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WATCH: Ochai Agbaji shares touching moment with family following Kansas title win

275133747_4796292347117549_592518599057046758_nby:Jonathan Wagner•04/05/22•

Jonathan Wagner

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Jamie Squire via Getty Images.

On Monday night, the Kansas Jayhawks defeated the North Carolina Tar Heels to capture this year’s NCAA Tournament championship. Kansas defeated North Carolina 72-69 following a dominant second half to earn the victory. Following the title win, Kansas star Ochai Agbaji shared an emotional and touching moment with his family.

Following the victory by Kansas, Agbaji was named as the NCAA Tournament’s Most Outstanding Player. Agbaji scored in double figures in all but one game over the course of the tournament, and he had 12 points with three rebounds in the championship game on Monday night.

The decision to name Agbaji as the NCAA Tournament’s Most Outstanding Player was met with criticism, as some believed that Kansas center David McCormack deserved the honor over Agbaji. Regardless, Agbaji earned the award, and Kansas is walking out of this season with a national title.

Agbaji starred for Kansas this season

This year was Agbaji’s fourth at Kansas. He first joined the Jayhawks ahead of the 2018-2019 season, and he played in 22 games with 16 starts as a true freshman with 8.5 points and 4.6 rebounds per game. He then averaged 10 and 14.1 points over the next two seasons, respectively, before turning into one of the top stars in all of college basketball this season.

On the year, Agbaji started all 39 games for Kansas. He averaged 18.8 points, 5.1 rebounds, and 1.6 assists in 35.1 minutes per game. He shot 47.5% from the field, 40.9% from three-point range, and 74.3% from the free throw line, all of which were career highs. Agbaji was the leading scorer on the season for the Jayhawks.

In addition to winning the NCAA Tournament’s Most Outstanding Player Award, Agbaji was named as a finalist for the Wooden Award and the 2022 Naismith Player of the Year award. Now that Agbaji has a national title under his belt, he could soon be turning his attention towards the 2022 NBA Draft. He is viewed as a likely lottery pick.

Prior to the championship game, Agbaji reflected on what this moment means for him. Playing for a title is something that everyone dreams of, and on Monday night he fulfilled that dream and more by winning it all.

“This is the moment that every kid dreams to be in, to play for a national championship for their school, to represent their school on the highest stage of basketball itself and play in front of all these people,” Agbaji said. “I think that’s just a dream come true for me and all the guys on my team. So we’re just excited to play tomorrow and everyone’s just ready.”