Kansas 76 - Arizona 72 (OT)

Comments and Observations

It was clear that for nearly 40 minutes, Arizona wanted this game much more than Kansas did.  It seemed like every loose ball and tipped rebound ended up in a Wildcat's hand.  UA's offense looked crisper (when it wasn't turning the ball over, that is), while KU's offense sputtered.  In the end, KU did what you'd expect an experienced and talented team to do on its homecourt ... made plays.  UA fans understandably cried foul on the traveling call against Budinger late in regulation, but the decision to make that call wasn't in KU's control.  Once they were given the second chance at life, KU seized it and never looked back.

From the Kansas perspective, you have to be disappointed that Arizona controlled the boards so easily.  Part of that is due to Cole Aldrich's absence, and part was due to longer rebounds from all the 3FG shots.  But even inside rebounds were well controlled by Arizona.  In the end, what saved Kansas this game was its ability to force UA turnovers.  That and the fact that the FT line ended up favoring KU by 2 points when all signs pointed to a big advantage there for UA in this game.

One last thought ... Rodrick Stewart, you are now officially a big contributor to this team. 

Four Factor Analysis

• eFG% - UA with a slight 54-52% edge.  KU defense is not holding opponents to low percentages this season.
• TURNOVERS - Huge advantage to KU 32-19%
• OFFENSIVE REBOUNDING - Dominated by UA, 31-20%
• FREETHROW RATE (FTM/FGA) - 28-26% slight edge to KU, but this was supposed to be owned by UA.

CONCLUSION - The only factor that went as expected was turnovers, and boy did it ever.  Most other categories evened out, leaving TO's as the deciding factor in this game.  Budinger and Bayless the biggest culprits on Arizona's side with 5 and 7 TO's, respectively.

Player Performance Analysis

You have to give props to Arizona's Chase Budinger and Jerryd Bayless.  They put on quite a performance.  Budinger lit it up with 27 PTS, 6 REB and 2 STL on 56.5 eFG%.  Even his 5 TO's did not keep him from the highest impact rating on the court.  He could have hit 30 PTS if not for the miscommunication that resulted in his fifth foul (intentional) with UA trying a desperate comeback in overtime.  Bayless didn't do so well early on and late, but in between he sure left his mark.  He had 19 PTS on 66.7 eFG% shooting, but he dished only 2 AST and committed 7 TO's.  He made all 7 of his FT's.  Most of the other Wildcats had unremarkable statistical performances, with Jordan Hill performing significantly less efficiently than he had coming into this game.  Jamelle Horne didn't play much, but he was actually even more efficient than Budinger, getting 4 PTS and 3 REB (2 OREB) on 2-of-2 shooting with 0 TO's in only 16 MIN.

For Kansas, Brandon Rush and Rodrick Stewart carried the team to victory.  Sure, Darrell Arthur finished wtih a game-high 20 PTS, but it was Rush who was making plays down the stretch with alley-oop dunks and breakaway dunks off steals.  The perfect ending would have been if his desperation two-thirds court heave had stayed inside the rim, but Jayhawk fans will take the actual results happily.  Rush finished with 17 PTS, team-high 8 REB on 58.3 eFG%.  He also made 3-of-4 from the FT line.  Although Coach Self had indicated Rush would only play 20 MIN, he ended up with 36!  It was too close a game, and KU was low on perimter players who could play defense with Collins out with a stress fracture and Reed unavailble the second half due to a sprained ankle.  Stewart showcased his athletic prowess with acrobatic drives to the basket and an emphatic dunk in transition.  He finished with 13 PTS and 6 REB on 62.5 eFG% shooting.

Sasha Kaun had a decently efficient performance inside with 6 PTS on 60 eFG%, 2 REB, 3 STL and 2 BLK in 25 MIN. Arthur poured in 20 PTS, 6 REB (3 OREB), 3 BLK on 61.5 eFG% shooting and 4-of-6 FT.  What really hurt him was 5 TO's and hitting only 4-of-6 FT.  Plus, with KU's poor offensive rebounding performance, missed shots were penalized more than usual, so even though 60 eFG% is great, it was less great in this game.

Mario Chalmers seemed to struggle most of this game except for a stretch where he scored most of KU's points late in regulation.  He had several three-point plays even though he scored no 3FG's.  Chalmers shot 45.5 eFG% and finished with 14 PTS and 7 AST to go with 3 STL and 1 BLK.

Tyrel Reed and Darnell Jackson came into this game as the most efficient players this season, but they finished in the bottom of the ratings this game.  Jackson had only 4 PTS on 2-of-5 shooting, 5 REB and 3 TO's in 29 MIN.  Reed got one 3FG shot off (a miss) and didn't contribute anything else before getting hurt late in the first half.  Case and Aldrich hardly played and didn't have a single statistic to show for their minutes played.  Robinson played his worst game per Self's postgame comments.  He was 0-of-3 from the field (all 3FG's), 2-of-2 FT, with 3 AST and 3 STL to go with 3 TO's.  (Lots of "threes" in Russell's stat line!) 

Comparison to Pre-Game Projections

(For now, this is just to familiarize you with the format.  Not enough data went into these projections for accuracy.)