Collins Lifts No. 2 Kansas To 81-79 Overtime Win At No. 11 Kansas State
Jan. 30, 2010
MANHATTAN, Kan. – –
Sherron Collins’ layup with 9.2 seconds left in overtime lifted No. 2 Kansas to an 81-79 victory at No. 11 Kansas State Saturday.
Leading 77-76 in overtime, Kansas called timeout with 16.2 seconds left on the game clock and 11 seconds remaining on the shot clock. Collins received the in-bounds pass and drove the lane, hitting a layup and drawing a foul.
Collins went to the line with KU leading 79-76 and missed the free throw attempt, but Cole Aldrich grabbed the rebound and sent the ball back out where Brady Morningstar was eventually fouled.
Morningstar hit a pair of free throws with 4.3 seconds left to put KU up 81-76. Jacob Pullen hit a three-pointer for KSU at the buzzer for the final score.
The Jayhawks improved to 20-1 overall and 6-0 in Big 12 Conference play, while Kansas State dropped to 17-4 and 4-3. The Jayhawks improved to 31-2 vs. Kansas State since the inception of Big 12 play in 1997 and are 21-1 in Bramlage Coliseum all time.
Aldrich led the Jayhawks with 18 points and 11 rebounds, while Collins scored 12 of his 16 points after halftime. Morningstar added 14 points, while making a number of key plays in the second half and Marcus Morris and Tyshawn Taylor scored 13 and 12 points respectively.
The Jayhawks used a strong inside effort on offense for most of the game with Aldrich and Morris, while focusing on taking away the Wildcats’ backcourt defensively.
Morris added 10 rebounds as he and Aldrich both recorded double-doubles as the Jayhawks scored 36 points in the paint on the night. Meanwhile KU utilized a triangle and two defense, putting defenders on KSU’s leading scorers in Pullen and Denis Clemente.
Pullen managed 22 points after scoring just seven at the break, while Clemente scored 13. The duo hit just 12 of 33 shots combined.
The game was sent to overtime after Kansas State’s Rodney McGruder converted a three-point play with :36 left. KU cleared out on its possession, but Collins lost the ball and the Wildcats’ Dominique Sutton drove the length of the floor before Tyrel Reed knocked the ball loose before Sutton could attempt a shot at the buzzer.
Aldrich and Morris led the way for Kansas in the first half. Aldrich scored eight of KU’s first 12 points, while Morris scored seven straight later in the period. At the break Aldrich had 10 points while Morris had seven points and nine rebounds.
After Kansas State pulled ahead 16-14, Morris scored seven straight points, sandwiching a three-pointer in between two field goals to give the Jayhawks a 22-16 lead with 7:06 remaining.
KSU made just one of eight shots in a short stretch before Pulled drained a shot and a three-pointer on consecutive possessions.
KU led 31-27 before Kansas State scored the final three points of the half as the Jayhawks led 31-30 at the break.
KU’s defense frustrated the Wildcats’ top two scorers in the first 20 minutes. Pullen and Clemente combined to his just four of 15 shots in the first half.
KSU, the nation’s leader in free throws attempted per game at 33, did not go to the line until the 1:35 mark of the first half. The missed attempt resulted in a follow basket for the Wildcats.
Both teams found baskets hard to come by. The Jayhawks worked the ball inside most of the half and scored 20 of their first 31 points in the paint.
The Jayhawks opened the second half on a 9-2 run to lead 40-32 with 17:38 left. KSU responded with a 14-2 run a little later to lead 49-45. Collins then dropped in a long three-pointer and scored on a layup off a steal by Morningstar before Xavier Henry scored to give KU a 52-49 lead with 8:37 left.
The teams battled back and forth before KU scored five straight points to turn a 66-64 deficit into a 69-66 lead with less than two minutes left. That setup McGruder’s three-point play, which were the final points in regulation.
The Jayhawks will play their second straight road game heading to Colorado on Wednesday, Feb. 3. Tipoff is slated for 8 p.m. Central and the game will be televised on ESPN2.
