Kansas vs Texas A&M Basketball Recap

Kansas 59, Texas A&M 54

If you had told Kansas coach Bill Self that his star player, Sherron Collins, would score just seven points and make just two field goals, he would have hated his chances of going into Reed Arena and surviving a Big 12 battle against a motivated and hungry opponent from Texas A&M.

Evidently, the Jayhawks know how to defy the odds.

A flinty, feisty defensive performance - accompanied by a pinch of old-fashioned power near the basket - proved to be enough for the No. 1 team in the United States, which left its offense at home in Lawrence, Kan., but brought ample elbow grease to College Station, Tex. As a result of its determined defensive effort, Kansas held off the A&M Aggies to remain unbeaten in the Big 12 Conference and essentially (though not yet officially) wrap up the 2010 regular season championship.

There was nothing artful about this contest in the Lone Star State. The rivalry between Pittsburgh and West Virginia is called the "Backyard Brawl," but that label fit this fistfight in AggieLand. Kansas conquered yet another league foe because it simply amped up its defensive intensity in the crucible of late-game pressure.

The Jayhawks' offense never really got going against the tenacious and relentless pressure posed by Coach Mark Turgeon's Aggies. Collins - one of the premier players in the country - did indeed tally a mere seven points, and the senior stud from Chicago didn't hit his first field goal until the 7:56 mark of regulation. To put a finer point on KU's offensive struggles, the Jayhawks - down 54-52 with four minutes left - hit only one field goal attempt the rest of the way. There was no offensive surge, no "great awakening" in which KU finally solved A&M's rotations and double-teams. There was never any moment of discovery, no point when the Jayhawks figured things out at the offensive end of the floor.

No, the visitors from America's Breadbasket simply found the fortitude - and the finishing kick - needed to smother Turgeon's team on defense.

The Aggies battled well for 40 minutes, but in the final 6:37 of this showdown, they clearly began to rely too much on perimeter jumpers. Once in a while, A&M got an uncontested look, but for the most part, the guys in white jerseys seemed a little too willing to settle for long heaves in what was an unceasingly physical game. An occasional open three is a good shot, but using the long ball as a default option isn't recommended, and when one considers the fact that A&M went just 5 of 21 from 3-point range, it's clear that the Aggies overplayed their hand when it came to shot selection. As a result, the final 6:37 of regulation - referred to above - produced all of two points for the kids from College Station.

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Kansas didn't need much offense to win under those circumstances.

The Jayhawks - despite their own lack of offensive potency (1 of 10 on 3-pointers, for instance) - were able to power the ball to the basket in the final few minutes and convert five free throws down the stretch. What was a 54-52 deficit at the four-minute mark became a 59-54 win, thanks to only one field goal... and a fat stack of defensive stops plus consistent defensive rebounding that turned A&M possessions into one-shot-and-done affairs.

Great teams find different ways to win; ugly and inelegant outings sometimes need to be overcome over the course of a long season, and that's exactly what the Kansas Jayhawks did in front of a raucous and hostile crowd on Monday night. As a result, the Big 12 championship will reside in Lawrence for yet another season. The official coronation won't happen for a few more days, but after another adversary was laid at the Jayhawks' feet, it's only a formality at this point in time: you can rock-chalk-up another conference crown, and hang up another banner at Phog Allen Fieldhouse.

By: Matt Zemek
Big 12 Fans Senior Staff Writer