Ohio State Basketball | BLUE BAYOU

Buckeyes blow 13-point first-half lead, fall to kansas in semifinal

By Bob Baptist

The Columbus Dispatch

NEW ORLEANS

Ohio State led for the vast majority of the game, but not when it counted.

Not at the end.

The Buckeyes scored only three points in the last 2:22 and it cost them a shot at a national championship as Kansas rallied to win 64-62 in a NCAA semifinal game on Saturday night in the Superdome.

Trailing by three points with 8.3 seconds to play, Kansas’ Tyshawn Taylor stole the inbounds pass from Lenzelle Smith Jr. but in turn threw the ball out of bounds, giving the Buckeyes a final chance with 3.8 seconds left.

But Kansas fouled Aaron Craft with 2.9 seconds left and he made one free throw before the second was disallowed by a lane violation, and then the clock ran out on the Buckeyes’ season.

Thomas Robinson scored 19 points to lead four double-figure scorers for Kansas (32-6), which will play top-ranked Kentucky (37-2) for the national championship Monday night.

William Buford scored 19 points in his final game to lead Ohio State (31-8). The Buckeyes shot only 24.2 percent in the second half to Kansas’ 53.8.

Kansas took its first lead since 2-0 when Travis Releford’s two free throws put the Jayhawks ahead 56-55 with 2:48 to play.

Ohio State scored the next four points to regain the lead 59-56 with 2:23 remaining. But Kansas scored the next six, including another pair of go-ahead free throws by Releford with 1:37 to play.

Elijah Johnson’s layup with 1:13, after a tremendous block at the other end by Jeff Withey on a drive by Buford, extended the Jayhawks’ lead to 62-59.

Ohio State failed to score on five straight possessions before Buford’s rebound dunk with 10 seconds left cut Kansas’ lead to 62-61.

But the Buckeyes were forced to foul on the inbounds play, and Taylor’s two free throws gave Kansas a 64-61 lead with 8.3 seconds to play.

Kansas scored the last four points of the first half to get its deficit under 10 points at halftime and carried the momentum to start the second half.

Kansas coach Bill Self said he told his players: “‘come on boys, we’re better than this.’ I wanted our guys to be in attack mode and be aggressive.”

The Jayhawks outscored Ohio State 13-4 in the first six minutes of the half to tie the game at 38. OSU had only four free throws by Buford until a 3-pointer by Craft in transition gave them the lead at 41-38 with 13:07 to play.

Despite playing without Deshaun Thomas because of foul trouble, the Buckeyes stretched their lead out to as many as six points three times in the next eight minutes. But Kansas responded each time.

After a pair of free throws by Jared Sullinger gave Ohio State a 55-49 lead with 5:22 left, Kansas scored the next seven points to take its first lead since 2-0.