OMAHA, Neb. — Joe Darger, UNLV’s tallest starter, stood at 6-foot-7. Oh, and he preferred shooting threes to banging in the paint.

Seniors Darnell Jackson, Sasha Kaun and sophomore Darrell Arthur wouldn’t admit it, but they had to have been drooling. Those guys were almost that tall in middle school.

“We thought we’d play big,” Kansas coach Bill Self said.

It just didn’t happen. The Jayhawks beat the University of Nevada Las Vegas 75-56 on Saturday at the Qwest Center, pulling away when they started using a smaller, four-guard lineup in the second half. The victory moved Kansas into the Sweet 16, where it will play Villanova on Friday in Detroit.

By the 10:55 mark of the second half, Kaun, Arthur and Jackson all had at least three fouls. They had combined for a measly 18 points. The inside game wasn’t working as planned. Kansas led 50-42 but showed no signs of putting UNLV away. Outside shots weren’t falling. The UNLV’s Wink Adams kept getting to the foul line.

“You can’t get scared at this point, but we were a little concerned,” senior guard Russell Robinson said. “We didn’t crack them like we wanted to, and we knew they weren’t going to go away.”

Something needed to change. It was time for “five-game,” KU’s name for its smaller offense that features four perimeter players. Self saw that UNLV’s big men didn’t post up much, so replacing a post player with a guard wouldn’t hurt the defense. And hey, no offense to the Rebels’ guards, but sophomore guard Sherron Collins knew he and his teammates were much faster.

“Five-game” seemed like a perfect option, and it was. With Collins, Robinson, Brandon Rush and Mario Chalmers on the floor at the same time, Kansas pulled away, outscoring UNLV 15-7 in a seven-minute stretch.

“I thought we’d be able to get the ball inside more than we did,” Robinson said. “But we didn’t. We adjusted. The main thing is we got the win.”

Photo Gallery

Kansas Basketball vs. UNLV

Photo gallery of the second round game against The University of Nevada, Las Vegas in the NCAA men's basketball tournament Saturday afternoon at the Qwest Center in Omaha, Neb.

Robinson also got an important boost of confidence. He scored 13 points for the game and scored on a three-pointer and a drive to the basket during the stretch Kansas used to pull away. In the previous four games, he’d scored just 12 points combined. As Robinson walked into the locker room with Collins afterward, he told him how much he needed a game like this.

Collins wanted a good one, too. He didn’t even practice Friday because of a sore left knee and still wore a brace. The injury limited him slightly, but he finished with 10 points and one killer crossover.

“Midway through the second half,” Self said about Collins and Robinson, “it was those two’s game.”

The four-guard lineup worked, but don’t expect it to become a staple next week in the Sweet 16. Saturday’s game gave Self more confidence to use it, but “five-game” is usually called on when the team needs to mix things up, the big guys are in foul trouble or the other team lacks a major post presence.

Collins is one Jayhawk who wouldn’t mind running with Rush, Robinson and Chalmers more often.

“We take pride in games like this,” he said, “where guards have to step up and make big plays.”

The Wildcats, a 12-seed, didn’t expect to advance to the second weekend in Detroit. The Jayhawks did.

No postgame celebration took place in the locker room afterwards. The players showered and answered questions from the media. Chalmers folded a piece of paper on Robinson’s head while he was on camera, and several other players joked with each other. That was about as far as the joy went.

The Sweet 16 is old news. Jeremy Case, a fifth-year senior, has been there three times now. He wants more.

“We’re happy to be in the Sweet 16,” Case said, “but we’re supposed to be there. We felt like that at the beginning of the year. Our main goal is to get to the Final Four. We’re happy but not satisfied.”

— Edited by Daniel Reyes