Big 12 Title on the Line As Kansas Meets Iowa State
The Iowa State Cyclones meet the Kansas Jayhawks in the championship game of the Big 12 tournament on Saturday night. Last season, Iowa State upset the Jayhawks on its way to a Big 12 tournament title. This year, the Jayhawks are looking for revenge.
Kansas ranked No. 9 in the nation will play for its 10th tournament championship against Iowa State ranked No. 13.
Kansas is 26-7 on the season and remains the team to beat in the Big 12, winning 11 consecutive regular season conference titles, while its 9 tournament titles equal the rest of the conference combined.
Kansas however lost in the tournament semifinals last year to Iowa State 94-83 and the Cyclones won the title with a win over Baylor in the final.
The Jayhawks will do everything in their power to avenge last season’s loss. On Friday, Kansas defeated Baylor in one of the semifinal games 62-52. It was the fewest points Baylor had scored all season.
Bill Self the Kansas head coach says the game they played against Baylor was not pretty but the defensive energy was high and the rebounding was strong, which is a formula a team needs to win a national championship.
Kansas and Iowa State split the two games they played during the regular season. The Jayhawks however played a more open fluid game when they beat Iowa State in early February 89-76.
Perry Ellis has averaged over 21 points per game in his past four games versus Iowa State. He scored 30 points in last year’s loss in the semifinals.
On Friday, he had a scare after limping from the floor late in the game, but Self said he could have returned but the game was in hand so he kept him on the bench.
A win would give Kansas its first Big 12 tournament title in 3 seasons. It would also help improve the team’s case for a No. 1 regional seed in the upcoming NCAA Tournament. The field and seeds for the tournament are announced on Sunday evening.
Iowa State has likely improved its potential tournament seeding with impressive comebacks and some good fortune during the Big 12 tournament.
Iowa State rallied from a deficit of double digits on Friday for a fourth consecutive game against Oklahoma. The Sooners could have tied it at the buzzer but missed an uncontested layup.
Regardless of what team wins, both are headed to the NCAA Tournament, but a win in the Big 12 championship for either will not just give them bragging rights but will help them when it comes to their seed in the Big Dance.
Pick: Kansas 74-71
