Kansas Surges Past Villanova

Jayhawks Build Early 14-Point Lead, Shoot 52.2 Percent to Cruise: Kansas 72, Villanova 57

DETROIT, March 28 -- Most of the Davidson students who had cheered and celebrated their team's stirring victory in the first of two NCAA Midwest Region semifinals on Friday night appeared to have left Ford Field by the second half of top-seeded Kansas's 72-57 win over 12th-seeded Villanova. And it was probably just as well, considering how dominant the Jayhawks looked at times in beating a different set of Wildcats.

Eight players scored for the Jayhawks, who shot 52.2 percent from the field and have won their three tournament games by an average margin of 19.3 points. They tossed all manner of alley-oops: Darrell Arthur dunked one off of an inbounds over top of Villanova's Scottie Reynolds; he later threw one down with Dante Cunningham on his shoulder, battling for the ball.

Kansas (34-3) and the tournament's darlings, 10th-seeded Davidson (29-6), will meet in the Midwest Region final Sunday afternoon. This will be the Jayhawks' third regional final appearance under Coach Bill Self. Kansas's last Final Four appearance came in 2003, the season before Self was hired. Self is in the regional finals for the fifth time since 2000 (he also made it with Illinois and Tulsa) but has yet to make a Final Four.

"We've knocked on the door a few times," Self said.

Villanova (22-13) faced long odds on Friday night: No 12th-seeded team had ever beaten a No. 1 seed in tournament history, and 10 of the previous 14 matchups were decided by 10 points or more. Villanova, however, seemed better prepared than some of those previous 12th seeds, considering that it weathered an 18-game Big East schedule and then overcame an 18-point deficit to beat fifth-seeded Clemson in the first round.

But Kansas made nine of its first 11 shots, including 4 of 6 three-point attempts, to build a 24-10 lead with 11 minutes 44 seconds to play in the first half. Senior guard Russell Robinson (15 points) was the unlikely shooting star in that stretch, sinking all three of his attempts; he had made just 2 of 14 long-range attempts in his last six games.

The Wildcats scored five straight points to draw within 28-21 with 6:53 left until the break, but they managed only one point over the remainder of the half. For Kansas, junior guard Brandon Rush scored on a lay-up, and then junior guard Mario Chalmers sank back-to-back three-pointers and a jump shot in transition to restore the lead to 17. Kansas led at halftime, 41-22, after shooting 59.3 percent from the field.

Villanova still trailed by 19 points midway through the second half, but the Wildcats battled hard until the end, forcing turnovers and getting to within 12 with 62 seconds to play. The Wildcats shot just 35.6 percent for the game. Reynolds (Herndon), who was averaging 20.3 points during the postseason, finished with 11 points.

"They were trying to get the ball out of my hands," Reynolds said. "And if I drove it, they would bring over a big [body]."