76 with 31 seconds on the clock.
Senior Tyrel Reed was then sent to the line at the 0:23 mark and hit two free throws to make it a two-possession game, 80-76. Colorado countered with a jumper at the top of the key threatening again, but junior Marcus Morris tacked on two free throws with 16.9 seconds on the clock and twin Markieff Morris came up with a huge block on CU’s final shot to help seal the victory.
Marcus Morris contributed 15 points during the game, while Reed and senior Brady Morningstar each added 14, a season high for Morningstar.
Kansas dominated on the boards grabbing 37 boards compared to CU’s 23. Included in KU’s total were 12 offensive rebounds, which resulted in 21 second-chance points for the Jayhawks. Markieff Morris led all players with 11 boards.
Selby’s 15 first-half points aided Kansas to a 43-39 halftime lead. Morningstar also had double-figures after the first 20 minutes pouring in 11 points.
Both teams opened the game shooting 50 percent from the field and relied heavily on three-point baskets. The Jayhawks shot 50 percent (7-for-14) while the Buffaloes hit 6-of-9 (66.7 percent) from beyond the arc and finished the game hitting 9-for-13. CU’s 69.2 percent was the highest three-point percentage by a KU opponent this season.
Back-to-back threes from Morningstar at the 10:28 mark gave Kansas its largest lead of the game at 27-17 but three of Colorado’s next four baskets were also three-point shots to cut the Jayhawks’ lead to 32-28.
With 3:15 left in the first half, a bucket by the Buffs knotted the score 37-37. KU quickly countered as Selby and Morningstar each sank a three in KU’s next two possessions gaining back the advantage at 43-37. CU hit a pair of free throws with just over a minute to go to add two more points before the break.
ESPN College Gameday will come to Lawrence when Kansas hosts Kansas State on Saturday, Jan. 29, which is also the 150th celebration of Kansas Day. Tip is set for 6 p.m.
