No. 1 seed Kansas routs Purdue 98-66 to reach Elite Eight

By DAVE SKRETTA
AP Sports Writer

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) It took about 10 minutes for Kansas guards Frank Mason III and Devonte Graham to slow down, gain their composure and get everything under control in their Midwest Regional semifinal.

When that happened, everything promptly sped up for Purdue.

The pace of the game turning in their favor, the high-flying Jayhawks proceeded to wear down the bigger, stronger Boilermakers on Thursday night. And by the time Mason and Graham finished pouring in 26 points apiece, No. 1 seed Kansas had coasted to a 98-66 victory and a spot in the Elite Eight.

"When we started to slow down and play our style of basketball, that's when we started rolling," said Mason, the player of the year front-runner, who also had seven rebounds and seven assists.

The Jayhawks will play No. 3 seed Oregon, which survived a nail-biter earlier in the night, on Saturday night for a spot in their first Final Four since 2012.

Josh Jackson added 15 points and 12 rebounds, and Landen Lucas did a good job of keeping Purdue forwards Caleb Swanigan and Isaac Haas in check, as the Jayhawks (31-4) turned a seven-point halftime lead into their third consecutive blowout in the NCAA Tournament.

Their beat-down of the Big Ten champs followed easy wins over UC Davis and Michigan State.

"You just cannot let them get in transition like that," Purdue coach Matt Painter said. "If they keep getting those types of opportunities and shoot like that, they can't be stopped."

Swanigan still had 18 points and seven boards for the No. 4 seed Boilermakers (27-8), but the 6-foot-9, 250-pound All-America candidate had to work for all of it. The Jayhawks kept collapsing on him in the post, forcing Swanigan to begin taking 3-pointers early in the second half.

It wasn't much longer before the game was out of reach.

"It was one of the best games we've played all year," Kansas coach Bill Self said. "The second half was about as complete as we played. We were pretty good at both ends."

The game shaped up as a contrast of styles: the slick, speedy athleticism that carried the Jayhawks to the Big 12 title against the bruising, post-dominated play of the Boilermakers.

Purdue promptly stunned a sold-out Sprint Center by hoisting up early 3-pointers.

Their underrated guards took advantage of constant double-teams of Swanigan and Haas in the paint, letting loose a barrage of deep shots. By the time Kansas realized the game had started, Painter's team had raced to a 25-18 lead midway through the first half.

The Jayhawks eventually found their footing, and the crowd that showed up a mere 40-minute drive from their campus in Lawrence provided the soundtrack to a 22-7 run to end the half.

Things got so loud inside the downtown arena that Painter, who always maintained Kansas earned the right to the quasi-home game, resorted to scribbling offensive sets on a dry erase board.

"It was unbelievable," Graham said. "They gave us so much momentum and energy."

The roars for Kansas only got louder in the second half.

Ryan Cline's 3-pointer got Purdue within 58-54 with 14:39 to go, and that's when the Jayhawks ripped off a game-defining 11-0 run. Mason started and ended it, but it was Lagerald Vick's acrobatic 360-degree dunk in transition that brought a roar that shook the playing floor.

When Mason knocked down his fourth 3, the lead had grown to 69-54 with 10 minutes left - and it just kept growing. It soon reached 20, then 30, as the Jayhawks began to party.

"It's basically our backyard," Graham said, "and we're just thankful we had the opportunity to play here. We took advantage of it."

STATS AND STREAKS

Kansas is the first team since UConn in 1995 to score at least 90 points each of its first three games. ... The Jayhawks were 15 of 28 from beyond the arc, setting a school record for makes in an NCAA Tournament game. ... Purdue is 1-3 against the Jayhawks in the NCAA Tournament. ... Kansas had lost its last three games against teams seeded fourth or better.

WHAT'S NEXT

Asked whether he plans to turn pro, Swanigan replied: "I haven't thought about it." The sophomore went on to say he doesn't have a timetable to make a decision after emerging as a potential first-round NBA draft pick during his breakout season with the Boilermakers.

BIG PICTURE

Purdue got 12 points from P.J. Thompson and 11 from Haas, but it wasn't nearly enough. Vincent Edwards was held to eight points after big games against Vermont and Iowa State, while Carsen Edwards had six points on 1-for-10 shooting. He was 0 for 5 from beyond the arc.

Kansas was so far ahead that Self was able to empty his bench, a rarity for a regional semifinal. That meant his son, Tyler Self, was able to check in for the final couple of minutes, just as chants of "Rock, Chalk!" began to ring out through Sprint Center.

UP NEXT

The Jayhawks play the Ducks on Saturday for a spot in Glendale, Arizona.

