Jayhawks resort to winning ugly against Salukis

SAN JOSE, Calif. -- The Kansas Jayhawks knew they had to abandon the beautiful game they usually play to beat Southern Illinois. The Jayhawks admit they don't like winning ugly -- but they like losing even less.

When the Salukis slowed the Jayhawks' NCAA tournament run to a crawl, Brandon Rush and his Kansas teammates stooped down into the grit for a win that put them on the brink of the Final Four.

Rush scored 12 points without missing a shot, and Kansas eked out a 61-58 victory over Southern Illinois in the West Regional semifinals Thursday night.

Darrell Arthur and Russell Robinson scored nine points apiece to help the Jayhawks (33-4) barely avoid another disappointing exit from the tournament.

Kansas went into the locker room bickering and muttering at Southern Illinois' tenacity, yet still won its 14th straight game by nursing a small lead through the final minutes against a defense that made the Jayhawks' future NBA stars work exceptionally hard for every basket.

"It shows that we can win whatever the circumstances are," said Kansas guard Mario Chalmers, who scored just nine points. "Everyone knows we like an uptempo game in the 80s, but we can take our time and slow it down with the best of them, too."

When Tony Young missed a desperate 3-point attempt from half-court at the buzzer, Kansas dodged its second straight tournament loss at the hands of the Missouri Valley Conference. Bradley beat the Jayhawks last season.

Southern Illinois decisively won the matchup's clash of styles, forcing a deliberate tempo.

"Whoever plays Southern isn't going to look good offensively," Kansas coach Bill Self said. "It just isn't going to happen."

Jamaal Tatum scored 19 points in his final college game for the fourth-seeded Salukis (29-7), who were bidding to reach the round of eight for the first time in school history but suffered their second loss in 17 games.

"I'm disappointed in the final result," SIU coach Chris Lowery said, "but I'm very proud of our guys."