Sun Mar 30 19:56:58 2008

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Midnight strikes for Davidson: Kansas survives to make Final Four

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Detroit, MI (Sports Network) - Sasha Kaun scored 13 points, and Jason Richards' desperation three-pointer at the buzzer banged off the backboard as top-seeded Kansas survived over 10th-seeded Davidson, 59-57, to win the Midwest Region and advance to the Final Four.

Stephen Curry and the Wildcats had a chance, as Sherron Collins' missed three gave Davidson the ball with 16.8 seconds left. Curry took the inbounds pass and slowly made his way up the court, but couldn't get an open look at the basket. He was forced to pass to Richards, who was well behind the arc.

Richards put up a long shot at the buzzer that bounced harmlessly off the backboard, and Davidson's Cinderella run through the NCAA Tournament came to an end.

Curry scored less than 30 points for the first time in the tourney, as he finished with 25 on 9-of-25 shooting. The son of former NBA star Dell Curry struggled from behind the arc, making only 4-of-16 three-pointers.

Mario Chalmers scored 13 points, and Brandon Rush added 12 points and seven rebounds for Kansas (35-3), which won its 11th straight to reach the Final Four for the 13th time in school history, the first since the Jayhawks went to back-to-back Final Fours in 2002 and 2003.

The head coach for the Jayhawks then was Roy Williams, who is now on the sidelines for the North Carolina, the top overall seed in the tourney. The two No. 1 seeds will square off in a national semifinal next Saturday at the Alamodome in San Antonio. The Final Four is comprised entirely of No. 1 seeds for the first time in tournament history as UCLA and Memphis will square off in the other game.

Bryant Barr scored 11 points, all in the second half, for Davidson (29-7), which saw its nation-best 25-game win streak come to an end. Andrew Lovedale was held to six points and five rebounds, and fouled out with 2:20 left for the Wildcats, who were playing in their first regional final since 1969. Davidson has never made the Final Four.