March 14, 2013

Kansas 91, Texas Tech 63 Postgame Notes

March 14, 2013

No. 7/6 KANSAS 91, Texas Tech 63
Postgame Notes
March 14, 2013

KANSAS STARTERS (Career/Season):

Kevin Young (28/28), Ben McLemore (32/32), Elijah Johnson (78/32), Travis Releford (74/32) and Jeff Withey (72/32).

THE KANSAS’ WIN:

Kansas improves to 15-2 in Big 12 Championship quarterfinal games. The Jayhawks are now 3-1 in games played on neutral floors this season. With the victory, Kansas claims its 27th win of the season, marking the seventh-straight season with at least 27 victories. KU is now 63-24 all-time in league tournament play, including 33-8 at the Big 12 Championship. The Jayhawks have reached the semifinals in 15 of the 17 Phillips 66 Big 12 Championships. Kansas is 18-4 all-time at the Sprint Center, including a 4-0 mark this season. Coach Self’s record improves to 296-58 at Kansas and 503-163 overall. KU is now 2,097-811 all-time. Kansas is now 25-4 all-time against Texas Tech and 3-0 against the Red Raiders in Big 12 Championship history.

TEAM NOTES:

KU shot a season-best 66.0 from the field which was also Kansas’ best shooting effort in the Big 12 Championship, topping the 61.4 percent effort against Texas A&M in last season’s quarterfinals. Kansas’ shooting effort was also the best by any team in Big 12 Championship history. It was the 13th game this season where the Jayhawks have shot 50 percent or better. KU’s 91 points were the most in the Big 12 Championship since the 94-69 win over Missouri in 2004. The 28-point victory was the largest margin of victory since the 90-50 win over Texas Tech in the 2002 semifinals. Kansas held Texas Tech scoreless for the first 4:03 of the game. During that stretch, the Red Raiders were 0-for-3 from the field and had three turnovers. KU opened the game with a 15-2 run, over a 6:47 span, as Ben McLemore accounted for 12 of Kansas’ 15 points. Leading 34-25 at the half, Kansas improved its overall record to 24-1 when leading at the half this season. With Kansas’ 13-2 lead at the 14:25 mark in the first half, KU has held a double-digit lead in 25 games this 39.6 percent from the game marking that Kansas has held 208 of its last 216 opponents to under 50 percent shooting. Naadir Tharpe’s three-pointer at the 13:16 mark in the second half marked the fifth three-point make for Kansas in the game, equaling the five threes the Jayhawks made in the two regular season games combined against Texas Tech. With nine threes, it was the 19th time this season Kansas has made five more threes in a game. KU is now 16-2 when making five or more threes this season. KU owned a 27-21 rebounding edge over Texas Tech. In the three meetings, KU owned a combined +16.0 rebounding edge. Kansas has now outrebounded 25 of 32 opponents this season and owns a 23-2 record when grabbing more boards than its foes. Kansas held Texas Tech with a made field goal for a 6:40 stretch during the second half. From the 16:35 mark in the second half until 9:55, Texas Tech was 0-for-3 from the field with five turnovers.

INDIVIDUAL NOTES:

Ben McLemore’s made three-pointer at the 18:04 mark was his first against Texas Tech this season, after shooting a combined 0-for-9 in the two regular-season meetings. With 24 points, McLemore scored in double-digits for a team-high 28th time this season, including four straight. It was also his 10th 20-point scoring game on the year. McLemore became the first Jayhawk to score 20 points in a Big 12 Championship game since Tyshawn Taylor’s 20-point effort against Baylor (March 9, 2012). McLemore’s 24 points were more than his two-game total of 23 against Texas Tech during the regular season. Jamari Traylor posted a career-high seven points, topping his six points against Michigan State on Nov. 13, 2012. With two steals in the game’s first five minutes, Travis Releford has 12 games with multiple steals this season. Releford finished with two steals. Senior Jeff Withey attempted his first field goal at the 2:25 mark of the first half and ended up scoring the last five KU points of the first period. He finished with nine points on 3-for-3 shooting. With his three blocked shots, Withey moved into the No. 2 spot for blocks in a season in KU history with 127 rejections. He also owns the top spot with his 140 blocks last season. With his four threes, McLemore now has 14 threes in his last four games combined. Andrew White III drained a pair of threes for his fourth multiple trey game of the season. Releford led the Jayhawks with five assists which was the eighth time he led KU in assists during a game this season. Rio Adams scored a career-high 11 points for his first career double-digit scoring effort. He shattered his old mark of four points against Richmond on Dec. 18, 2012.