LOUISVILLE — Perry Ellis decided to stick around for his senior year at Kansas.
After another huge NCAA tournament performance, coach Bill Self and Ellis' Jayhawks teammates are thrilled with the decision.
Kansas’ fourth-year forward broke out for a season-best 27 points in a 79-63 victory against Maryland on Thursday night in an NCAA Tournament South Region semifinal at KFC Yum Center.
Ellis was 10-for-17 shots from the field and 7-for-7 from the free throw line and pulled down five rebounds as the top-seeded Jayhawks separated from No. 5 Maryland in the second half. Ellis had 15 points in the final 20 minutes. He is averaging 23 points for the tournament.
BOX SCORE: Jayhawks 79, Terrapins 63
The 6-8, 225-pounder could have chosen to have left Lawrence after last season for the NBA Draft. But he had unfinished business. Self is glad he stayed put.
“It’s why he came back to school,” Self said. “He could have bolted and been probably a mid- second-round pick. But he comes from such a good family and is rock solid. And he couldn’t hurt himself by coming back to school.
"Now he has a chance to leave Kansas with a legacy that will allow him to be a hero for a lifetime."
He played protagonist on this night.
Kansas (33-4), winner of a national-best 17 consecutive games, has a few more steps to take before it can fully fete Ellis. The Jayhawks face second-seeded Villanova for a slot in the national semifinals on Saturday. KU is in the Round of Eight for the 21st time, the sixth time under Self. They are seeking their first Final Four since 2012.
Such lofty goals are possible because of Ellis’ big night. He teamed with junior guard Wayne Selden Jr. (19 points, seven rebounds, six assists) to slam the door on this one. The duo was dynamic. And dogged.
“I’d say I got a lot more aggressive,” Ellis said. "They have a lot of confidence in me, teammates, coaches. They just tell me to be aggressive and that’s what I do."
Consistently driving to the hoop and finishing, Ellis dashed the Terrapins' hopes. Coach Mark Turgeon had no defensive answers for Ellis.
"He’s playing with a lot of confidence,” Turgeon said. “I didn’t think he forced things tonight. We knew he was driving right and we still couldn’t guard it. The ball screen action they run at their top, their four-up play is really hard to guard. You can walk through it. You can talk about it. .. It’s really hard to guard."
Maryland’s big two — Rasheed Sulaimon (18 points) and Melo Trimble (17 points) kept them in the game. The Terrapins (27-9) led for most of the first half before Selden knocked down a three-pointer with 55 seconds left for a 34-32 KU lead. The Jayhawks had gone more than 43:15 without a three before the make.
Maryland tied the game at 43 two-and-a-half minutes into the second half. But Ellis drove for a basket, Selden swished a three-pointer, then hit a short jumper to build a seven-point edge at the 16:12 mark.
The Jayhawks shot 47% from the field and dominated on the glass 43-28. Landen Lucas grabbed 11 rebounds. The Terrapins, meanwhile, misfired from three-point distance (5-of-25).
“We lost to the best team in the country,” Turgeon said. “They’re playing really well. They’ve just crushed people lately. In the end, it looks like they crushed us. I don’t know if it was that bad, the score. I fell like we were right there.”
Problem was Ellis is still around.
HIGHLIGHTS FROM THE SWEET 16
