When Brandon Rush reached the Final Four in 2008, his Kansas Jayhawks were one of four No. 1 seeds to advance -- the first time that happened in NCAA Tournament history.
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Two years later, only one top seed (Duke) made it to Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis but Rush isn't surprised. Along the way to their national championship, the Jayhawks learned to have a healthy respect for Cinderella.
In 2006, Kansas (a four seed) was upset by Bradley 77-73 in the first round.
In 2007, the top-seeded Jayhawks barely squeaked by Southern Illinois in the Sweet 16.
After winning their first three games in 2008 by an average of 19 points, the Jayhawks met upstart Davidson in the regional final. Led by Stephen Curry, the Wildcats brought a 25-game winning streak into the game and led 51-47 with less than nine minutes remaining.
But Rush and the Jayhawks came back to win a squeaker, 59-57. They went on to rout Tyler Hansbrough's North Carolina team 84-66 in the national semifinal before beating Memphis in overtime, 75-68, to win the title.
But it all hinged on that Davidson game.
"That was the only game (to that point) that came down to the wire," Rush said. "They missed a shot at the buzzer and we got lucky with the win. We doubled Curry to get the ball out of his hands and he got the ball to (Jason) Richards and he missed a three."
Rush drew the defensive assignment against Curry, who scored 25 but was 9-of-25 from the field.
"He's tough, a tough little guy," Rush said. "I think he only had 20 or something like that but during the whole time in the tournament he averaged like 35."
Rush was the first of four Jayhawks drafted in 2008 (preceding Darrell Arthur, Mario Chalmers and Sausha Kaun) and he remains close to his former teammates, particularly Chalmers.
When Chalmers came to town with the Miami Heat, in fact, Rush spent Thursday with him.
For Rush, winning the NCAA title clearly impacted his status as a prospect. But has it aided his career?
"You can't really say it carries over from college to the NBA. It's a big difference," he said. "But we won a lot of games and I'm trying to bring that whole mindset here."
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