THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
MONDAY, APRIL 6, 2015
PAGE 11
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QUOTE OF THE DAY
After uttering explicit words about Frank Kaminski, Aaron Harrison apologized Sunday morning. "First, I want to apologize for my poor choice of words used in jest towards a player I respect and know," Harrison tweeted. "When I realized how this could be perceived, I immediately called Big Frank to apologize and let him know I didn't mean any disrespect..."
Aaron Harrison courierjournal.com
TRIVIA OF THE DAY
Q: When was the last time Wisconsin made the National Championship game?
ESPN.com
A:1941
FACT OF THE DAY
Wisconsin's senior forward Frank Kaminski won this year's Associate Press Player of the Year, averaging 18.7 points, 8.1 rebounds and 2.7 assists per game.
ESPN.com
THE MORNING BREW
Wisconsin out-defends Kentucky, moves on to championship game
Saturday night, senior forward Frank Kaminsky led the Wisconsin Badgers in ending Kentucky's road to perfection. The Badgers were able to keep Kentucky away in the final minutes and defeat the Wildcats 71-64 in the Final Four matchup.
Looking at the box score, especially the scoring, it is hard to see how Kentucky lost. The Wildcats had a stellar game shooting 48 percent from the field, including 60 percent from three-point range. The Wildcats were also 9-of-10 from the line. But where they really fell short was on the boards. The Badgers out-rebounded the Wildcats by 12 rebounds.
The final minutes proved to be Kentucky's demise, starting with Wisconsin tying the game at 60 with three minutes to play. What was crucial about this moment is that Wisconsin got back its momentum
on a basket that should have been called a shot clock violation. On this play, sophomore forward Nigel Hayes missed a guarded shot in the post, got his rebound and shot it again for the bucket. However, the ball was still in his hands when the shot clock hit zero. This play was never reviewed and it proved to shift the game in Wisconsin's favor.
From this point on, Wisconsin took control. With one minute and 45 seconds left, Badgers' junior forward Sam Dekker drilled a three-pointer to put them up 64-60. After a free throw and a layup by Wildcat sophomore guard Aaron Harrison, the score was 64-63, and Wisconsin called timeout.
A crucial part to Kentucky falling apart in the final moments of the game is freshman forward Karl-Anthony Towns missing a free throw to put the Wildcats within one point. With 13 seconds left in the game, Kentucky had to intentionally foul sophomore guard Bronson Koenig. Koenig sank both free throws, putting the Badgers up by four.
Last year, Kentucky and Michigan were tied with less than 10 seconds to go, and Harrison nailed a threepointer to give the Wildcats the win.
Down four points, the Wildcats went to Harrison again on Saturday with six seconds left. Harrison rose from nearly five feet behind the three-point line and air-balled the shot wide left. This solidified the Wisconsin
victory to move on to the national championship game. Wisconsin went on to make more free throws and won 71-64.
Wisconsin was able to out-defend perhaps one of the best defenses in the history of collegiate basketball. The Badgers will go on to face the Duke Blue Devils and freshman stud Jahill Okafor in what will shape up to be a great national championship game.
Edited by Mitch Raznick
Houston Rockets center Joey Dorsey dunks in front of Oklahoma City Thunder forward Kyle Singler in the game Sunday in Oklahoma City.
SUE OGROCKI/ASSOCIATED PRESS
Houston Rockets guard James Harden shoots over Oklahoma City Thunder guard Russell Westbrook in the game in Oklahoma City on Sunday. Houston won 115-112.
SUIE OGROCKI/ASSOCIATED PRESS
Harden's 41 points helps Rockets beat Thunder 115-112
CLIFF BRUNT Associated Press
OKLAHOMA CITY James Harden led a postgame dance session in the Houston locker room.
And why not? He scored 41 points, and his Rockets overcame Russell Westbrook's triple-double to defeat the Oklahoma City Thunder 115-112 on Sunday.
In the process, Harden bested of one of his top challengers for the MVP award and silenced the fans who constantly booed him in the building where he once was beloved. The former Thunder star scored 10 points in the fourth quarter to give his team a cushion.
"That's my job," Harden said. "It's what I do. I go out there and I take the big shots. My teammates did a great job the entire game of making shots, getting to the rim, just being in attack mode, being aggressive. In the fourth quarter, then, I've got to make shots."
Harden and Westbrook, the
league's top two scorers, both entered the game averaging 27.5 points. Harden made 12 of 22 shots and 6 of 9 three-pointers before fouling out with 33 seconds left. The Rockets hung on to win for the seventh time in eight games.
JAMES HARDEN Houston guard
"That's my job. It's what I do. I go out there and I take the big shots.
"Guys are locked in," Harden said. "They're focused on what we need to do to win, no matter who gets the credit, no matter who gets the glory."
Westbrook finished with 40 points,13 assists and 11 rebounds. It was his 11th triple-double of the season and the 18th of his career.Enes Kanter added 21 points and 17 rebounds for the Thunder,
who lost their third straight. Their lead over New Orleans for the No. 8 spot in the Western Conference was cut to a half-game.
According to STATS, Westbrook's 11 triple-doubles are the most for a player in a season since Jason Kidd had 13 in 2007-08, and his nine triple-doubles in a 20-game span are the most in such a stretch since Chicago's Michael Jordan had 11 in 15 games from March 25-April 21, 1989.
The Rockets led 89-80 early in the fourth quarter before Westbrook re-entered the game. The Thunder chipped away, and Westbrook tied the score at 100 with a three-pointer with just more than three minutes to play.
Harden made three-pointers over Oklahoma City's Kyle Singler on consecutive possessions to put the Rockets up 106-101. Harden made another jumper from near the foul line, this time over Westbrook, to bump the lead to seven.
"The shots that he made were tough shots — step a guy back," Houston coach Kevin McHale said. "But he's been doing it all year. He works hard on those shots, and he makes them."
Oklahoma City's Anthony Morrow sank a three-pointer to cut the deficit to 114-112 with 5.5 seconds to play. Houston's Corey Brewer missed the second of two free throws with five seconds remaining to give the Thunder a chance. Westbrook missed a deep off-balance three-pointer as time expired.
The Rockets led 42-29 in the second quarter before back-to-back dunks by Westbrook shifted the momentum. Backto-back threes by Morrow and DJ. Augustin cut Houston's lead to 52-47. Harden's threepointer late in the shot clock over Westbrook with 13.7 seconds left in the half gave the Rockets a 55-47 edge at the break. Houston led 83-77 at the end of the third.
The Thunder knew how important the game was, so
they dug in after they trailed by 11 with 7:08 remaining to make it tight down the stretch. "It just says that we at least have some fight in us," Westbrook said. "Unfortunately it wasn't enough."
Houston shot 55 percent in the final period to hold on.
"The biggest thing is we stay calm," Houston center Dwight Howard said. "We don't allow a team making a run to affect us mentally. We stay together. We come into the huddle and we talk to each other, then we go out there and execute."
ROCKETS: Howard scored 22 points in 23 minutes. Forward Donatas Motiejunas missed his sixth straight game with lower back pain. Houston made 12 of 19 shots in the second quarter.
THUNDER: Oklahoma City was without forward Nick Collison (left ankle sprain), guard Andre Roberson (left ankle sprain) and forward
Serge Ibaka (right knee surgery). None are expected back soon. The Thunder wore their alternate uniforms with sleeves. Guard Dion Waiters drew a technical foul with 9:21 left in the third quarter. Center Steven Adams fouled out with 6:04 remaining. Morrow scored 22 points and made 6 of 8 three-pointers.
STAT LINES
Harden maintained his miniscule lead over Westbrook in the race for the scoring title. The Rockets star now has scored 2,104 points in 76 games for an average of 27.684 points per game. Westbrook has scored 1,715 points in 62 games for an average of 27.661.
McHale, on the Rockets giving up offensive rebounds and making just 31 of 50 free throws: "When you miss 19 free throws and give up 17 offensive rebounds, you've got to — we just found a way. The guys just ground it out."
QUOTE OF THE DAY
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