ps to make it 86-74. The lead never got m

KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- Georges Niang walked off the floor in the closing minutes with a bloody towel pressed tightly to his forehead, pumping his fist and riling up the Iowa State fans in the Sprint Center. Turns out he was just jumpstarting the celebration. Niang scored 25 points before leaving with that gash above his right eye, and the No. 16 Cyclones held on down the stretch to beat No. 10 Kansas 94-83 Friday night and reach their first Big 12 tournament title game since 2000. "We love competing for championships," Niang said later, a bandage over his wound. "Coach says take it one day at a time, but the Big 12 championship is one day away from us." DeAndre Kane had five 3-pointers and scored 20 points, and Big 12 player of the year Melvin Ejim added 19 points for the fourth-seeded Cyclones (25-8), who will play for just their second tournament title Saturday night against the winner of Texas-Baylor. The victory for Iowa State represented its first in four tries against Kansas in the Big 12 tournament, and its first over the Jayhawks in Kansas City since March 10, 1996, when the schools were still part of the Big Eight. It also allowed Iowa State to match its 2001 team for the second-most wins in school history, trailing only the 32 wins piled up by the 2000 team. Incidentally, it was that team that won the Cyclones only Big 12 tournament title. "Its a great win for us, for the fact it gives us confidence we can compete with anyone in the nation," Cyclones coach Fred Hoiberg said. "It was good to finally get one of these after struggling to close out games against Kansas the past few years." Relying on some hot outside shooting, Iowa State took charge in the second half, and then held on as the top-seeded Jayhawks (24-9) tried to make a late run to get back into the game. Perry Ellis led Kansas with 30 points. Andrew Wiggins finished with 22. The Jayhawks again were playing without 7-footer Joel Embiid, the leagues defensive player of the year, and his rim-protecting presence was sorely missed. The freshman has a stress fracture in his back and is likely out until at least the second weekend of the NCAA tournament. "Joel not being in there, he could probably guard Niang better," Kansas coach Bill Self said, "but I think it was more a collection of everybody rather than just one individual." The Sprint Center was packed to the rafters with fans eager to see whether Iowa State could finally end its five-game losing streak against the Jayhawks, or whether Kansas could burnish what it hoped would be a resume worthy of a No. 1 seed in the NCAA tournament. The teams got after it right from the tip, racing up and down the floor in what amounted to a series of 94-foot wind sprints. Iowa State got the better of it early, forging a 23-16 lead, but the Jayhawks countered with a brutally efficient 20-3 charge to take control. Things got so intense that the normally placid Hoiberg was rung up with a technical foul after Kane appeared to be hammered on the way to the basket and no foul was called. "I used a bad word," Hoiberg said sheepishly. "Im not going to say I didnt." The Jayhawks lead was also short-lived. Kane started the comeback by converting a three-point play, Ejim and Niang went to work inside, and the Cyclones tied it 46-all in the closing minutes of the first half when Kane knocked down another shot from the corner. Their hot perimeter shooting continued in the second half, when the Cyclones turned a 48-46 deficit into a 66-57 lead, the last points in the run on a deep ball from Naz Long. By that point, Iowa State was 11 of 16 from the 3-point line. "We were on our heels defensively throughout the game," Ellis said. "I felt in the first half we did a lot better. In the second half, we let too many straight-line drives to the basket." The Jayhawks eventually extended their defence to the perimeter, and thats when Iowa State started going to the basket again. Niang scored four straight baskets for Iowa State during one stretch that made it 81-72, and scored on three straight trips to make it 86-74. The lead never got much smaller, even after Niang was whacked in the face during a scrum under the basket, prompting him to start the party for the Iowa State fans in attendance. "We felt like we had these guys in the second half," Niang said. "We came out and threw the first punch and from there it was clear skies." Steve Larmer Jersey . -- Phil Hughes ended a personal losing streak that dated to last July, pitching into the seventh inning Sunday and helping the Twins top the Kansas City Royals 8-3 to avoid a three-game sweep. Tanner Kero Jersey .com) - Rakeem Christmas scored 21 points, B. http://www.officialblackhawksauthority. ... rsey-c-12/. Al Horford said all he had to do was make the catch near the basket and then shoot a soft jumper. Martin Havlat Jersey . A larger-than-life personality known for his intimidating style in the 18-yard box, Schmeichels career spanned some 20 years -- including a memorable tenure at Manchester United. Clark Griswold Jersey . The South Africa international, who rejoined the club last month on loan from Tottenham, opened the scoring in the sixth minute with a powerful shot into the roof of the net.The Winnipeg Jets play their final game before the Olympic Break with a 1:00 face off in St. Louis. Its the fourth meeting of the season between these Central Division opponents with Winnipeg having once just once. Alexander Steen has led the Blues with four goals in those games. Due to the afternoon start, neither team held a pregame skate this morning. The (28-26-5) Jets are three points behind Phoenix for a Western Conference Wild Card playoff spot. Under Head Coach Paul Maurice, Winnipegs record is 9-3. Al Montoya (10-4-1, 2.14, .926) will start in goal. Hes won his last two road starts in Chicago and Montreal. Based on practice yesterday, the Jets Projected Lines are: Ladd-Little-FrolikThorburn-Scheifele-WheelerSetoguchi-Jokinen-ByfuglienTangradi-Wright-Peluso Enstrom-BogosianStuart-TroubaEllerby-Pardy Winnipegs penalty kill on the road hhas moved up to second in the NHL at 86.dddddddddddd5%. The (38-12-6) Blues are second in the Central Division with 82 points and trail first place Chicago by two points. They have a five point lead on the third place Avalanche. Brian Elliott (14-4-2, 2.10, .917) will start in goal. He is 1-0-1 vs Winnipeg this season with a 1.92 goals against average and .920 save percentage. Based on practice yesterday, the Blues Projected Lines are: Steen-Backes-StewartSchwartz-Roy-JaskinPaajarvi-Berglund-OshieMorrow-Lapierre-Reaves Pietrangelo-BouwmeesterShattenkirk-JackmanLeopold-Polak St. Louis is 6-3-1 in their last 10 games. The Blues power play is second in the NHL at 22.6%. Defenseman Jay Bouwmeester will play his 691st consecutive game today. Next action for the Jets will be Thursday, February 27 at MTS Centre vs the Phoenix Coyotes. Cheap Chargers Jerseys Cheap Rams Jersey Cheap Dolphins Jerseys Cheap Vikings Jerseys Cheap Patriots Jersey Cheap Saints Jerseys Cheap New York Giants Jerseys Cheap Jets Jerseys Cheap Raiders Jerseys Cheap Eagles Jerseys Cheap Steelers Jerseys Cheap 49ers Jerseys Cheap Seahawks Jerseys Cheap Buccaneers Jerseys Cheap Titans Jerseys Cheap Redskins Jerseys ' ' '