Revenge Is Sweet for Missouri

Missouri had plenty of motivation Saturday against No. 4 Kansas in the semifinals of the Big 12 Conference tournament at Dallas. Not only were the Tigers gunning for their fourth consecutive NCAA tournament appearance under Coach Quin Snyder, they had lost five in a row to the rival Jayhawks.

The Tigers ended the skid with a 68-63 victory, securing Missouri’s place in the NCAA field of 65.

Rickey Paulding scored 21 points, including five three-point baskets, as the Tigers (21-9) advanced to the Big 12 championship for the first time since 1997.

A week ago, Missouri lost its regular-season finale to Kansas, 79-74, for its only loss at home this season.

“The freshness of the last loss really motivated us,” Snyder said.

Kansas (25-7), which won the regular-season Big 12 title, didn’t score after Aaron Miles’ layup tied it at 63 with 3:15 left. The Jayhawks then missed their last five shots and shot only 35% (21 of 60), a day after shooting 60% in an 89-75 victory over Iowa State.

“We played like the team that had played three days in a row,” Kansas Coach Roy Williams said. “The want-to and sharpness was more in their corner. We had a lot of little breakdowns.”

In the other Big 12 semifinal, No. 6 Oklahoma held off Texas Tech, 67-60 in overtime, delivering what might be a fatal blow to the NCAA tournament hopes of the Red Raiders.

It will be Oklahoma’s fifth trip to the final in six seasons.

Hollis Price had 26 points for the Sooners (23-6) and Ebi Ere, playing with a broken bone in his left wrist, scored seven of his 17 points in overtime as the Sooners kept alive their chances for a No. 1 seeding when the NCAA pairings are announced today.

Texas Tech (18-12) might fall short of an NCAA bid.

AMERICA EAST

David Hehn made a 10-foot jump shot with 5.6 seconds left at Boston to give Vermont a 56-55 victory over Boston University and its first trip to the NCAAs. Matt Sheftic scored 23 points for the Catamounts (21-11), who became the league’s first No. 2-seeded team to beat a No. 1-seeded team in the tournament title game. Paul Seymour had 20 points for the Terriers (20-10).

ATLANTIC 10

Sean Finn scored a career-high 20 points as No. 22 Dayton (24-5) put the finishing touch on its best home season by defeating Temple, 79-72, at Dayton, Ohio. The Flyers, who were 17-1 at home, played before a partisan crowd of 11,537 in earning their first tournament championship of any sort since 1990 and first NCAA berth since 2000. Temple, which lost its first five for the first time in 107 years of basketball and opened 3-11, finished 15-15.

BIG EAST

Pittsburgh (26-4), ranked No. 5, lived up to its billing as the Beast of the East with a convincing 74-56 victory over Connecticut (21-9) in the tournament final. The Panthers also gained revenge for a 74-65 loss to the Huskies in last season’s title game.

BIG TEN

No. 13 Illinois advanced to the championship game with a 73-72 victory over Indiana (20-12) at Chicago. Brian Cook scored 25 points and made two free throws with 5.2 seconds left to help secure the victory for the Fighting Illini (23-6). The Hoosiers (20-12), who made it to the national championship game last season, probably assured themselves of an at-large NCAA berth. Illinois’ opponent in today’s title game will be defending tournament champion Ohio State (17-13), which edged Michigan State, 55-54. The Spartans (19-12) nearly overcame a 15% shooting effort in the first half.

CONFERENCE USA

No. 20 Louisville won its first league title since 1995 by holding off Alabama Birmingham, 83-78, before a tournament championship record 17,303 at Louisville, Ky. Luke Whitehead had 17 points and 14 rebounds led for the Cardinals (24-6). Center Melvin Stone, who has been under investigation as to whether he accepted illegal benefits earlier in his career, played and scored 10 points before fouling out. Morris Finley scored 20 points to lead the Blazers (19-12). Louisville Coach Rick Pitino’s teams have won 21 of their last 23 games in league tournaments.

MID-AMERICAN

Chris Kaman had 25 points, 13 rebounds and four blocks to lead Central Michigan (24-6) to a 77-67 victory over Kent State (21-9) in the conference final at Cleveland, giving the Chippewas their first NCAA tournament berth since 1987 when former NBA player Dan Majerle was their leading scorer.

MID-EASTERN ATHLETIC

South Carolina State (20-10) rallied from a 26-6 deficit at Richmond, Va., and defeated two-time defending champion Hampton, 72-67, to clinch its fifth NCAA tournament berth and first since 2000. The top-seeded Bulldogs’ poor start included nine turnovers in the first 10 minutes. They rallied behind the play of Thurman Zimmerman, who scored 19 of his 21 points in the second half. Hampton (19-11) was outscored from the free-throw line, 30-13, with Zimmerman making 13 of 16, all in the second half.

MOUNTAIN WEST

Brian Greene scored 22 points, including the game-winning basket with 5.7 seconds left, as Colorado State (19-13) made a stunning rally to defeat Nevada Las Vegas, 62-61, at Las Vegas, earning the Rams their first NCAA bid since 1990. The Runnin’ Rebels (21-10) failed to score in the final 4:16.

SOUTHEASTERN

Kentucky won its 22nd game in a row, outscoring Auburn, 42-22, in the second half to cruise to a 78-58 semifinal victory over the Tigers (20-11) at New Orleans. The No. 2 Wildcats (28-3), who were 16-0 in SEC regular-season play, and Tigers were tied at 36 at halftime. Kentucky had led at the break in 15 consecutive games since Jan. 14, when they trailed, 36-28, at Vanderbilt, but much like Saturday, they outscored the Commodores, 46-16, over the final 20 minutes to win in a rout. Kentucky will play Mississippi State, a 76-61 winner over Louisiana State, in today’s final. The Bulldogs (21-8), led by Timmy Bowers’ six-for-nine shooting from three-point range, made 10 of 19 shots from behind the arc. The Tigers (21-10) had their winning streak snapped at seven.

SOUTHWESTERN ATHLETIC

Allan Lovett scored 23 points and Ra’Kim Hollis had 18 points and nine assists at Birmingham, Ala., as Texas Southern (18-12) defeated Alcorn State, 77-68, at Birmingham, Ala., to earn a trip to the NCAA tournament. The Tigers’ previous appearances were in 1990, ’94 and ’95. The Braves finished 14-19.

WESTERN ATHLETIC

Tulsa (22-9) salvaged a season that once seemed ruined, earning its third trip to the NCAA tournament in four seasons by defeating Nevada, 75-64, at Tulsa, Okla. The Golden Hurricane was once 11-7 before winning 11 of 13. The Wolf Pack (18-13) hasn’t been to the NCAA tournament since 1985.

OTHER TOURNAMENTS

In Division II games: Gustavus Adolphus defeated Occidental, 74-56, at Storm Lake, Iowa.... Cal State San Bernardino held off Humboldt State, 80-68, at Laie, Hawaii.