Kansas 76, Miami 50

Game Summary:

Down 6 at halftime, not much was going well for Kansas. The team was only 13-31 from the floor (0-5 on 3’s), and worse still from the free-throw line (3-9). Despite the size and athletic advantage, the Hawks were being outrebounded 17 to 16. The results by player were mixed…Ochai Agbaji was playing okay; 6 points on 3-5 shooting, 2 rebounds, 1 steal, 1 assist. Remy Martin also had 6 points on 3-7 shooting. Jalen Wilson had yet to score.

But David McCormack was quietly having a good game. He had 7 points in 10 minutes on 3-3 shooting, making his only FT attempt as well. He added 2 rebounds and had a +/- of +3, one of only 2 Jayhawks to have a positive first half +/-. Defensively, he only gave up 2 points in the half.

It makes sense that he would be the one to lead Kansas back in the second half. D-Mac scored the first 5 Kansas points (cutting the 29-35 deficit to 34-35). But his biggest highlight was in the midst of a 16-2 run. After Jalen Wilson missed a transition shot, McCormack pulled down an offensive rebound in traffic, battled through the contact, and finished for an and-1 to put KU up 7. His FT made it 8, and KU would never see the lead dip below 6 following that play.

When he checked out at 12:25, KU was up 7 and would go on another extended run to put the game away. Although Ochai Agbaji was the team’s leading scorer with 18 points, McCormack was the team’s most valuable player, adding 15 points while giving up only 2. He added 3 rebounds as well. This was McCormack’s first MVP since the first TCU game.

KU dominated the interior, as Mitch Lightfoot’s minutes were nearly equally as valuable as McCormack’s. But Mitch did it a little differently. Scoring 9 points, Mitch added more activity on defense, blocking a shot and getting boards. He also drew a charge. But like McCormack, he only allowed 2 points on defense.

Ochai Agbaji broke out of his slump to finish with 18 points. He was also active on defense, coming away with 4 steals. Remy Martin had his lowest scoring output of the NCAA Tournament, with 9, but he did other things to help his team win. 3 assists. 4 defensive rebounds. Solid perimeter defense. Ditto for Dejuan Harris. A nifty layup was part of the 5 points he scored, but he also added 4 assists and played stingy defense. After Kameron McGusty lit up KU in the first half, Harris took away Miami’s best weapon during the second half with strong defensive energy. Christian Braun had big plays in the second half, and although his score finished up below 0, it was due to him allowing points in the first half. He made adjustments and played well for Kansas when it counted.

The reserves also had good moments. Joseph Yesufu drew a charge. Jalen Coleman-Lands (finally) hit a 3, but he also played solid defense during the first half to not allow any points. Speaking of solid defense, K.J. Adams made an excellent block to keep KU within 6 at the end of the first half. Zach Clemence grabbed a board and Chris Teahan missed his only shot attempt.

A TEAM score of 26.53 is KU’s second-best outing of the year, only behind the Baylor game. Kansas is Final Four bound, and is playing its best ball at the right time. In its 7 post-season games, the Hawks are averaging a team score of +14.69.