No. 1 Kansas is headed to its 10th national championship appearance in program history.
The Jayhawks defeated No. 2 Villanova, 81–65, in New Orleans on Saturday night to earn their spot in Monday night’s title game where they will take on the winner of UNC-Duke for the national championship.
The 16-point victory was Kansas’s third double-digit win of the tournament.
Aided by a 10-0 run to begin the contest, the Jayhawks took a 40-29 lead into halftime as their fast-pace brand of basketball proved too much for the Wildcats to adjust to. Seniors Ochai Agbaji and David McCormack led the dominant effort from the jump, with the star guard going 3-for-3 from behind the arc while the big man handled business in the post.
The relentless Wildcats, playing without their best defender Justin Moore (torn Achilles), fought hard to keep the contest competitive in the second half, outscoring the Jayhawks 13-10 before a KU timeout at the 14:07 mark. But, as the affair continued on, Kansas found ways to respond to Villanova’s timely buckets before eventually pulling away.
Kansas, who never trailed in the contest, outshot Villanova, 54% to 39%, from the field, and won the rebound battle, 35-29. Both teams turned in a red-hot performance from beyond the arc with KU making 13 of its 24 attempts and ’Nova turning in 13 makes on 31 attempts. In all, the 26 combined threes set an all-time record for any Final Four game.
McCormack led all scorers with 25 points and nine rebounds while Agbaji, the Big 12 Player of the Year, poured in 21 points behind a 6-of–7 showing from downtown.
Villanova guard Colin Gillespie, the reigning Big East Player of the Year, finished his last collegiate game with a team-high 17 points on 6-of-11 shooting (5-of-8 from three). Fellow senior Jermaine Samuels chipped in nine points and seven rebounds. Forward Brandon Slater stepped up in the absence of Moore, contributing 16 points (4-of-7 from three) and eight boards.