Purdue faces tough road vs. top-seeded Kansas

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In a stereotypical big vs. small clash, the small is actually favored as No. 1 seed Kansas “hosts” No. 4 seed Purdue in the Sweet 16 of the NCAA Tournament on Thursday night at Sprint Center in Kansas City, Mo.

It’s listed as a neutral-site game, but Sprint Center is less than an hour from Allen Fieldhouse — the home of the Jayhawks — and the majority of the 18,972 in attendance likely will be clad in crimson and blue.

“We get a chance to play 35 miles away from Lawrence,” Kansas guard Frank Mason III said. “I think it’s just great for the fans and for us to get a chance to play there in the Sweet 16. We’re all so excited.”

Purdue is ready for the atmosphere.

“We know it’ll be hostile there, but we can draw energy from that,” center Isaac Haas said via Twitter. “Gotta put ourselves in best position possible.”

The two teams won their regular-season outright conference titles by multiple games. Purdue (27-7) won the Big Ten by two games while No. 3 Kansas (30-4) won the Big 12 by four games.

The Jayhawks start four guards, although two are Josh Jackson and Sviatoslav Mykhailiuk, who both stand 6-foot-8. They get a majority of their scoring (more than 60 of their 83 points per game) from their four guards.

Purdue, meanwhile, depends heavily on its bigs, especially national player of the year candidate Caleb Swanigan, the double-double machine. He leads the NCAA with 28 double-doubles this season.

The Boilermakers also have 6-8 Vince Edwards (12.7 points per game) and the 7-2 Haas (12.6), creating matchup problems for Kansas. Swanigan is 6-9, 250 pounds, but he averages 18.5 points and 12.6 rebounds. He’s also a deft passer, averaging 3.0 assists.

Purdue leads the Big Ten and is 12th nationally with a scoring differential of 12.6 points per game. The Boilermakers are second in the Big Ten (13th nationally) in rebounding margin at 7.0.

Kansas boasts its own player of the year candidate in Mason, but he does his damage outside the post. He led the Big 12 in scoring at 20.8 points per game. The Jayhawks use two point guards, as Devonte’ Graham handles the ball as often as Mason.

Mykhailiuk is mostly a long-range threat for Kansas. He takes 63 percent of his shots from beyond 3-point range, connecting on 39.5 percent of them. But he’s not the only good shooter. The Jayhawks rank fifth in the country at 40.6 percent from 3-point range.

The matchup problem on Kansas’ roster is Jackson, one of the leading freshmen in the country. He’s averaging 16.6 points and 7.1 rebounds. His height makes him a tough matchup for opposing guards, and his athleticism makes him tough to guard for forwards.

Ironically, both teams reached this round by beating a team from their opponent’s conference. Purdue advanced with an 80-70 victory over Vermont. In the second round, the Boilermakers gave up a 19-point second-half lead, but rebounded to defeat Iowa State 80-76.

Kansas reached the Sweet 16 with convincing wins over UC Davis (100-62) and Michigan State (90-70).

Swanigan powers Purdue into Sweet 16

By JAY COHEN
AP Sports Writer

MILWAUKEE (AP) When Purdue needed him the most, when the Boilermakers were on the brink of a heartbreaking loss, Caleb "Biggie" Swanigan lived up to his nickname - over and over again.

Swanigan had 20 points, 12 rebounds and seven assists, and Purdue reached the Sweet 16 for the first time in seven years with a wild 80-76 victory over Iowa State on Saturday night.

The Cyclones erased a 19-point deficit in the second half, taking their first lead of the game on Deonte Burton's two free throws with 3:11 left. But P.J. Thompson responded with a critical 3-pointer for the Boilermakers, and Swanigan made several huge plays in the final minutes.

"It was an amazing game," Thompson said. "I thought we were pretty special tonight, at different moments we were really clutch when we needed to be. A lot of different guys made a lot of different plays tonight."

After Dakota Mathias missed the front end of a 1-and-1 with 11 seconds left and Purdue clinging to a 78-76 lead, Swanigan tracked down the rebound to set up Thompson's free throws with 7 seconds remaining. Monte Morris missed a 3 on the other end, and time ran out for Iowa State.

Vince Edwards had 21 points and 10 rebounds for No. 4 seed Purdue (27-7), which will play the winner of Sunday's Michigan State-Kansas game on Thursday in Kansas City, Missouri. Isaac Haas finished with 14 points, helping the Boilermakers to a 23-5 advantage in bench points.

"I'm excited. I'm ready to get back to campus and get to work and watch the game tomorrow, Kansas-Michigan State, and see who is left," Swanigan said.

