| NCAA Championship Grades |
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Kansas 75, Memphis 68
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| Kansas Jayhawks |
 |
| Mario Chalmers, G |
| 40 min., 18 points (5-13 FG, 6-6 FT, 2-6 3PT), 3 rebounds, 3 assists, 4 steals |
| The most memorable shot in Kansas history belongs to Mr. Chalmers. His game-tying three was money and topped off a game where he filled the box score in multiple columns. He was clutch in OT, burying both ends of a one-and-one and rightly earned the Most Outstanding Player of the Final Four. |
| A |
|
 |
| Russell Robinson, G |
| 20 min., 2 points (1-1 FG, 0-0 FT, 0-0 3PT), 4 rebounds, 1 assist |
| Robinson played just 20 minutes. Sherron Collins filled in for the majority of the big minutes down the stretch. When Robinson was in, he played solid perimeter defense but did not contribute much at the offensive end of the floor, turning the ball over three times. |
| B- |
|
 |
| Brandon Rush, F |
| 42 min., 12 points (5-9 FG, 2-3 FT, 0-2 3PT), 6 rebounds, 2 assists, 1 block |
| Rush had the difficult task of guarding Douglas-Roberts, and he held his own. Rush made some big offensive plays as well, including a breakaway hoop in overtime that gave KU a six-point lead. Rush only took nine shots, but his presence opened things up for others. |
| B+ |
|
 |
| Darrell Arthur, F |
| 35 min., 20 points (9-13 FG, 2-2 FT, 0-0 3PT), 10 rebounds, 1 assist |
| The big man came up with his best game of the NCAA tournament, leading the Jayhawks in scoring and rebounding. He scored four of KU's 12 points during its furious rally at the end of regulation, then had a bucket and assist early in overtime. |
| A |
|
 |
| Darnell Jackson, F |
| 29 min., 8 points (3-4 FG, 2-2 FT, 0-0 3PT), 8 rebounds, 1 assist |
| Kansas won the battle of the frontcourts, and Jackson was a big reason why. The big man kept Dorsey off the boards, grabbed eight himself and hit a big layup in overtime that gave the Jayhawks a six-point lead. |
| A- |
|
 |
| The Bench |
| 59 min., 15 points, 6 rebounds, 6 assists, 3 steals |
| Outside of Chalmers' three, Collins made the play of the game with his steal and subsequent three-pointer that cut the Memphis lead to 60-56 with 1:49 to play. Collins played tough defense on a fatigued Rose down the stretch and finished with four steals, six assists and 11 points. |
| A |
|
 |
| Bill Self, Coach |
| Credit Self for sticking with Collins over Robinson late. Self's box-and-one on Douglas-Roberts in the second half allowed a sleeping Rose to wake up and put KU in a hole. But the Jayhawks executed perfectly down the stretch and capitalized on Memphis' poor free-throw shooting. |
| A- |
|
| Memphis Tigers |
 |
| Derrick Rose, G |
| 45 min., 18 points (7-17 FG, 3-4 FT, 1-6 3PT), 8 assists, 4 rebounds, 2 steals |
| It took Rose a while to get rolling, but once he did, he scored 10 consecutive points late in the second half to give Memphis the lead. His missed free throw with 11 seconds left could have sealed the championship, but there was no better player on the floor for a 10-minute stretch. |
| A- |
|
 |
| Chris Douglas-Roberts, G |
| 42 min., 22 points (7-16 FG, 6-9 FT, 2-5 3PT), 1 rebound, 1 assist |
| His three missed free throws in the final 1:15 of regulation, including the front end of a one-and-one, will be his unfortunate legacy in this game. Douglas-Roberts carried the Memphis offense in the first half and ended with a game-high 22 points. |
| B+ |
|
 |
| Antonio Anderson, G |
| 42 min., 9 points (3-9 FG, 1-3 FT, 2-7 3PT), 4 rebounds, 1 assist, 4 steals |
| Anderson typically fulfilled his supporting role, filling up the box score in several different columns. He nailed a big three in the first half -- when Kansas started to take control at 22-15 -- that got Memphis back on track, at least for awhile.
|
| B |
|
 |
| Robert Dozier, F |
| 39 min., 11 points (4-11 FG, 2-3 FT, 1-2 3PT), 10 rebounds, 1 steal, 1 block |
| Foul trouble hampered Dozier a bit in the first half, but he finished with a double-double and dished out three assists, which is two more than he had in the five previous NCAA tournament games combined. |
| B+ |
|
 |
| Joey Dorsey, F |
| 26 min., 6 points (3-3 FG, 0-0 FT, 0-0 3PT), 2 rebounds, 2 blocks |
| The biggest indication of Dorsey's value was when he missed overtime after fouling out. Kansas had no trouble getting inside for three easy buckets on its first three possessions. While the Tigers normally have enough scoring without him, his inside presence is crucial. With a disappointing rebounding total, it proved not enough. |
| B- |
|
 |
| The Bench |
| 31 min., 2 points, 3 rebounds, 2 steals |
| The Tigers essentially went with a six-man rotation for the game, using only forward Shawn Taggart for significant minutes. Taggart picked up two early fouls but was still able to contribute 24 minutes and give Dorsey and Dozier some rest.
|
| C |
|
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| John Calipari, Coach |
| Memphis was two seconds from a national title. Calipari admitted his Tigers were gassed in OT and he felt he should have played his bench more, but he had his team in position to win in regulation. Calipari said he wanted to foul Kansas on its final possession of regulation, but his failure to call timeout to set that strategy up was a big mistake.
|
| B |
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| Jayhawks-Tigers Box Score | Complete Tourney Coverage |
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