VCU Upsets

The lead was collapsing in on Virginia Commonwealth, the dream of a most remarkable NCAA tournament run finally flickering. Rams coach Shaka Smart had just earned a technical for charging toward an official at the Alamodome after calling a timeout on Sunday.

"I didn't even say anything, but I guess I charged out there a little bit faster than I should have," said Smart, 33. "I've got to control my pace as I move toward the officials."

The second year head coach then offered a blunt pep talk: "It was basically forget about the refs, forget Kansas,'' he said. "This is all about us, and we've got to do what we've got to do.''

When it was over, VCU had done it, taking out top-seeded Kansas, 71-61, in the NCAA Southwest Regional final. In the ensuing delirium, some fans began cheering at the sight of several older men in suits. "Selection committee," those fans yelled in tribute. The men indeed were part of the NCAA selection committee, sudden celebrities in the Virginia Commonwealth orbit after making the surprising decision to put the Rams into the tournament. Now the most unlikely team ever to reach the Final Four will face Butler on Saturday in an all-Cinderella matchup in Houston.

Officially, VCU (28-11) becomes the third No. 11 seed to advance to the Final Four, after LSU in 1986 and another Colonial Athletic Association miracle team, George Mason, in 2006. But sources said VCU really was a 12th seed, bumped up to an 11th seed because of all the bracket rules that keep teams from playing each other. If the NCAA hadn't expanded from 65 to 68 teams this season, VCU, a fourth place finisher in the Colonial Athletic Association, wouldn't have been in.

"Their players could play for us any day," Kansas coach Bill Self said after his team made just 2 of 21 three pointers and just 15 of 28 free throws. "If we played shirts and skins today, you wouldn't have much of a difference on players or how they look. They've got some good-looking kids. They got what they deserved today. They certainly outplayed us."

As Rams guards drained a barrage of first-half threes, racing to a shocking 18-point lead, there was no fear factor. VCU super-sub Brandon Rozzell dropped one of his four first-half three-pointers from right in front of the Kansas bench and then ran his mouth at that shell-shocked group.

Kansas (35-3), led by the twin tower Morris brothers of North Philadelphia, Marcus (20 points, 16 rebounds) and Markieff (13 points, 12 rebounds, 8 turnovers), got within two points. But VCU counterpunched.

Point guard Joey Rodriguez ignoring the air ball he had just thrown up, followed by a blocked layup attempt drained a three pointer off the dribble, pushing VCU's lead back out to 60-52 with five minutes left.

After Marcus Morris scored on a putback, Rodriguez drove and threw back outside to Bradford Burgess, who had made six three-pointers and the game winning shot Friday against Florida State. A wide open Burgess drained a three from the top of the key.

"That game was all about style of play," Smart said. "We got the style going the way that we wanted in the first half. And if you watched closely, their players were tugging on their shorts for much of the game."

VCU Basketball

The Rams of Virginia Commonwealth University could not have asked for a better first half performance in their Elite 8 matchup against the Kansas Jayhawks. In true VCU fashion, everything they put up from downtown seemed to go in, and they were able to race out to a convincing 41-27 lead.

The second half, however, did not start so well. The Rams increased their lead to 43-27 within the first minute, but didn't score again for about five minutes. The Jayhawks cut the lead to 43-39 in that window, and it looked like the comeback was on.

But not so fast. The Rams were quickly able to reestablish control of the game, and their lead is back up to 63-54 with just under four minutes remaining in the game.

The Rams are dominating just about every area on the stat sheet. They're shooting 40 percent from the field, they've made 12 of their 23 three-point attempts, and they're knocking down free throws at a 79 percent clip.

For the most part, Kansas has struggled to keep up with VCU's fast-paced style of play, but you have to wonder if that might somehow work to their advantage. They may have a deficit to work with, but they should have fresher legs too. Either way, they're running out of time.

This is just the fifth time a No. 11 seed has squared off against a No. 1 seed in the Elite 8. If VCU can finish this thing off, top seeds will fall to 2-3 in such games.