NOTEBOOK

Foul shooting not a problem for Tigers: The Memphis Tigers reached the finals of the NCAA tournament by being more accurate from the foul line than their opponents. Yeah, you read that right: MORE accurate. The Tigers, who had the worst free-throw percentage of all 65 teams in the field, hit 70.2 percent of their foul shots on the way to the title game, topping the 68.8 percent shot by the five teams they beat. And, get this: Kansas entered Monday night’s championship game making 65.9 percent in the NCAA tournament. “I think I have mentally tough kids,” Memphis coach John Calipari said. “If they’re relaxed, they’re going to make free throws.” The Tigers might have tensed up a bit in a second-round game against Mississippi State, making only 15-of-32. It also was their only close game, a three-point victory. “I thought that was an eye-opener,” said All-American guard Chris Douglas-Roberts. “We felt a lot of games were going to be close this tournament, so we talked amongst each other and said, ‘We have to make these free throws.’ But they really haven’t been close, so free throws really haven’t been a burden.” Actually, good foul shooting the first 30 minutes is part of the reason the last 10 minutes haven’t turned into a free throw contest — with Douglas-Roberts leading the way. Since the Mississippi State game, he’s gone 11-of-12 against Michigan State, 14-of-17 against Texas, then 9-of-11 in the national semifinal against UCLA. Freshman Derrick Rose went 4-of-9 against Mississippi State. Since then, he’s 24-of-27.

On the high Cs: The Kansas and Memphis pep bands got warmed up early, commandeering a couple of passenger barges and blaring their fight songs while floating along the River Walk canal. Each school took a boat for its band and another for the cheerleaders, and they spent an hour making loops around the downtown channel. Fans from both teams jammed pedestrian bridges, overpasses and the walkways to show their colors and playfully shout down the opposing side. No hijinks on the high seas, either, when the boats passed each other in tight quarters.

Teaming up: Eager to improve all areas of youth basketball in America, the NBA, NCAA and several other leaders in the sport are teaming up. NBA commissioner David Stern and NCAA president Myles Brand announced Monday a business venture to benefit pre-collegiate boys and girls and their parents, coaches, officials and supporters of the game. The initiative is still being put together and does not yet have a title. Executives from USA Basketball, high school athletics and sports apparel companies joined Stern and Brand for the announcement in San Antonio.

Associated Press