Swanigan's typically clipped response drew a smile from coach Matt Painter.

"That's great," a grinning Painter said. "That's all we get? That's beautiful."

Yup, Swanigan did all his talking with his play. It was the 28th double-double of the season for the Big Ten player of the year.

Fifth-seeded Iowa State (24-11) had won 10 of 11, moving to the brink of its third appearance in the Sweet 16 in four years. But it eventually ran out of gas against the bigger Boilermakers.

Burton scored 17 of his 25 points in the second half, putting on a show in his hometown of Milwaukee. Matt Thomas, another Wisconsin kid, had 20 points on 9-for-11 shooting, and Morris finished with 18 points and nine assists in the final game of his standout career.

"We didn't rebound that ball at the end," coach Steve Prohm said. "But you know, game like this you can look back at a lot of difficult things."

For a while, it looked as if Iowa State's storied senior class was headed for a rough ending.

Swanigan helped Purdue pull away at the start of the second half, showing off his well-rounded game. He found Mathias and Edwards for layups on backdoor cuts in the first minute. He made a 3-pointer and Edwards got loose for a dunk as the Boilermakers grabbed a 58-39 lead with 14:23 left.

But the Cyclones responded with a furious comeback, backed by a boisterous crowd filled with red and yellow. Two free throws by Burton and a jumper by Thomas tied it at 71 with 3:45 remaining.

"Once we got on that run, you know, we made things happen and we made it interesting," Thomas said. "We just were one or two plays short of capping that win off."

After Burton put Iowa State in front, Thompson rattled in his only 3-pointer of the game. Burton then missed a stepback jumper, and Swanigan and Edwards each scored to give Purdue some breathing room at 78-73 with 1:36 left.

"I kept trying to tell myself (to) stay poised, stay calm," Edwards said. "And we were all just talking out and kept telling each other we got this, we got this. We were able to stick it out and win."

WORTH NOTING

The Boilermakers shot 48.4 percent (31 for 64) and had 27 assists on 31 field goals. The Cyclones shot 50 percent, but Naz Mitrou-Long only had five points after averaging 15.4 coming into the game.

BIG PICTURE

Iowa State: Burton, Morris, Mitrou-Long and Thomas are all seniors. The Cyclones could take a step back next year after a very successful run.

Purdue: Haas looked more comfortable than he did in Purdue's first-round win against Vermont, going 6 for 8 from the field. But he only played 4 minutes in the second half.

NEXT UP

Purdue plays the winner of Sunday's Michigan State-Kansas game on Thursday in Kansas City, Missouri.

Edwards, Purdue hold off Vermont 80-70 in NCAA Tournament

By JAY COHEN
Associated Press 

MILWAUKEE (AP) — The drought is over for Purdue. Vincent Edwards and company finished it off with one big push against Vermont.

Edwards scored 15 of his 21 points in the second half, and the Boilermakers held off the Catamounts 80-70 on Thursday night for their first victory in the NCAA Tournament in five years.

Caleb Swanigan added 16 points, 14 rebounds and four assists for fourth-seeded Purdue (26-7), which lost to Arkansas-Little Rock in double-overtime in the first round last year. It also dropped its tournament opener to Cincinnati in 2015.

"Both of those games just replayed in my head all year, even though we had seasons to play," Edwards said. "I still could replay it almost every last three, four possessions, in each of those games. So to come out here, I just really wanted the win."

It was the first NCAA Tournament victory for the Boilermakers since they beat Saint Mary's in the first round on the same day in 2012. Next up is No. 5 seed Iowa State, which advanced with an 84-73 win against Nevada.

"It feels good but I don't think we want to stop here," said Dakota Mathias, who made three 3-pointers and finished with 13 points. "We play a good opponent the next game, have a quick turnaround, we've got to take care of ourselves and get back at it."

It was Vermont's first loss of 2017. The Catamounts (29-6), the regular-season and tournament champions in the America East, had the nation's longest active win streak at 21 games. But they lost versatile senior Kurt Steidl to a knee injury in the first half and were unable to make up for a huge disadvantage inside against the bigger, stronger Boilermakers.

Anthony Lamb had 20 points and nine rebounds, and Trae Bell-Haynes finished with 15 points, seven boards and six assists.

"We played a really good first half and were able to stay neck-and-neck with them, but in the second half they just made a few more plays and hit a couple of 3s down the stretch and they're a really good team," Catamounts guard Dre Wills said.

With Swanigan and 7-foot-2 center Isaac Haas, Purdue had a sizeable advantage in the paint. But the Catamounts played tough perimeter defense, turning post passes into a risky proposition, and stayed right with the Boilermakers with opportunistic baskets on offense.

