During the most recent JayhawkSlant.com podcast, I said that Kansas had an opportunity to come away with a huge win on the road, and that’s exactly what took place on Saturday. No. 6 Kansas defeated No. 25 Oklahoma, 67-57 in Norman. Leaving Norman with what might be one of the biggest wins of the regular season, Kansas doesn’t play again until February 24. Exactly one week from today, Bill Self’s squad will play host to the Texas Longhorns at 5:00.
I can tell you all, without a shadow of a doubt, that Kansas needed this win today. After losing at UCF, at West Virginia, and at Kansas State, after leading each game by double-digits, and after what took place in Lubbock, Texas earlier in the week, this was almost a “must win”, especially from a confidence standpoint, in terms of winning away from Allen Fieldhouse.
These guys read social media and they hear what is being said by local and national writers. Now, they might not admit that, but these guys hear and see exactly what’s being said. There comes a point when you can do nothing but put the noise behind you and take care of business on the court.
Bill Self’s squad did just that in Norman today.
In moving to 20-6 overall and 8-5 in Big 12 play, Kansas was led by big man Hunter Dickinson. Against Oklahoma, Dickinson, who logged 36 minutes, scored a game-high 20 points and pulled down a game-high
16 rebounds. In all, Dickinson hit 9-of-16 field goals and was 2-of-4 from behind the arc. Today’s performance reminded me of the Dickinson that was so damn good early on in the season. He made a number of big plays against the Sooners, but his dunk with 1:52 left in the game, which increased KU’s lead over OU to 12 points, 66-54, felt like a frustration dunk by the elite big man.
I remember reading the message board last week and a few people asked if Hunter Dickinson ever dunked the ball, and his dunk today certainly came with some aggression. I really don’t know what the future holds for Kansas, but if this team can get healthy, remain healthy, and if Dickinson can become the 20 and 12 player that we saw earlier in the season, Kansas has a chance. I’m starting to think that Johnny Furphy isn’t going to be around for very long. After a frustrating couple of games, Furphy was back at it again today with 15 point, nine rebounds, two assists, and three steals in 37 minutes of action.
Offensively, Furphy hit 5-of-8 field goals, 3-of-5 shots from behind the arc, and was 2-of-4 from the free-throw line. We all know that Furphy is the type of player who can change the outcome of a game from behind the arc, but I just love his ability to finish in transition and his willingness to always make hustle plays that have an opportunity to make a difference in the game.
Johnny Furphy is the perfect Bill Self player and I simply can’t imagine where this team would be without him.
I’m not sure that Dajuan Harris, Jr., is ever going to get the respect he deserves, but that won’t change how important he is to this team. Harris, Jr., was far from perfect against Oklahoma, but he came up big with 11 points, seven assists, zero turnovers, and one steal in 37 minutes of action.
Harris, as everybody saw, struggled on the offensive end of the court. He was just 4-of-12 from the field, including 1-of-4 from behind the arc. However, he might have also been responsible for the biggest made three-pointer of the game.
Trailing by 11 at one point in the game, Kansas managed to finally tie the game, 46-46 with 9:34 left in the game after Harris drilled a shot from behind the arc. On OU’s next trip down the court, Milos Uzan misfired on a three-point attempt and Kevin McCullar, Jr., took full advantage.
The play started with KJ Adams, Jr., pulling down the rebound and ended with McCullar, Jr., hitting KU’s second straight three, which gave Kansas the lead for good.
Harris, Jr., and McCullar, Jr., in hitting back-to-back threes, were two of the biggest plays of the game in allowing Kansas to end its road losing streak.
After missing the previous two games, Kevin McCullar, Jr., returned to the court on Saturday. In all, McCullar, Jr., scored 10 points, pulled down eight rebounds, and committed three turnovers in 35 minutes.
Yes, it was somewhat of a rough outing for McCullar, Jr. He was 4-of-14 from the field, 2-of-8 from behind the arc, and 0-of-2 from the free-throw line. However, his second made three-pointer of the game gave Kansas the lead for good and, without question, was quite possibly the biggest make of the game.
There was a stretch in the second half where OU went about 2:22 without scoring. During that time, Kansas managed to pull within one point of the Sooners, but simply couldn’t get over the hump.
Tied with 9:07 left in the game, Kansas needed somebody to step up and hit a big shot. McCullar, Jr., certainly answered the call when the Jayhawks needed him the most.
Listen, the guy is hurting and after missing the previous two games, logged 35 minutes against the Sooners. Harris, Furphy, McCullar, Adams, and Dickinson are simply playing too many minutes, and I’m not sure that’s going to change moving forward this season.
Just one player, Jamari McDowell, scored off the bench today. He tallied two points in four minutes.
I think it’s safe to say that KJ Adams, Jr., had a solid outing today. He scored nine points, pulled down four rebounds, dished out two assists, and was credited with two steals in 32 minutes of action.
Adams, Jr., was 3-of-6 from the field and 3-of-6 from the free-throw line against Oklahoma. In playing all 20 minutes in the second half, Adams, Jr., scored all nine of his points, dished out both of his assists, and was credited with both steals.
Adams, Jr., started out great this season, but things have been a struggle lately, so today was certainly a step in getting back to the player he was earlier in the season. Adams, Jr., simply plays with too much energy and passion to not be a factor on both ends of the court.
