ANAHEIM, Calif., March 29 (UPI) -- Kansas' Kirk Hinrich blocked a three-point attempt by Jason Gardner with time running out Saturday night and Gardner then missed another try at the buzzer, leaving the Jayhawks with a 78-75 victory over Arizona that put them into the Final Four.
For the second time Saturday, a No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament was knocked off one step short of college basketball's showcase.
Arizona scored 13 points in a row to close the first half and had a 16-point run in the second period and still could not overcome the Jayhawks, who took the lead for good with 4:34 remaining on a free throw by Keith Langford but led by no more than four the rest of the way.
Kansas, which emerged from the West Region, will meet Marquette next Saturday in New Orleans with the winner of that game playing for the national championship.
In addition to his critical block in the final seconds, Hinrich scored 28 points as the Jayhawks were forced to contend with a tightly-packed zone defense that prevented Kansas superstar center Nick Collison from being a major factor.
Collison managed only eight points with eight rebounds.
With Hinrich putting up three-point shots and Jeff Graves controlling the boards, Kansas built a 38-22 advantage with just over three minutes remaining in the first half.
But Jason Gardner and Luke Walton combined for eight points during a 13-0 run to close the opening period, making it a three-point game at intermission.
Kansas again took control early in the second half with a 14-2 surge that gave the Jayhawks a 56-42 advantage. Arizona promptly ran off 16 consecutive points to go in front and the lead changed hands five more times.
Arizona scored its last field goal with 2:01 to play when Walton hit a three-point shot that left Kansas in front, 74-73. Hinrich then missed a three-point attempt, but Graves claimed an offensive rebound, fed the ball to Collison and he made a layup that put Kansas in front by three with 1:20 to play.
Gardner, who led Arizona with 23 points, made two free throws with 1:16 to play, but the Wildcats could not produce another point.
Langford made it 78-75 with 52 seconds remaining and nine seconds later Walton committed an offensive foul, putting Kansas in charge.
Kansas never got off a shot on its ensuing possession, committing a shot-clock violation with 7.1 seconds remaining and giving Arizona a chance to tie the game.
Gardner raced the ball up court with Hinrich guarding him and tried to hit the shot that would have tied the game. But Hinrich got a hand on it just as it left Gardner's grasp.
The ball bounded to Walton inside the three-point line and he quickly passed to Gardner who launched another long-range attempt from the left wing at the buzzer. But it bounced off the rim.
Kansas hit 43 percent of its shots from the field and Arizona was good on 41. The Jayhaws held a 37-33 rebounding ege.
Earlier in the day, top-seeded Kentucky fell in the Midwest Region final to Marquette. All four of the No. 1 seeds made it to the Elite Eight with Oklahoma and Texas scheduled to play on Sunday.
Kansas boosted the Big 12 Conference's tournament record to 12-3 with the Sooners and Longhorns having a chance to improve on that mark.
