SO, A TAR HEEL, A WILDCAT AND A BEAR WALK INTO THE ELITE EIGHT … 6A
SPORTS
Vol.154/No.84 26 pages
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LAWRENCE JOURNAL-WORLD O LJWorld.com/sports O Saturday, March 24, 2012
75 CENTS
KANSAS 60, N.C. STATE 57
Elite forces
Nick Krug/Journal-World Photo
KANSAS FORWARD THOMAS ROBINSON DRAWS SOME CONTACT from North Carolina State forwards DeShawn Painter (0) and Richard Howell. Robinson finished with a team-high 18 points in the Jayhawks’ 60-57 victory on Friday in St. Louis.
KU dispatches ’Pack; UNC next By Gary Bedore gbedore@ljworld.com
ST. LOUIS — Kansas University’s basketball team smoked one of the schools on Tobacco Road — North Carolina State — on Friday night in the NCAA Tournament’s Sweet 16. The Jayhawks’ 60-57 victory over the Wolfpack before 23,964 fans at Edward Jones Dome — made possible in large part by the fearless shot-
blocking prowess of junior center Jeff Withey — now sets up an Elite Eight clash on Sunday against a more-renowned team from the Triangle. That’d be North Carolina, which beat Ohio, 73-65, in Friday’s other Midwest Regional semifinal. Tipoff for the Elite Eight game between the Nos. 1 (UNC) and 2 (KU) seeds in the regional is 4:05 p.m. Please see KANSAS, page 4A
MORE INSIDE, ONLINE Q Notebook, box score, N.C. State lockerroom report … pages 4A-5A Q Tons more photos, audio, video, message boards and more at KUSports. com
Withey helps ice win ————
Big man’s blocks key as Kansas ‘straps up’ defensively ST. LOUIS — Thomas Robinson sat at his locker Friday night wearing the aches and pains, the bumps and bruises of another physical defense aimed at him. He looked forward to the ice bath he would take before getting a good night’s sleep. The box score suggested Robinson was the main man in a 60-57 Kansas victory against North Carolina State. He had 18 points, 15 rebounds, two assists and two steals. But Robinson
Tom Keegan tkeegan@ljworld.com
sent the credit for this one a few lockers to his right, where Jeff Withey drew a crowd. “He was amazing, man,”
Robinson said. “A lot of people give credit to John Henson. I take nothing from him, Henson’s a good shot blocker, but I think Jeff deserves credit also.” Robinson’s right. Withey was amazing. North Carolina State’s 13-3 lead could have been much bigger if not for Withey blocking a shot on the second, third and fourth Wolfpack possessions. Please see KEEGAN, page 5A
KU women up against powerhouse Vols By Benton Smith basmith@ljworld.com
DES MOINES, IOWA — Throughout the season, Kansas University’s women’s basketball team has seen its share of juggernauts. There was 6-foot-8 Brittney Griner and undefeated Baylor in Big 12 play. Then, in the second round of the NCAA Tournament, came Elena Delle Donne of Delaware, another no-brainer pick for All-American status.
But in the world of women’s college basketball, not much compares to the brand name and staying power of Tennessee and legendary coach Pat Summitt. The 11th-seeded Jayhawks (21-12) will encounter one of the toughest tests of their remarkable season at 11:04 a.m. today at Wells Fargo Arena, when they face the secondseeded Volunteers (26-8) out of the SEC. KU coach Bonnie Henrickson, leading her program farther than it has been
in her eight seasons, said even the Jayhawks’ victory against two-loss Delaware that put them in the Sweet 16 wouldn’t prepare them for the perennial powerhouse they’re about to face. “Delaware and Tennessee, there are no similarities other than (they’re) both very, very successful and very talented, obviously,” Henrickson said. Year in and year out, the Vols have an attack that everyone knows about, and no one seems to be able to stop. “What’s always most scary
about Pat’s team,” Henrickson said, “is the offensiverebounding machine.” Tennessee’s ability to chase down its own misses and score or get to the freethrow line has proven difficult to counter. This season, the Vols average 16.1 offensive boards a game. Four players have 50 or more offensive rebounds in 34 games, and 6-foot-3 senior forward Glory Johnson leads the way. Johnson gets 3.5 of her 9.8 rebounds a game on the offensive end.
It will be up to KU’s post players, led by senior forward Aishah Sutherland, to limit Johnson’s impact. “We’re definitely going to have to box her out,” Sutherland said. “She’s a great rebounder, and we’re going to have to rebound just as hard as her. We’re going to do drills in practice to be able to stay focused, box out and not trying to just go for the ball, but be able to see her before we catch the ball.”
WHO’S ELITE?
Who: Tennessee (26-8) vs. Kansas (2112) When: 11:04 a.m. today Where: Des Moines, Iowa TV: ESPN (cable chanPlease see KU WOMEN, page 3A nels 33, 233)