For the game, Kansas shot 44% from the field, 32% from behind the arc, and, 50% from the free-throw line. The Jayhawks committed 11 turnovers, scored 18 points off 11 OU turnovers, dominated the glass, 40-29, scored 13 second chance points, 2 bench points, 30 points in the paint, six fastbreak points, tallied six steals, and 17 assists.
Kansas led for 11:16 of the game.
I can tell you all, without a shadow of a doubt, that Kansas needed this win today. After losing at UCF, at West Virginia, and at Kansas State, after leading each game by double-digits, and after what took place in Lubbock, Texas earlier in the week, this was almost a “must win”, especially from a confidence standpoint, in terms of winning away from Allen Fieldhouse.
These guys read social media and they hear what is being said by local and national writers. Now, they might not admit that, but these guys hear and see exactly what’s being said. There comes a point when you can do nothing but put the noise behind you and take care of business on the court.
Bill Self’s squad did just that in Norman today.
In moving to 20-6 overall and 8-5 in Big 12 play, Kansas was led by big man Hunter Dickinson. Against Oklahoma, Dickinson, who logged 36 minutes, scored a game-high 20 points and pulled down a game-high
16 rebounds. In all, Dickinson hit 9-of-16 field goals and was 2-of-4 from behind the arc. Today’s performance reminded me of the Dickinson that was so damn good early on in the season. He made a number of big plays against the Sooners, but his dunk with 1:52 left in the game, which increased KU’s lead over OU to 12 points, 66-54, felt like a frustration dunk by the elite big man.
I remember reading the message board last week and a few people asked if Hunter Dickinson ever dunked the ball, and his dunk today certainly came with some aggression. I really don’t know what the future holds for Kansas, but if this team can get healthy, remain healthy, and if Dickinson can become the 20 and 12 player that we saw earlier in the season, Kansas has a chance. I’m starting to think that Johnny Furphy isn’t going to be around for very long. After a frustrating couple of games, Furphy was back at it again today with 15 point, nine rebounds, two assists, and three steals in 37 minutes of action.
Offensively, Furphy hit 5-of-8 field goals, 3-of-5 shots from behind the arc, and was 2-of-4 from the free-throw line. We all know that Furphy is the type of player who can change the outcome of a game from behind the arc, but I just love his ability to finish in transition and his willingness to always make hustle plays that have an opportunity to make a difference in the game.
Johnny Furphy is the perfect Bill Self player and I simply can’t imagine where this team would be without him.
I’m not sure that Dajuan Harris, Jr., is ever going to get the respect he deserves, but that won’t change how important he is to this team. Harris, Jr., was far from perfect against Oklahoma, but he came up big with 11 points, seven assists, zero turnovers, and one steal in 37 minutes of action.
Harris, as everybody saw, struggled on the offensive end of the court. He was just 4-of-12 from the field, including 1-of-4 from behind the arc. However, he might have also been responsible for the biggest made three-pointer of the game.
Trailing by 11 at one point in the game, Kansas managed to finally tie the game, 46-46 with 9:34 left in the game after Harris drilled a shot from behind the arc. On OU’s next trip down the court, Milos Uzan misfired on a three-point attempt and Kevin McCullar, Jr., took full advantage.
The play started with KJ Adams, Jr., pulling down the rebound and ended with McCullar, Jr., hitting KU’s second straight three, which gave Kansas the lead for good.
Harris, Jr., and McCullar, Jr., in hitting back-to-back threes, were two of the biggest plays of the game in allowing Kansas to end its road losing streak.
After missing the previous two games, Kevin McCullar, Jr., returned to the court on Saturday. In all, McCullar, Jr., scored 10 points, pulled down eight rebounds, and committed three turnovers in 35 minutes.
Yes, it was somewhat of a rough outing for McCullar, Jr. He was 4-of-14 from the field, 2-of-8 from behind the arc, and 0-of-2 from the free-throw line. However, his second made three-pointer of the game gave Kansas the lead for good and, without question, was quite possibly the biggest make of the game.
There was a stretch in the second half where OU went about 2:22 without scoring. During that time, Kansas managed to pull within one point of the Sooners, but simply couldn’t get over the hump.
Tied with 9:07 left in the game, Kansas needed somebody to step up and hit a big shot. McCullar, Jr., certainly answered the call when the Jayhawks needed him the most.
Listen, the guy is hurting and after missing the previous two games, logged 35 minutes against the Sooners. Harris, Furphy, McCullar, Adams, and Dickinson are simply playing too many minutes, and I’m not sure that’s going to change moving forward this season.
Just one player, Jamari McDowell, scored off the bench today. He tallied two points in four minutes.
I think it’s safe to say that KJ Adams, Jr., had a solid outing today. He scored nine points, pulled down four rebounds, dished out two assists, and was credited with two steals in 32 minutes of action.
Adams, Jr., was 3-of-6 from the field and 3-of-6 from the free-throw line against Oklahoma. In playing all 20 minutes in the second half, Adams, Jr., scored all nine of his points, dished out both of his assists, and was credited with both steals.
Adams, Jr., started out great this season, but things have been a struggle lately, so today was certainly a step in getting back to the player he was earlier in the season. Adams, Jr., simply plays with too much energy and passion to not be a factor on both ends of the court.
For the game, Kansas shot 44% from the field, 32% from behind the arc, and, 50% from the free-throw line. The Jayhawks committed 11 turnovers, scored 18 points off 11 OU turnovers, dominated the glass, 40-29, scored 13 second chance points, 2 bench points, 30 points in the paint, six fastbreak points, tallied six steals, and 17 assists.
Kansas led for 11:16 of the game.
