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6 AROUND THE BIG 12
Wildcats, Bears fall in Sweet 16
Kansas State — No. 2 Seed, West Regional
By Justin Nutter
K-State Collegian Monday, March 29
SALT LAKE CITY — It's been quite a run for the K-State men's basketball team, but as the old saying goes,"All good things must come to an end."
Three Wildcats reached double figures, but second-seeded K-State could not overcome several costly mistakes and fell 63-56 to fifthseeded Butler on Saturday at EnergySolutions Arena.
The loss marks the end of a record-setting season for the Wildcats (29-8), who were playing in the Elite Eight for the first time since 1988. Butler (32-4) extended its current winning streak to a nation-leading 24 games, advancing to the Final Four in its home city of Indianapolis.
Denis Clemente, who scored 18 points, led K-State offensively, while Jacob Pullen and Curtis Kelly each added 14. Butler was paced by Gordon Hayward's 22 points and Shelvin Mack's 16.
Kelly almost single-handedly kept the Wildcats in the game early, scoring 12 of his team's 20 first-half points. Pullen and Clemente, who combined for 53 points in K-State's win over Xavier on Thursday, combined for just two points in the half. The backcourt duo would have gone scoreless in the period, but Clemente dropped in a breakaway lay-up with 15 seconds left, cutting the halftime deficit to 27-20.
The Wildcats came out firing in the second half, opening the period on a 6-0 run to cut the deficit to 27-26. But as they had all night, the Bulldogs responded — this time with a 10-2 burst to extend their lead to nine.
With 7:23 remaining, the senior from Bayamon, Puerto Rico, drained a 3-pointer on a broken play, which sparked a 13-2 run that gave K-State its first lead of the game — a 52-51 advantage with 4:47 left on the clock. But a pair of fouls away from the ball gave the momentum back to Butler and ultimately decided the final outcome.
Kansas State's Denis Clemente puts up a shot as Butler's Avery jukes defends during the second half of the West Regional final in Salt Lake City last Saturday. Clemente scored 18 points in the Wildcats' 63-56 loss.
ASSOCIATED PRESS
Baylor No.3 Seed, South Regional
ASSOCIATED PRESS
THE WAVE MARCH 31,2010
By Stephen Hawkins Associated Press — Sunday, March 28
Duke restored some order to a topsy-turvy NCAA tournament on Sunday, getting 29 points from Nolan Smith in a 78-71 victory over Baylor that put Coach K and the Blue Devils in college basketball's biggest event for the first time in six years.
Jon Scheyer added 20 points for Duke, ending Baylor's charming run to redemption in the South Regional final. The Blue Devils became the only No.1 seed to advance to Indianapolis and earned their 11th Final Four berth under coach Mike Krzvzewski.
HOUSTON — Look who's back in the Final Four.
"We played against a great team," Krzyzewski said. "It was such a well-played game, and we were fortunate to win."
LaceDarius Dunn had 22 points and
Duke's Lance Thomas grabs a rebound between Baylor players during the second half of the South Regional final in Houston Sunday. Duke won 78-71.
Ekpe Udoh scored 18 for the third-seeded Bears (28-8), whose program was in shambles when coach Scott Drew took over less than seven years ago.
Drew took the Bears from tatters to the cusp of their first Final Four appearance in 60 years. But even after three consecutive 20-win seasons and an inspiring postseason run, the fairy-tale ending wasn't meant to be for the Bears — at least this year.
"It's not over for this program. It was a great season," said Dunn, the junior guard who had obviously shed tears before the postgame interview."Teammates should hold their head up high and be proud of the things we accomplished this year."
Baylor made it to the NCAA tournament two years ago, when it lost in the first round to Purdue, and to the NIT championship game last April.
The Bears were picked 10th in the preseason poll by the Big 12 coaches at the beginning of this season after losing three 1,000-point scorers to graduation. But they were the last Big 12 team still playing.
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THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN