Thomas Robinson did it, again.
The All-American forward and NBA lottery pick nailed the game-winning basket for Mass Street, a team of mostly Kansas alumni, in a 69-65 victory over the Show Me Squad, Missouri’s alumni team, in the second round of The Basketball Tournament on Saturday in Wichita.
Robinson, totaling 15 points on 5-for-14 shooting, capped off the Elam ending for the KU alumni at the free-throw line on a personal foul by former Missouri center Jontay Porter. The narrow win advances top-seed Mass Street to the regional title game against 2-seed Heartfire, composed of several TBT veterans, on Sunday at Koch Arena in Wichita.
After the game, Robinson said having his team count on him, when they need it most, is a feeling that never gets old.
“Tonight I was actually a little rough around the basket,” Robinson told a TBT reporter. “I wasn’t finishing as much as I should. For my team to still come to me at the end means the world to me.”
Three more Jayhawks – Keith Langford (13) Mario Little (12) and Lagerald Vick (11) – also joined Robinson in the double-digit scoring club.
The former KU stars were hot from the tip, a far departure from their first-round matchup with We Are D3 that saw Mass Street trail for most of the ballgame. This time around, Mass Street shot far more liberally from the arc (10-23) and finished the afternoon 13-17 from the stripe.
Mass Street jumped to a 13-4 lead less than five minutes into the contest, riding two early 3s by Vick and another by starting forward Jamari Traylor. A third 3-point jumper came from Brandon Rush off the bench, as the KU alumni raced to a 14-point lead late in the first.
Nine first-quarter points by Show Me starting point guard Erick Neal, including a three-pointer of his own, kept the former Mizzou hoopers within reach of Mass Street, trailing 20-11 at the start of the second.
Keith Langford delivered Mass Street’s fifth 3 of the afternoon mere moments into the second quarter, but former Missouri center Tony Criswell responded with six consecutive points to bring Show Me within 5 of the KU alumni, forcing a Mass Street timeout with just under seven minutes to go in the half.
Pushing away once again, Mass Street rolled ahead to a 34-20 lead with just three minutes left in the second quarter. The run featured Vick’s third 3 of the afternoon and four more points added by point guard Tyshawn Taylor, who made his Mass Street TBT debut on Saturday.
Show Me’s Isiaih Mosley managed five late points heading into halftime, as Mass Street clung to a nine-point lead on their border rivals, 37-28.
It wasn’t a colorful start to the third quarter for the Missouri alumni, but Mosley and Criswell’s gradual scoring began to grind down Mass Street’s first-half lead. As the former Jayhawks’ lead dwindled late in the third, Show Me took its first lead late in the third on a layup by Mosley and entered the fourth quarter knotted up at 52-52 with Mass Street.
A pair of heavily contested 2s by Robinson and Vick opened the fourth quarter with some renewed confidence for Mass Street, sending the KU alumni up by 6. Mosley pulled Show Me back within one possession, 61-59, before the game initiated the Elam ending – meaning the first team to reach 69 points wins.
In regards to the Elam ending, Robinson had this to say:
“I like it, it’s exciting,” Robinson told a TBT reporter. “I think it forces the guys to kind of lock in (during) that last four minutes and really compete.”
Mass Street cut within three of the target score, leading Show Me 66-61 on a 3-pointer and a layup by Robinson just two possessions into the Elam finish. On the heels of a possession review that favored Show Me, Neal buried a 3-point basket to cut within a basket of Mass Street, 66-64.
Robinson knocked down the game-winner for Mass Street, leading 68-65 when Show Me’s Porter collided with the former KU forward near the hoop. The fatal penalty, all but sealing the win for Mass Street, was Show Me’s 17th personal foul of the day.
In attendance for the win were three current Jayhawks: Hunter Dickinson, KJ Adams and Zach Clemence. Robinson commented on what it means to play in front of the school’s ballplayers.
“That’s dope man,” Robinson said. “So many people talk so much about these young guys because they get paid now and they think their attitude is different, but I don’t think that exists with Kansas guys. I think once they come to that school, they know it’s a culture and they respect it.”
Mass Street and Heartfire are slated for a 2 p.m. tipoff on Sunday in Wichita. The game will be broadcast on ESPN2.
BOX SCORE:
Mass Street 20 17 15 17 – 69
Show Me Squad 11 17 24 13 – 65
Mass Street (69): Robinson 5-14, 5-8, 15; Langford 5-11, 0-0, 13; Little 4-11, 2-3, 12; Vick 4-10, 0-0, 11; Traylor 3-5, 2-2, 9; Taylor 1-3, 4-4, 6; Rush 1-3, 0-0, 3. Totals: 23-59, 13-17, 69.
Show Me Squad (65): Mosley 7-16, 9-10, 25; Neal 6-13, 0-0, 15; Criswell 7-12, 0-1, 14; Porter 4-12, 2-4, 11. Totals: 24-56, 11-15, 65.
3FGs: Mass Street 10-23 (Vick 3, Langford 3, Little 2, Rush 1, Traylor 1); Show Me Squad 6-27 (Neal 3, Mosley 2, Porter 1). TOs: Mass Street 5; Show Me 11. Fouled out: none.
Mass Street head coach Marcus Morris (right) and assistant coach Markieff Morris look over a play during the second round of TBT at Wichita State University on Saturday, July 22, 2023.
Mass Street’s Lagerald Vick goes up for a layup against Show Me’s Jontay Porter during the second round of TBT at Wichita State University on Saturday, July 22, 2023.
Mass Street’s Jamari Traylor contests a shot by Show Me’s Isiaih Mosley at the second round of TBT at Wichita State University on Saturday, July 22, 2023.
The Mass Street bench is jubilant after a play at during the second round of TBT at Wichita State University on July 22, 2023.