Kansas Basketball: Jayhawks upsets Penn Quakers upset bid

Kansas Basketball was picked by many to be the first number one seed in history to fall. Despite the disrespect, the Jayhawks are moving on after beating Penn.

Kansas Basketball did enough this season to be selected as a one seed in the Midwest. They apparently didn’t do enough to get the respect a one seed should receive. The Penn Quakers were actually picked by some to win, and that narrative grew as the week grew.

Be careful basketball fans, do not drink the kool-aid that fake news tries to feed you. Bill Self was not going to make history today.

At one point the score was 21-11 with Penn leading. The Jayhawks came out cold, unable to hit anything outside and getting out-rebounded by the Ivy League champions. The Jayhawks were going down in history.

Enter the seniors. Devonte’ Graham started driving with the basketball. Even though they were contested he managed to get baskets inside. Finally, Svi got open for a three a knocked it in. This was all part of a nine point run. Malik Newman hit a long two to regain the lead, 22-21. Graham simply took over from there.

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The Jayhawks went in to halftime up by seven. Graham had 19 points, 3 assists, and 5 rebounds. Graham was the Kansas Jayhawks during the first half. Penn played well. They were probably the best 16 seed in years. This is big boy basketball however. The Jayhawks are not Harvard, they are not Princeton, or Yale. This is Kansas Basketball.

2nd half

The Second half started at a lightning fast speed. both teams traded baskets for the first five minutes. The Jayhawks climbed to an 11 point lead before Penn started knocking down shots closing the gap as Kansas went cold. The score got as close as 52-48.

Keep in mind that over history there have been some real good showings from 16 seeds. East Tennessee State came the closest in 1989 losing by one point to Oklahoma. There have been a handful of four point losses as well. Traditionally the score isn’t close, even remotely close.

Hats off to Penn. Many thought they deserved a better seed, and it is easy to agree with that. They played their hearts out, but there were really no points in the game where Kansas fans should have been worried.

The absence of Udoka Azubuike was noticeable, as Kansas had little inside-out game. Udoka played minimal moments for this game. Penn shot well from beyond the arc but were dismal at the foul line. Bill Self managed to keep calm throughout the game, which is a dependable worry-meter for fans.

Next: Best seasons all-time for Kansas Basketball

Penn kept the game from getting out of hand, to their credit. Kansas was just too good. Kansas is just too good. It was the Devonte’ Graham show. Jayhawks won the game by 16 points at 76-60. Graham finished with 29 points, 6 rebounds, 6 assists and 3 steals.