The game is tied at halftime, but Kansas goes on a big run to start the second half. 0:50
Bill Self never ruled out the possibility of his team reaching the Final Four.
When Kansas was ranked No. 1 in the final month of the season in 2020, he didn't feel as sure. The Jayhawks version looked elite at times, like when it thrashed the defending national champ. When the Jayhawks lost to Kentucky by 18 at home on January 29, they looked vulnerable.
The Jayhawks showed both sides of themselves in their game against Miami. Fortunately for Self and the top-seeded Jayhawks, their best emerged at the right time, as they used a dominant second half to submerge Miami 76-50 at the United Center. The Jayhawks are going to the Final Four for the fourth time under Self and will face the winner of Saturday's game between Kentucky and Syracuse.
The 26 point win was the largest in the Elite Eight since 1992.
Self, who improved to 4-7 in Elite Eight play and 4-5 at Kansas, said that they could play the second half. So proud of them and proud of our program.
The Kansas win was the largest among teams that had trailed at halftime in NCAA tournament games. After trailing by one point at halftime, Princeton defeated VMI by 26 points in the first round in 1964. The 10th-seeded Hurricanes scored 31 points in the second half of the season, and their 15 second-half points marked a season low.
Self doesn't consider himself a gifted halftime speaker, but he challenged his team and noted how K.J. Adams defense against Miami star Kameron McGusty on the final possession of the first half needed to be repeated for a comeback.
All-American guard Ochai Agbaji, who led Kansas with 18 points on 8-of-12 shooting, said that the Jayhawks had a lot of opportunities to score in the first half. It was going to come off at some point in the second half. Keep guarding and focus on guarding better. The offense is going to come.
The offense came in spurts. The forward scored five points in the first half. Christian Braun hit the first 3-pointer of the game for Kansas, which gave the team the lead for good at 43-40.
In the first half, Kansas missed all five of its 3-point attempts.
Braun said they needed some energy and that they were flat in the first half. The shot and the dunk helped the team get going.
Miami, which made more than half of its shots in the first half, struggled with selection and execution, and never got its trademark transition offense going. McGusty was held to four points in the second half, thanks to the Kansas defense. In the Sweet 16 win over Iowa State, Sam Waardenburg and Jordan Miller combined for 29 points and 12 rebounds, but they had only seven points against Kansas.
The Kansas size advantage was exploited by both of them.
Jim Larra said "Don't play the score, play the game, but we started playing the score." I think that made people anxious. We started to rush it even more because we didn't want to settle down and execute better. That led to a lot of Kansas run-outs and fouls.
The Arizona State transfer had nine points and six boards for the Jayhawks, who advanced to the Sweet 16. Kansas fans chanted his name after he was named Most Outstanding Player for the Midwest Region.
We shared the Big 12 title without having the chance to play him. Our guys have more of a swagger now that they know what Remy can do.
The Midwest Region was won by Kansas for the 13th time. The Jayhawks will return to campus before heading to New Orleans.
Braun said they would be back.
Self said that they were not going to Mass on the street.
The opportunity for Kansas is to win a national title. The nine-game win streak is the longest of the season for the Jayhawks.
Self said that he had thought all along that it was a possibility. The guys play for each other and have stayed focused.
I have total faith when we play the way that I think we can play.
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