Mar 24, 2007, 14:40 GMT
San Jose, CA - With a trip to the Final Four on the line, the top-seeded Kansas Jayhawks will collide with the second-seeded UCLA Bruins this evening in an Elite Eight matchup from the HP Pavilion in San Jose.
After defeating Weber State (70-42) and Indiana (54-49) in the first two rounds of the tournament, the Bruins continued their tenacious defensive play, slipping past Pittsburgh, 64-55, in the Sweet 16. With the win, UCLA is now 29-5 on the season and is one step away from advancing to the Final Four for the second consecutive year.
As for the Jayhawks, they are one of the hottest teams in the tourney, winning 14 consecutive games, including a thrilling, 61-58 win over the Southern Illinois Salukis this past Thursday in the Sweet 16. Now at 33-4, the Jayhawks have advanced to the Elite Eight for the 18th time in school history.
The winner tonight will advance one step closer to the title game and will battle either Oregon or Florida in the Final Four. These two powerhouse schools have clashed on the basketball floor a few times and the Bruins have a 14-9 edge in the all-time series, including a 4-0 mark in the NCAA Tournament.
The Bruins continued their tremendous defensive play in their recent victory, holding Pittsburgh to a dismal 55-point performance. UCLA held the Panthers to a meager 36.4 percent shooting effort from the field. At the other end of the floor, the Bruins did just enough to get the job done, shooting 42.9 percent from the field, while connecting on an impressive 23-of-26 attempts from the foul line. Arron Afflalo only made 3-of-11 shots from the floor, but still finished with a game-high 17 points and also grabbed seven rebounds. Josh Shipp added 16 points in the win, while Darren Collison chipped in 12 points Throughout the season Afflalo has been the top performer for UCLA, averaging 16.7 ppg. Shipp and Collison have also done well for UCLA, as Shipp is posting 13.2 ppg, while Collison is chipping in 12.7 ppg.
The Jayhawks struggled against the Salukis' defensive scheme, but despite the poor performance, Kansas was able to collect a three-point win. Kansas shot a stellar 59.5 percent from the field, but committed 19 turnovers and finished with just 61 total points. Brandon Rush was the only player with double figures for Kansas as the sophomore netted 12 points. Russell Robinson, Mario Chalmers and Darrell Arthur all posted nine points apiece, while Julian Wright chipped in seven. It was a rare lackluster effort by Kansas, which is currently producing a whopping 79 ppg. Rush is the scoring leader on the team, averaging 13.7 ppg. Chalmers is netting 12.5 ppg, while Wright has been the main source of production down low, posting 12.1 ppg to go along with 7.9 rpg.
© 2007 The Sports Network
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