Kansas Knocks Off Iowa State to Reach Tournament Final
By: Justin Sampson
Updated: March 16, 2013
(KANSAS CITY, Mo.) The Jayhawks didn't need last-minute heroics or controversy this time around.
No. 7 Kansas took out Iowa State for the third time this year, 88-73 in the Big 12 Tournament semifinals Friday.
The win sets up a meeting of co-conference champions as the Jayhawks (28-5, 14-4) will face Kansas State for the tournament title.
Bill Self energized his team early as an emotional tirade directed at the referees earned him a technical foul in the first half. This followed Ben McLemore's technical after celebrated a three pointer in front of the Iowa State bench. The Jayhawks took a four-point lead at halftime after that and capitalized on a 20-8 run out of the locker room.
McLemore finished with 10 points, while Perry Ellis picked up a career-high 23 points. Jeff Withey and Elijah Johnson each poured in 14.
The two teams fired a combined 52 three point attempts, with the Cyclones going 9-33 and Kansas shooting 5-19.
Tipoff for the Big 12 championship comes Saturday at 5 p.m.
