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Saturday, March 18, 2023
Date:
Kansas' nightmare came true in the NCAA tournament game against Arkansas, eliminating them and failing to defend last year's championship.
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8th-seeded Arkansas stuns top-seeded Kansas with a 72-71 victory, advancing to the Sweet 16 and ending the Jayhawks' tournament run.
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This came after Purdue's early exit as the first No. 1 seed to be eliminated in this year's competition.
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Only 3 times since 1985 has the NCAA Tournament seen multiple No.1 seeds fail to reach the Sweet 16. It happened in 2000, 2004, and 2018, before this year's surprises.
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For the second consecutive season, the Razorbacks have ousted a top-ranked team from the tournament, just as they did with Gonzaga last year.
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Arkansas celebrated their win, but it was a crushing blow for Kansas, who aimed to be the first back-to-back champs since Florida in 2006 and 2007.
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The absence of head coach Bill Self, who is recovering from a heart procedure, added to their challenges on Saturday.
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Kansas had concerns about Arkansas' length, depth, and athleticism before the game. These factors proved to be problematic, leading to Kansas' defeat.
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Arkansas dominated the boards, outrebounding Kansas 36-29, and they also outscored the Jayhawks 15-2 in second-chance points.
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Arkansas shut down Kansas' Gradey Dick, limiting his points to 7 and holding him to just 1 successful three-point attempt out of 3.
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