The Tribune

By RENALDO DORSETT

Sports Reporter

rdorsett@tribunemedia.net

THE last remaining Bahamians in the NCAA Basketball Tournaments saw their runs at a national title end at the regional level in their respective divisions.

Dwight Coleby and Lashann Higgs both saw their Big 12 powerhouses eliminated this weekend as their 2016-17 seasons came to an end.

Coleby and the Kansas Jayhawks, the No. 3 seed in the Midwest Region of the Men’s Division I Tournament, lost to No.9 Oregon 74-60 in the NCAA Regional Final or Elite Eight, at Sprint Center in Kansas City, Missouri, on Saturday.

The Jayhawks ended the season 31-5. It was the second consecutive season they reached the round just short of the Final Four. They also tied an NCAA record with 13 consecutive conference titles and set a new mark with 28 straight NCAA appearances.

The Ducks advanced to their first Final Four since 1939.

The Jayhawks cut a once 18-point deficit to just six with 2:50 remaining in the game but couldn’t pull closer. Coleby ended his junior season averaging 1.7 points and 1.8 rebounds per game.

Jayhawks head coach Bill Self discussed the impact of the loss on his programme.

“Well, they [losses] all stick with me and they’ll stick with the players that have been a part of it. I’m disappointed more for them than I am for me. These guys put us in a situation to play for the highest stakes, and we just came up short. Sure it’s going to stick with us,” Self said, “But the one thing that did happen, it’s hard to admit, the best team did win today. I don’t think we every really gave our -- put our best foot forward like we have very consistently all season long.”

In the Women’s Tournament, Higgs and the Texas Longhorns lost in the Sweet 16, a 77-66 loss to the Stanford Cardinal at Rupp Arena in Lexington, Kentucky.

Higgs finished with five points and three rebounds.

The Longhorns fell to 25-9 while Stanford improved to 31-5 and advanced. This season marked the 30th all-time tournament appearance for Texas, making it one of only four programs to accomplish the feat. It was also their third-consecutive NCAA Sweet Sixteen.

Stanford now leads the all-time series with Texas 8-4 and won both meetings this season. The Longhorns are now 6-5 all-time when playing as a No. 3 seed in the NCAA Tournament and finished the season with a 7-7 (.500) record against Associated Press Top-25 teams.

In 34 games this season, Higgs averaged eight points, 2.8 rebounds and 1.4 assists per game.