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Kansas advances to Big 12 Conference semis

Mar 10, 2007 - 1:50 AM OKLAHOMA CITY (Ticker) -- Brandon Rush took a half before he got going.

Rush scored 13 of his 16 points in the second half as second-ranked Kansas applied the defensive clamps en route to a 64-47 victory over Oklahoma in the Big 12 Conference tournament quarterfinals.

Darrell Arthur added 10 points for the top-seeded Jayhawks (28-4), who took control in the second half as they moved within two wins of capturing their second straight tournament title.

The Jayhawks' leading scorer, Rush took just three shots in the first half, which ended with his team holding a 28-26 advantage.

Rush and the rest of his teammates were more aggressive in the second half, especially on the defensive end. The Jayhawks held the Sooners to 20 percent (4-of-20) shooting over the final 20 minutes.

Rush made a reverse layup, a 3-pointer and a pair of free throws in an 18-3 surge to start the second half that gave Kansas a 46-29 lead. His layup with 11:32 remaining capped the burst.

Another layup by dynamic freshman Sherron Collins started another run that gave Kansas a 60-38 lead with under four minutes to play.

Upset in the first round of the NCAA Tournament each of the last two seasons, the Jayhawks could be a No. 1 seed when the field is announced Sunday.

However before they could think of the NCAAs, the Jayhawks must take care of business here. They will meet Kansas State on Saturday in the semifinals.

Kansas shot 48 percent (25-of-52) and made just 11-of-22 free throws.

Longar Longar scored 13 points and Michael Neal 10 for ninth-seeded Oklahoma (16-15), which could be headed to the NIT.

A 3-pointer by Neal with four minutes remaining in the first half gave the Sooners their last lead at 23-22. They managed just five baskets the rest of the way.