Kansas Sneaks By DePaul In OT

The scoop all season on the Kansas Jayhawks has been that their tenacity left something to be desired. That talk stopped Friday night.

Making key defensive plays and closing the game with a 10-0 run in the final 1:57 of overtime, Kansas spoiled DePaul's return to the NCAA tournament with an 81-77 victory in the East Regional.

"A lot of people questioned our toughness all year long, including ourselves," said coach Roy Williams, whose Jayhawks have been inconsistent all season and were eliminated in the second round of the Big 12 tournament. "I liked our toughness tonight, especially through the overtime."

The Jayhawks failed to score on their first four possessions of the extra period, clearing the way for the Blue Demons to build a 77-71 lead on Paul McPherson's free throw with 2:23 left.

But Kansas rallied, then sealed it with a key block from Nick Bradford in the waning seconds.

"These kids didn't necessarily have the smoothest ride," Williams said, "but they did come up big down the stretch on the defensive end.".

The outcome was in doubt until Bradford blocked a 3-point shot by Quentin Richardson with three seconds left and Kansas up by three. The Jayhawks' Lester Earl grabbed the loose ball, was fouled and made one free throw to account for the final margin.

Greory made 11-of-12 field-goal attempts and matched his season-high with 22 points to help the eighth-seeded Jayhawks (24-9) win their first-round game for the 17th consecutive time. Bradford finished with 14 points and two blocks.

"It's just a great win for us as far as stepping up to the plate when we were in a deficit," Gregory said.

DePaul (21-12) was making its first appearance in the tournament since 1992. McPherson and Richardson had 21 points apiece, but it wasn't enough to give the Blue Demons their first victory in the event since 1989.

"We just have a tendency to get relaxed at the end of games and lose focus and lose concentration," McPherson said. "Maybe we can turn that into a positive and use that for a great starting block for next year."

Befitting a contest pitting teams seeded eighth and ninth, there were 17 ties, 11 lead changes and no lead of more than six points.

Kansas shot 57 percent but hurt itself with 19 turnovers that the Blue Demons converted into 19 points.

"We really put ourselves in very good position," coach Pat Kennedy said. "We just couldn't close it up."

Richardson hit his first three field-goal attempts and had eight points in the opening three-plus minutes before twisting his left ankle. Richardson was sidelined briefly, but when he returned, he spent the rest of the game limping up and down the floor, wincing and adjusting the tension in the laces on his left shoe.

"I rolled it real bad," he said. "I really couldn't get real explosive after that. If I tried to push off on my foot, it was weak."

Gregory hit his first seven shots before a 14-foot jumper from the left wing banged over the rim with 10:32 left. He didn't miss again, and his block of a short baseline jumper by Richardson with 46 seconds left kept the score tied it 70 and helped force overtime.

Richardson had a chance to prevent the extra period, but his 12-foot jumper bounced long, and McPherson missed the tip.

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