ST. LOUIS — Tyshawn Taylor broke out of his slump in a big way, scoring 22 points and leading Kansas back to the Final Four with an 80-67 victory over former coach Roy Williams and top-seeded North Carolina on Sunday.

The second-seeded Jayhawks (31-6) will play Ohio State on Saturday in their first Final Four appearance since winning the 2008 national championship.

Taylor led five Jayhawks in double figures. Player of the year candidate Thomas Robinson added 18 points and nine rebounds, and Elijah Johnson kept up his blistering pace in the NCAA tournament with 10 points, including a 3-pointer with 3:07 to play that sparked Kansas’ 12-0 run to end the game.

Jeff Withey made two monster blocks to deny the Tar Heels during the run — including one that set up a big three-point play by Taylor.

James Michael McAdoo scored 15 for the Tar Heels (32-6), who played better in their second game without injured point guard Kendall Marshall. But North Carolina couldn’t overcome a 5:46 field goal drought to end the Midwest Regional final.

– Associated Press –