KU in kemper arena

By Staff     Dec 9, 2006

Today’s appearance in Kemper Arena will be the last for KU’s men’s basketball team. The Jayhawks are 79-24 in a building that opened in 1974. It’ll be replaced next season by the new Sprint Center in Downtown KC.

Here are some memorable KU basketball moments in Kemper:

KU 83, Oklahoma 79

April 4, 1988

Danny Manning scored 31 points and grabbed 18 rebounds in a classic NCAA title contest – one tied at 50 at halftime. It marked KU’s first win over Billy Tubbs’ Sooners that year in three tries.

KU 96, Michigan State 86

March 21, 1986

KU trailed with two minutes left when the Kemper clock malfunctioned and stopped for about 10 seconds. Those seconds became critical when KU sent the Sweet 16 game into overtime on a shot with 10 ticks left. KU beat North Carolina State in the regional final and advanced to the Final Four. MSU coach Jud Heathcote and star guard Scott Skiles were left to lament what might have been.

KU 100, UMKC 46

Jan. 4, 2003

Never has a jam-packed arena grown more silent than on the day Wayne Simien caught his hand on the rim and dislocated his shoulder. The Jayhawks reached the Final Four that season with Simien watching from the sidelines.

KU 53, Oklahoma State 37

March 7, 1999

KU won a low-scoring Big 12 tournament-title game, proving to be the highlight of a season that included nine regular-season losses.

KU 72, Oklahoma 58

March 8, 1998

Paul Pierce, Raef LaFrentz and Co. rolled through the conference postseason tournament. A 35-4 season ended prematurely courtesy of Rhode Island in the second round of the NCAAs.

KU 87, Missouri 60

March 9, 1997

LaFrentz, Pierce, Jerod Haase, Jacque Vaughn and Scot Pollard thrilled the masses. Who’d have guessed a 34-2 season would end three games later in the Sweet 16 against Arizona?

Virginia 67, KU 58

March 24, 1995

Most fans assumed the Jayhawks would win the Sweet 16 game against the Cavs and follow it with an Elite Eight win in KU’s home away from home. LaFrentz was just a freshman that season.

KU 88, Connecticut 59

Jan. 25, 1995

A runaway nonconference victory over Jim Calhoun’s Huskies proved one of the highlights of a 25-6 season.

KU 66, Oklahoma State 57

March 15, 1992

Rex Walters and Adonis Jordan rolled in the league-title game. A 27-5 season ended suddenly two games later against UTEP in the NCAAs.

KU, 79, Oklahoma 78

March 10, 1984

Winning the league title proved a highlight of Larry Brown’s first season at KU, a year the Jayhawks went 22-10.

KU 80, Kansas State 68

March 7, 1981

The Jayhawks beat their in-state rivals in the Big Eight title game. KU also upended coach Dean Smith’s North Carolina Tar Heels in a 56-55 thriller on Jan. 3 at Kemper. That 24-8 season ended with an NCAA tourney loss to Wichita State in Louisiana.

KU 72, Colorado 66

Dec. 30, 1978

Sophomore Darnell Valentine paced the Jayhawks to victory in the finals of the Big Eight Holiday tournament. KU fell to OU in the Big Eight postseason tourney finals, 80-65, back at Kemper.

KU 67, Kansas State 62

Dec. 30, 1977

Senior John Douglas and freshman Valentine notched a narrow victory in the Big Eight Holiday tourney title game. KSU gained revenge, 87-72, in the postseason tourney.

PREV POST

6Sports video: KU women hosting Cal Sunday

NEXT POST

22830KU in kemper arena