KANSAS CITY, Mo. — The loudest, heartiest cheers of the night were for Thomas Robinson, even though five of his Kansas teammates scored more points.
Everybody must have been thinking about how they felt on that sad afternoon of Jan. 22, the last time the powerhouse Jayhawks played Texas. The night before, Robinson’s mother died unexpectedly. Both grandparents died a few weeks before that, leaving him and his 7-year-old sister virtually alone in the world.
Kansas coaches and players had been up almost all night comforting the grieving sophomore forward and seemed visibly fatigued, physically and emotionally.
But this time, Tyshawn Taylor and Marcus Morris sparked a quick start and the second-ranked Jayhawks raced past the 10th-ranked Longhorns 85-73 in the Big 12 Tournament title game, avenging that melancholy January loss that snapped their 69-game home winning streak.
Robinson, a 6-foot-9 backup, contributed 10 points and nine rebounds and drew thunderous cheers from the partisan crowd every time he put the ball through the hoop.
“I’d take nothing away from (Texas). I’m not using it as an excuse,” Robinson said. “But we weren’t at full speed (in the first game). We played them at full strength today.
“We definitely felt we had something to prove.”
Taylor scored a season-high 20 points. Marcus Morris, who stood next to Robinson during the national anthem Jan. 22 and wept, contributed 17 points. Markieff Morris added 14.
The Jayhawks (32-2) built a big early lead and never let second-seeded Texas (27-7) get closer than eight points.
“Since the loss, we’ve been talking about that we really wanted another shot at them, because a lot of people had been saying that they were the best team in the Big 12,” Marcus Morris said. “I’m not saying that the first game was a fluke, but we weren’t at full strength.”
Texas, which lost a two-game lead to Kansas in the regular-season race, fell to 0-6 in Big 12 championship games.
After that game, Texas coach Rick Barnes opened his news conference by expressing support and condolences for Robinson. But he wasn’t sure that loss had given Kansas extra incentive Saturday.
“I do think that was a difficult time for Kansas,” he said. “I could tell (coach) Bill (Self) had a tough night. But I don’t know. I can’t answer that question. I’m sure if you ask them, different guys will say it.”
