Kansas' Hot Second Half Too Much for Mountaineers

Kansas City, MO - The West Virginia Mountaineers (19-14) were knocked out of the Big 12 Championship in the quarterfinal with a 78-61 loss to the top-seeded Kansas after the Jayhawks (26-6) shot 66.7 % from the field Thursday evening. Kansas forward and 2023 Big 12 Conference Player of the Year led all scorers with a double double 22 points and 11 rebounds.

Kansas grabbed an early 9-4 lead behind five second chance points heading into the first media timeout but at drive to the basket and a tough jumper in the paint by WVU guard Erik Stevenson sparked an 10-2 run and the Mountaineers grabbed an 14-11 lead near the midway point of the second half.

The Jayhawks responded with an 18-2 run and built a 13-point advantage behind the stellar play of forward Jalen Wilson, putting in 10 first half points and 10 rebounds.

Emmitt Matthews Jr. ended the Kansas run with his second tough, high-arching fadeaway in the paint for two of his six points in the first half, then guard Joe Toussaint buried a three, followed by a pair of free throws to cut the deficit to six. However, Kansas guard Dajuan Harris put in the Jayhawks' 13th second chance points to extend the lead to eight at halftime.

West Virginia forward Trey Mitchell opened the half with a bucket before hitting a three from the wing to get the Mountaineers within five at the 16:51 mark of the second half.

Kansas built its lead back to nine twice, but guards Seth Wilson and Erik Stevenson answered with three to keep the Mountaineers within six. Then, Toussaint attacked the rim in transition for the layup and cut into the Kansas' lead, 44-40, with 12:15 left to play.

The Jayhawks responded with a 16-6 run in a team effort to extend their lead to 14 with 6:43 remaining in the game.

West Virginia got the game back within single digits after Kedrian Johnson attacked the paint for a couple of layups, but, again, the Jayhawks responded with a 5-0 spurt of their own keep the lead at 14 with 3:13 remaining.

Kansas added to its lead down the stretch and moved on to the semifinals of the Big 12 Championship with a 78-61 victory.

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