KANSAS CITY, Mo. — West Virginia’s upstart run through the Big 12 tournament struck a Kansas-sized speedbump Friday.
Kansas, winner of the previous 14 Big 12 regular-season titles before this season, let the Mountaineers have a little fun in the beginning, but the Jayhawks soon flexed their muscles before halftime for an 88-74 victory.
“We got off to a good start and was trading buckets with them,” West Virginia Chase Harler said. “Then we just dug ourselves into a hole we couldn’t get out of.”
Kansas forward Dedric Lawson had 24 points and freshman teammate Quentin Grimes added 18 before leaving the game with cramps late in the second half and the Jayhawks’ suffocating help defense led to seven blocked shots and held a tired West Virginia team to just 36.