10 AROUND THE BIG 12 Big 12 Recap Compiled by Tim Dwyer
The first two rounds of the NCAA Tournament were not kind to the Big 12 Conference.
Texas fell in the first to an underwhelming Wake Forest team that lost by 30 points in its next game. Missouri surprised in its first-round game but, predictably, the Tigers were no match for West Virginia. Texas A&M fell victim to a clutch-time layup by Purdue guard Chris Kramer, who finished with 17 points despite averaging just more than six points per game this season. Oklahoma State bafflingly fell to pieces against Georgia Tech, with NBA-bound guard
James Anderson scoring just 11 points.
And of course, in what will no doubt go down as the upset of the season — and one of the more staggering in recent memory Northern Iowa used gutsy threes and stifling defense to top the Kansas Jayhawks, who were the putative favorite to take home the NCAA's ultimate crown.
Instead, the hopes of the conference now lie with two teams, both of which tied for second in the league, four games behind the now forgotten Jayhawks.
Kansas State No.2 Seed, West Regional
Kansas State topped the BYU Cougars and Jimmer Fredette, who could have been this year's Stephen Curry had he managed a win. (Who knew it would in fact be Ali Farokhmanesh?) Fredette posted 37 points against Florida, but could only manage 21 against the solid defense of Kansas State's top stopper, Dominique Sutton.
Conversely, the Wildcats' Jacob Pullen abused the Cougars from downtown, hitting on seven of his 12 three-point attempts. Pullen's 34 points set a career high and carried the Wildcats into the Sweet 16.
Next, Kansas State faces Xavier, a team led by Jordan Crawford, who became a YouTube legend by dunking on LeBron James at a basketball camp this summer.
Crawford scored 28 points in the first round and 27 in the second, but if Sutton can hold Crawford below his season average of 20, the Musketeers' bench will likely not be able to pick up the slack.
With a win against Xavier, Kansas State would likely face top-seeded Syracuse, although the fifth-ranked Butler Bulldogs are expected to put up a fight. Syracuse made it convincingly through the first two rounds without top forward Arinze Onuaku, but the big man will likely be back for the Elite Eight. Butler, on the other hand, is riding the nation's longest winning streak, but hasn't had to beat a team seeded higher than 12th to get to this point.
Kansas State guard Denis Clemente celebrates his teams 84-72 win against BYU on Saturday in Oklahoma City. The Wildcats defeated the Cougars in the second round to advance to the Sweet 16.
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Baylor - No. 3 Seed, South Regional
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Neither remaining team will be able to walk to the Final Four, but Baylor's schedule might be the easier of the two. St. Mary's has been a revelation in the tournament, particularly big man Omar Samhan, who is averaging 30.5 points and 9.5 rebounds through the first two rounds.
Still though, there is a reason St. Mary's was seeded 10th.The Gaels get solid play from Samhan and guards Matthew Dellavedova and Mickey McConnell, but there is a steep dropoff beyond that. The
Baylor guard Tweety Carter drives to the basket around Old Dominion guard Darius James during the first half of their game on Saturday in New Orleans. The Bears defeated the Monarchs 76-68 to make it into the Sweet 16.
Gaels go just seven deep.
Similarly, no one would accuse the Bears of being the deepest team in the field,but the talent level is probably a notch higher with Tweety Carter, LaceDarius Dunn and Ekpe Udoh.
With a win, the Bears would face the winner of the Duke-Purdue game (hint: Duke). The Blue Devils are a superbly talented team, but they don't have the athletes Baylor does. Purdue is a good team, but it is still without its best player, star forward Robbie Hummel.
Baylor would have a legitimate shot at topping either one and advancing to the Final Four if it can get past St. Mary's.
THE WAVE MARCH 24,2010
THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN