THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
MONDAY, FEBRUARY 2, 2015
PAGE 12
Brady rallies Patriots to 28-24 Super Bowl win
BARRY WILNER Associated Press
Associated Press
New England Patriots outside linebacker Jonathan Casillas carries the Vince Lombardi Trophy as he celebrates after the Patriots defeated the Seattle Seahawks in the NFL Super Bowl XLIX football game Sunday. MATT ROUREK/EASYASSOCIATED PRESS
GLENDALE, Ariz. — Tom Brady and the Patriots made this Super Bowl all about football, not footballs.
MATT ROURKE/ASSOCIATED PRESS
Clutch football, spiced by a sensational fourth-quarter rally and a goal-line, gamesaving interception.
The record-setting Brady threw for four touchdowns, including a 3-yarder to Julian Edelman with 2:02 remaining Sunday night as New England rallied from a 10-point deficit to win its fourth Super Bowl in the Brady-Bill Belichick era, 28-24 against Seattle.
But the Patriots (15-4) had to survive a last-ditch drive by the Seahawks (14-5), who got to the 1, helped by a spectacular juggling catch by Jermaine Kearse. Rookie Malcolm Butler stepped in front of Ricardo Lockette and picked off Russell Wilson's off-target pass to complete one of the wildest Super Bowl finishes.
"It wasn't the way we drew it up," said Brady, who won his third Super Bowl MVP award.
Brady leaped for joy on the Patriots sideline after Butler's interception.
Brady surpassed Joe Montana's mark of 11 Super Bowl touchdown passes with a 5-yarder to Danny Amendola to bring the Patriots within three points.
Seattle, seeking to become the first repeat NFL champion
since New England a decade ago, was outplayed in the first half, yet tied at 14. The Seahawks scored the only 10 points of the third period, but the NFL-leading defense couldn't slow the brilliant Brady when it counted most.
It didn't matter how much air was in the balls, Brady was unstoppable when the pressure was strongest. While pushing aside the controversy over air pressure in the footballs stemming from the AFC title game, the Patriots toyed with Seattle in the final 12 minutes.
Seattle didn't quit — it never does — and Kearse's 33-yard catch with 1:06 remaining got it to the 5. Marshawn Lynch rushed for 4 yards, then backup cornerback Butler, who was victimized on Kearse's reception, made the biggest play of his first NFL season with 20 seconds remaining.
"I just had a vision that I was going to make a big play and it came true," said Butler, an undrafted rookie from West Alabama. "I'm just blessed. I can't explain it right now. It's crazy."
But thanks to superstar Brady and the obscure Butler, they are champions again.
Seahawks linebacker Bruce Irvin was ejected in the final seconds for instigating a near-brawl, delaying the celebration for the Patriots.
Brady now has equaled Montana with four Lombardi Trophies and three Super Bowl MVPs.
He stands alone with 13 Super Bowl touchdown passes.
Soon they were mobbing one another on the same field where their 2007 unbeaten season was ruined in the Super Bowl by the Giants. They also fell to the Giants for the 2011
title.
He was 37 for 50 for 328 yards against the NFL's top-ranked defense.
He also was picked off twice. Brady had been intercepted a total of two times in his previous five Super Bowls.
Yet, he picked apart the Seahawks on drives of 68 and 64 yards, solidifying his legacy
as one of the greats of the game.
His heroics offset those of Chris Matthews, one of Seattle's least-used players before the postseason. Matthews recovered the onside kick that helped the Seahawks beat Green Bay in overtime for the NFC
crown, and had a breakout performance Sunday.
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Having never caught a pass in the NFL, Matthews grabbed four for 109 yards and a touchdown. Lynch ran for 102 yards, but didn't get the ball at the 1 on the decisive play — a decision the Seahawks will rue.
Mason, Graham continue to be key for Jayhawk offense
SCOTT CHASEN
@SChesenKIL
@SChasenKU
"He has no idea how big this free throw is."
With less than 25 seconds to go, ESPN's Fran Fraschilla jokingly uttered those words, as Frank Mason III stepped up to the free-throw line. Mason needed to be perfect in order to extend his streak of 10-point games to 18.
Allen Fieldhouse fell as silent as it had been all year, and it was apparent that just about everyone in the crowd knew the "significance" of the following shots, regardless if it actually mattered to anyone on the court.
"I don't ever think like that, because those [types of things] aren't records to me," coach Bill Self said of
Mason's double-digit scoring streak. "He's pretty good though."
Mason missed a couple of late free throws against TCU, so there was certainly no guarantee he was going to make both shots. Regardless, the first free throw hit the back of the rim and dropped; the second one was just about perfect.
After being held scoreless in the first 27 minutes of the game, the sophomore from Petersburg, Va., rattled off 10 points in quick succession to extend the streak, as Kansas would go on to defeat its instate rival by a final score of 68-57, moving to 7-1 in the Big 12.
This year, the improved play of Kansas at the point guard position has been a
big part of why the Jayhawks have been able to dominate the Big 12 competition early on. In the five conference games the Jayhawks have played against ranked teams, Mason has averaged 14 points, 4.2 rebounds and 3.8 assists per game, but as was noted by Kansas shooting guard sophomore Wayne Selden Jr. after the game, Mason isn't doing it all alone.
In the game against Kansas State, Graham wasn't necessarily a huge factor with his scoring, nor did he rack up an especially notable assist total. However, Graham did all of the little things the team needed, especially given the way Kansas State was trying to deny Kansas the opportunity to get out in transition.
Selden, of course, was referring to the fact that while Mason does start for the Jayhawks, his backup, freshman Devonte' Graham, is a very capable player in his own right. In conference play, Graham has racked up a ridiculous 8 assist-to-
"We've got two starting point guards," Selden said. "One starts, one doesn't."
"[When we] didn't have two ball handlers in the game, they'd take Mason away immediately," Self said. "[Then] it's just a walk-up situation, [and] they did a really good job with that."
With Graham in the game alongside Mason, the floor seemed to open up for the
turnover ratio, which leads the team by a significant margin.
team. In fact, sophomore Brannen Greene had all of his made three-point field goals occur with Mason and Graham on the floor, while individually, the two point guards both finished tied for third to the team with a plus/minus rating of +7.
Bruce Weber, the Kansas State coach, praised the two guards, especially Mason, who was the first player mentioned by the coach in the postgame press conference. Weber talked about what he called the "evolution" of Mason, which is something that has really helped out the Jayhawks this year, as they once again sit in first place in the Big 12.
The efficient play of Mason and Graham has allowed the team to cover for the fact that
it may not be as physically gifted as some of the Kansas teams from previous years, at least according to Self.
"Without being negative, we don't have the same talent level that we've had in the past," Self said. "I'm really proud of us though, [especially] given that we're 18-3."
Next up for the team is a tough contest against the Iowa State Cyclones, who knocked off the Jayhawks in the teams' first meeting. In the prior contest, Mason and Graham combined for 31 points and seven assists, and they'll need to be on their game in order for Kansas to get the victory this time around.
Edited by Lane Cofas
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