Image courtesy of the AP
The No. 2 Kansas Jayhawks led the round of 32 matchup with the Stanford Cardinal by two, 24-22 at halftime and looked like a team just waiting to turn it on after the break. However, the Stanford Cardinal are the ones that stepped up in the second half outscoring the Jayhawks by five, 38-33, and winning 60-57. Just another upset in what has become a rite of passage in March Madness each year.
But what motivates a team that lost four of its last seven heading into the NCAA Tournament and got by No. 7 New Mexico in the round of 64? A news conference earlier in the day sure did not hurt the motivation of the Cardinal. Earlier in the day both Andrew Wiggins and Wayne Selden Jr. giggled when they were asked to comment on Stanford leading scorer Chasson Randle. Could that really have made a difference? Well if you listen to Chasson Randle it sure played a factor.
“Coach told me not to talk about it but I definitely took it as a challenge. It was a little big extra motivation.”
Randle went out and scored 13 points while gathering four assists and stealing the ball six times. Dwight Powell also added 15 points on 5-10 shooting with seven rebounds in 30 minutes of action. Who says motivation doesn’t matter?
Kansas star Andrew Wiggins was held to four points on 1-6 shooting while Selden Jr. scored two points on 1-5 shooting. The Stanford Cardinal advance to the Sweet Sixteen to meet the No. 11 Dayton Flyers who knocked off No. 3 Syracuse on Saturday.
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