2012 Final Four: Kansas Jayhawks vs Ohio State Buckeyes Recap

After witnessing electrifying dunks and absurd rejections, it was going to be hard for Ohio State and Kansas to give us a better show than Kentucky and Louisville, but that is exactly what we got.

It was like a battle between two heavyweight prize fighters on Saturday night in the Super Dome.

Ohio State came out of the gate and landed a right hook early and often but couldn't manage a knockout blow.  Kansas staggered but never fell.  After looking lifeless for almost 15 minutes, the Jayhawks regained some much needed composure with a Travis Releford layup with less than a second remaining in the first half.

The Ohio State lead was cut to nine going into halftime.

Bill Self knew they were lucky the deficit wasn't double that, and he let his team know it.

The Jayhawks certainly got the message.  Kansas opened the second half on a 13-4 run, tying the game at 38.

The two traded blows for the rest of the first half, until the Kansas defense had the last word.

Jeff Withey had two blocks and Tyshawn Taylor had two steals in the final two minutes to seal their ninth trip to the National Championship.

After a solid first half, the Buckeyes struggled to score in the second.  All-American Jared Sullinger was doubled teamed in the post and forced too many shots.  He finished with only 13 points on 5-of-19 shooting.

Deshaun Thomas didn't look any better.  His nine points on 3-of-14 shooting hurt more than it helped.

Aaron Craft and William Buford had to carry the team on their backs, and the burden proved to be too heavy.  Craft added 11 points and three steals while playing the entire 40 minutes while Buford added 19 points and seven rebounds of his own.

Although Kansas only led the Buckeyes for less than four minutes during the entire game, it managed to squeak out a win.  In fact, the Jayhawks have become a master of late-game escapes after skating on thin ice for most of the tournament.

Thomas Robinson bested Jared Sullinger in a matchup, which we will likely see much more of in the NBA.  While Sullinger struggled through double teams and forced shots, Robinson had a team-high 19 points.

While Robinson led the offense, Jeff Withey anchored the defense.  His seven blocks and eight rebounds made points in the paint come at a premium for the Buckeyes.

Bill Self and his squad seemed to be outplayed for much of the night, much like their second round game against Purdue and their Elite 8 matchup against UNC, but they just wouldn't give their opponent a KO.  Now they find themselves on college basketball's biggest stage, against their toughest opponent yet.

Will the magic continue?