Kansas 70, Kansas State 54
KANSAS CITY, Mo.- No. 7 Kansas continued its dominance over No. 11 Kansas State, beating the Wildcats 70-54 for the Big 12 Championship on Saturday.
It was Kansas' third victory over its in-state rival this season. The Jayhawks claimed their ninth championship in the 17-year history of the conference tournament.
Jeff Withey poured in 17 points and nine rebounds for Kansas (29-5). Perry Ellis had 12 points and six rebounds and Nadir Tharpe also tallied 12 points for the Jayhawks, who have won 47 of their last 50 games against the Wildcats..
Rodney McGruder led Kansas State with 18 points and Angel Rodriguez added 10 for the Wildcats (27-7).
The foul disparity was evident in the second half, as Kansas State was whistled for six team fouls before Kansas was called for its first at the 12:43 mark. Kansas finished the game with just nine team fouls.
Kansas has dominated the series in large part because of the propensity to go on runs versus the Wildcats. After a back-and-forth first 10 minutes of the first half, Kansas went on a 12-1 run to pull away to a decisive lead. After Kansas State cut Kansas' lead to three points early in the second half, the Jayhawks went on a 16-7 run to regain a comfortable cushion.
NOTES: Kansas State was looking for its first conference tournament title. The Wildcats had reached the championship game only once previously, in 2010, when they lost to Kansas. This was the 10th time that Kansas had been in the championship game. ... Kansas is 8-0 vs. Kansas State all-time in the Big 12 Tournament. The Jayhawks also won the last three meetings in the Big 8 Conference tournament. The last time Kansas State beat Kansas in the postseason was in the 1993 Big 8 tournament, when the Wildcats won 73-67 in the semifinals. ... Kansas State's last post-season tournament title was in 1980, when the Wildcats defeated Kansas 79-58. ... There was a record crowd of 19,256 at the Sprint Center.