But the combination of Edwards and Swanigan was too much to overcome down the stretch. Edwards scored Purdue's first eight points of the second half, helping the Boilermakers open a 45-38 lead.

Every time Vermont made a charge in the second half, Purdue had a response.

"Our guys, you know, answered every one of their runs by either going inside, knocking down 3s, and they were a good team," coach Matt Painter said. "One of the best teams we've faced all year."

Darren Payen made a jumper and Ernie Duncan hit a 3 to get the Catamounts within one before Swanigan responded with a 3 for the Boilermakers. A jumper by Lamb trimmed Purdue's lead to five, but Carsen Edwards and P.J. Thompson each hit a 3 to make it 76-65 with 1:56 remaining.

The Boilermakers finished with a 38-28 rebounding advantage and outscored the Catamounts 42-24 in the paint. They also shot 52 percent from the field.

"It's huge, we got the monkey off our back with two first-round exits the last two years with pretty good teams," said Thompson, who finished with 10 points. "We had a hell of a year this year. The last thing we were going to do is lose in the first round."

AILING

Steidl went down after he jumped out to defend a 3-point attempt with about 2 minutes left in the first half. A trainer worked on his left leg for a short while before the swingman was helped to the locker room, walking on his own, but with a pronounced limp.

Coach John Becker said Steidl was headed to the hospital after the game for further evaluation.

"I feel terrible for Kurt because I know how much this meant to him," Becker said.

BIG PICTURE

Vermont: Becker said he was proud of his team for how it battled the Boilermakers all night long. He also praised his players for their accomplishments this season.

Purdue: The Boilermakers had eight turnovers in the first half and two in the second half. If they can take care of the ball the way they did after the break, they will be one tough out with their imposing front line.

UP NEXT

The Boilermakers face the Cyclones in the second round on Saturday.

Vermont-Purdue Preview

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MILWAUKEE — Purdue will try to erase the sting of last season’s first round upset when it takes on Vermont on Thursday in a Midwest Region first-round NCAA Tournament contest at the Bradley Center in Milwaukee.

The Boilermakers were a No. 5 seed last year when they committed 18 turnovers and fell in double-overtime, 85-83 to No. 12 seed Little Rock.

This year, the Boilermakers (25-7) come into the tournament as a No. 4 seed, thanks to winning the Big Ten by two full games and despite being knocked out early in the conference tournament.

Still, the Boilermakers have hit a stride late in the season. They followed an 83-80 loss at Nebraska with six straight victories and have won eight of their last 10 games.

“Our team’s purpose is to get past the first game — there you go,” junior center Isaac Haas said. “After that, we’ll get past the second game, and after that we’ll get past the Sweet 16. It’s a matter of taking it game-by-game.”

Coach Matt Painter had a similar view.

“For us to be able to get a 4, and you look at some of those 5 seeds, there’s a couple of 5s that had unbelievable seasons,” Painter said. “We feel that’s a definite reward for winning our conference by two games.”

Purdue has struggled at times, defensively. The Boilermakers rank near the bottom of the league in turnover differential and are allowing opponents to shoot 41.3 percent from the floor, but they make up for that with an efficient offense, anchored inside by Caleb Swanigan and Haas.

The Big Ten Player of the Year and candidate for National Player of the Year, Swanigan averaged 18.7 points, 12.6 rebounds and 2.8 assists per game this season while Haas contributed 12.8 points and 5.1 rebounds a night.

They’ll face a Vermont team that is 29-5 and hasn’t lost since falling at Butler on Dec. 21. The Catamounts’ 21-game winning streak is the longest in the country and includes a perfect run through the America East regular season and tournament slates.

“This would be the first game too that we’ll play without a lot of pressure on us,” Vermont coach John Becker said. “That should be a nice relief for our guys, just kind of cut it loose and I think it will give us a chance to play a really good game.”

The Catamounts are a disciplined bunch, averaging just 11 turnovers per game with 13 assists. Six-foot-six freshman Anthony Lamb leads the team with 12.6 points per game while junior Payton Henson, a 6-8 junior follows with 11.4 points and 5.3 rebounds.

“The Swanigan versus Lamb matchup should be a battle of two really good big men,” Becker said.

The two teams met last season in a nonconference contest, a 107-79 victory for Purdue in West Lafayette.

“We were able to score on them last year, but I haven’t seen a lot of tape,” Becker said. “I know Michigan beat them twice, Michigan likes to shoot a lot of 3s, so we’ll start digging into the tape tonight and start to have a better understanding of Purdue as we move toward Thursday.”

The winner will face either No. 5 Iowa State or No. 12 Middle Tennessee on Saturday.