Sprint record crowd

A record crowd of 19,610 filled the Sprint Center for the semifinals.

The Friday games involving Kansas, Iowa State, Kansas State and Oklahoma State had the advantage of being the four schools closest to Kansas City.

Johnson would T up coach Self

Kansas’ Bill Self took his tirade against official John Higgins for a few possessions before he was tagged for a technical foul. Jayhawks guard Elijah Johnson said he didn’t hear anything new from his coach.

“He may have taught you all some new words,” Johnson said. “But I know Coach better than the average person around.

“If you ask me if I could be a referee in practice, he would get a technical every couple of minutes. That’s just the way he expresses himself. If he feels a strong way about something, he usually shows that.”

Tournament title struggles

The Big 12 tournament winner hasn’t always fared well in the NCAA Tournament. The winner has as many one-round punchouts as Final Four appearances — three.

Kansas has contributed once to each category, falling to Bradley in the first game after winning the 2006 title and winning the national championship in 2008.

Kansas in Big 12 championship games

1997: Kansas (1 seed) 87, Missouri (10) 60

1998: Kansas (1) 72, Oklahoma (3) 58

1999: Kansas (3) 53, Oklahoma State (5) 39

2002: Oklahoma (2) 64, Kansas (1) 55

2006: Kansas (2) 80, Texas (1) 68

2007: Kansas (1) 88, Texas (3) 84, OT

2008: Kansas (2) 84, Texas (1) 74

2010: Kansas (1) 72, Kansas State (2) 64

2011: Kansas (1) 85, Texas (2) 73

Kansas State in Big 12 championship games

2010: Kansas (1) 72, Kansas State (2) 64