Everything was going Kansas' way at halftime of the Big 12 Tournament championship game -- and then Georges Niang and the comeback Cyclones arrived to earn their second straight Big 12 championship.
Iowa State wins Big 12 basketball tournament 2015: Comeback Cyclones surge from 17 down, beat Kansas
Iowa State wins the Big 12 for the second straight year with a second-half comeback.
Kansas led by 17 moments into the second half before Niang took over, scoring 19 points in a 70-66 comeback win. Between his own made field goals and his assists to his teammates, he was responsible for 11 of the Cyclones’ first 13 second-half points as they fought their way back into the game and eventually took a lead. Kansas’ Wayne Selden Jr. did his best to answer, including a game-tying and-one layup with 1:29 to play, but the Cyclones responded with two free throws to re-take the lead. Then, on the Jayhawks’ next possession, Niang deflected away an attempted lob pass and his team sealed the game at the line.
This was the second double-digit comeback in as many days for Iowa State. On Friday, the Cyclones rallied down 11 to beat Oklahoma 67-65 in the Big 12 semifinals before repeating the feat Saturday.
Kansas’ offense shut down early in the second half, struggling to penetrate the Iowa State defense. While their first field goal of the second half was an impressive Selden Jr. alley-oop, it didn’t come until more than six minutes into the period.
Selden Jr. finished his impressive tournament with 25 points on 8-of-12 shooting, adding five rebounds. Here’s a look at the final Big 12 tournament bracket, via CBS Sports.
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