Selden, Mason Leads No. 5 Kansas to Maui Invitational Title

He will be available for the Fordham game next Wednesday. Vanderbilt was 4 for 10 from the field over the same span. Baldwin shot 5-for-12 on the night for 11 points and was one of three Commodores who scored in double figures.

Vanderbilt was getting things done through its duo of 7-footers Damian Jones and Luke Kornet. “We had no chance to win unless Frank plays. I’m guessing that Bill felt like they probably played a lot better in the second half than they did in the first”, Vanderbilt coach Kevin Stallings said. “I was so impressed with their team”.

Selden’s performance capped a brilliant three days in Maui in which he showcased a lethal 3-point stroke and the ability to attack the rim. Wayne Selden Jr. was on fire in Hawaii, lighting up Vandy for 25 points and seven rebounds in the title win. Photo by Joel B. Tamayo.

The fastest KU coach to reach 300 wins at Kansas, Self’s milestone victory occurred during the 2013 NCAA Tournament against former KU coach Roy Williams’ 2013 North Carolina team.

The St. John’s Red Storm had a tough start to the Maui Invitational, as they lost to Vanderbilt on Monday and IN on Tuesday. Ellis had to wait until more than four minutes were gone in the second to get his first basket, an uncontested dunk.

It was Kornet pacing the Commodores early, helping them open up a 10-point lead midway through the first half. With the loss the Commodores suffered their first defeat of the season and fell to 5-1. He also had seven rebounds. Seldon was the Co-Most Valuable Player of the tournament along with teammate Frank Mason III.

“I think tonight did a lot for some guys’ confidence”, said Lucas to ESPN, “Defensively we still have a lot to work on”. The Silverswords responded with a pair of 3-pointers, but a Mussini three-point play and an Alibegovic jumper pushed the advantage back to 11 with just 5:54 remaining. In 1988, four months before claiming the NCAA title in Kansas City, Danny Manning and the Jayhawks finished just fourth during a week stay in Maui. KU has made 51.3 percent of its shots to opponents’ 41.3.

Perry Ellis scored 24 points on 9-of-12 shooting for the Jayhawks (3-1). But the Jayhawks managed to contain the big men and the Commodores’ shooters struggled to 6-for-27 shooting (22.2 percent) beyond the arc. Vanderbilt won here in 1986, and Kansas won in 1996.

With three victories this week, Kansas is now 13-6 all-time in the Maui Invitational, while Vanderbilt moved its tournament record to 10-5. Wayne kept us in the game offensively by scoring the ball. The Demon Deacons went to the free throw line 42 times (30-for-42) compared to 14 trips (8-of-14) for the Bruins. Wake Forest took a 50-45 lead into the half but faltered in the second half.

Kansas got the three-game sweep in Maui with a demonstration of team basketball, that including sharing the ball on offense and playing defense at a midseason level of excellence.

St. John’s: The win was No. 1,799 for St. John’s.