Kentucky beats Kansas to win national title

NEW ORLEANS (AP)   Doron Lamb scored 22 points, and Kentucky won its eighth national championship, holding off Kansas for a 67-59 victory Monday night.  The Wildcats (38-2) led by as many as 18 points in the first half and were still up 15 with 5:13 to play. Kansas (32-7), a team which rallied from several big deficits this season, was able to get as close as 62-57 with 1:37 to play.  Kentucky closed the game by making five of seven free throws over the final 1:11 and that set off quite a celebration in the Superdome.  Kentucky’s Anthony Davis, only the second freshmen to be selected national player of the year, had six points on 1-of-10 shooting but finished with 16 rebounds and tied the championship-game record with six blocks.  Tyshawn Taylor had 19 points for the Jayhawks, and All-America Thomas Robinson had 18 on 6-of-17 shooting and had 17 rebounds.  The Wildcats’ 41-27 halftime lead was one of the biggest in title game history.  North Carolina had a 21-point lead over Michigan State in 2009.  Kentucky’s last title came in 1998.