No. 1 Kansas, after building a 9-0 lead in the first half against No. 17 Kentucky, found itself trailing for what felt like much of the game moving forward. The Jayhawks were down by seven points at the half and, with 16:21 left in the game, Kansas found itself down by 14 points to Kentucky.
At that point, I really had no idea how Kansas was going to respond to finish the game. Kentucky was getting up and down the court, continued to hit some big threes, and continued to grab rebounds on the offensive end of the court. I just kind of had a feeling that Kentucky was going to keep Kansas at arm's length in the second half and hand Bill Self's squad its first loss of the season.
Well, I couldn’t have been any more wrong about the outcome of last night's game between Kansas and Kentucky. The Jayhawks rallied late to defeat the Wildcats, 89-84.
Obviously, at least in my opinion, Hunter Dickinson was the star of the game against Kentucky on Tuesday night. He absolutely dominated the Wildcats in the paint and on the glass. In all, Dickinson scored 27 points and pulled down 21 rebounds in 37 minutes of action.
For the game, he hit 8-of-12 field goals, 1-of-2 shots from behind the arc, and was 10-of-11 from the free-throw line.
“I mean, that was the gameplan coming in (pound the ball down low),” said Hunter Dickinson late on Tuesday night. “Coach (Bill) Self had a lot of trust in me and that’s why he brought me here, to try and dominate the game. He’s got a lot of good plays to get me in position, I’ve got the best point guard in the country, and I’ve got a lot of unselfish guys on my team that help me out.
“This is Kansas basketball,” he added. “When you’ve got the most wins in NCAA history, you find ways to win. That’s what we did tonight. We knew we were down seven (points), but we’ve been in worse positions, National Championship game, we were down double-digits and found a way to come back, so we can do it, too.”
As good as Dickinson was on Tuesday night against Kentucky, he wasn’t the only player to shine against the Wildcats with a national audience watching. Point guard Dajuan Harris, Jr., erupted for a career-high 23 points, pulled down two rebounds, dished out seven assists, and was credited with one block in 37 minutes of action.
In scoring a career-high 23 points, Harris, Jr., hit 7-of-12 field goals, 5-of-6 shots from behind the arc, and was 4-of-5 from the free-throw line. Late in the game, he hit back-to-back threes and then converted two free throws, which ultimately tied the game with 2:35 left in the game.
Harris, minutes after Kansas defeated Kentucky, 89-84, was asked about his performance.
“That was big boy basketball,” he said. “You know that's always a dogfight every time we play them. I think they wanted me to beat them. They left me open and then I just had to step up and make a shot.”
I think that it's safe to say that it was a frustrating night for both KJ Adams, Jr., and Kevin McCullar, Jr. For the first time this season, which just surpassed the three-game mark, both faced some adversity against Kentucky.
For McCullar, Jr., who ended up with a triple-double (12 points, 10 rebounds, and 10 assists), he found himself in foul trouble against Kentucky and his body language was a bit off, which is absolutely going to happen when you’re frustrated.
And I completely understand why McCullar, Jr., was frustrated and a little emotional. He wants nothing more than to help this team win, so having struggled against Kentucky and with some questionable calls being made, it was just an off-night for KU’s senior guard.
In all, McCullar, Jr., shot just 3-of-11 from the field, 0-of-3 from behind the arc, and 6-of-9 from the free-throw line.
KJ Adams, Jr., who fouled out of the game, had somewhat of a similar experience. These guys were frustrated with some of the foul calls and it showed. Still, in 27 minutes of action, Adams, Jr., scored 16 points and pulled down four rebounds.
You can talk about Dickinson and Harris and Adams and McCullar, but it was freshman Jamari McDowell who also made one of the biggest plays of the game late in the contest. After defending Antonio Reeves, who scored 24 points (7-of-25 from the field and 3-of-17 from 3) to close out the game, McDowell was fouled late in the game and had a chance to shut the door on Kentucky.
Stepping to the free-throw against the Wildcats with just seconds left on the clock, McDowell calmly stepped to the free-throw line and drilled both attempts. That was a big, big moment for the freshman from Houston, Texas.
“I told Jamari that I trusted him,” said Harris late on Tuesday night. “And Coach Self trusts him as well.”
Headed to Hawaii for the Maui Imitational, which kicks off on Monday, Kansas left the United Center late on Tuesday night with a big-time victory. No doubt about it, the Jayhawks earned this one for sure.
Still, Kansas is going to be tested in Maui and I’m interested to see how a few guys respond. Against Kentucky, Nicolas Timberlake was 0-of-4 from the field and 0-of-2 from behind the arc, Elmarko Jackson scored seven points, but also committed three turnovers and looked sped-up at times, which is to be expected from a freshman.
Johnny Furphy, who also looked sped up at times, didn’t score against Kentucky and committed three fouls and one turnover. Obviously, playing Kentucky in the Champions Classic with a national audience watching is a completely different animal than playing North Carolina Central and Manhattan at home.
It was a learning experience for some of the newcomers and I expect to see some different performances, individually, in the Maui Invitational next week.
At that point, I really had no idea how Kansas was going to respond to finish the game. Kentucky was getting up and down the court, continued to hit some big threes, and continued to grab rebounds on the offensive end of the court. I just kind of had a feeling that Kentucky was going to keep Kansas at arm's length in the second half and hand Bill Self's squad its first loss of the season.
Well, I couldn’t have been any more wrong about the outcome of last night's game between Kansas and Kentucky. The Jayhawks rallied late to defeat the Wildcats, 89-84.
Obviously, at least in my opinion, Hunter Dickinson was the star of the game against Kentucky on Tuesday night. He absolutely dominated the Wildcats in the paint and on the glass. In all, Dickinson scored 27 points and pulled down 21 rebounds in 37 minutes of action.
For the game, he hit 8-of-12 field goals, 1-of-2 shots from behind the arc, and was 10-of-11 from the free-throw line.
“I mean, that was the gameplan coming in (pound the ball down low),” said Hunter Dickinson late on Tuesday night. “Coach (Bill) Self had a lot of trust in me and that’s why he brought me here, to try and dominate the game. He’s got a lot of good plays to get me in position, I’ve got the best point guard in the country, and I’ve got a lot of unselfish guys on my team that help me out.
“This is Kansas basketball,” he added. “When you’ve got the most wins in NCAA history, you find ways to win. That’s what we did tonight. We knew we were down seven (points), but we’ve been in worse positions, National Championship game, we were down double-digits and found a way to come back, so we can do it, too.”
As good as Dickinson was on Tuesday night against Kentucky, he wasn’t the only player to shine against the Wildcats with a national audience watching. Point guard Dajuan Harris, Jr., erupted for a career-high 23 points, pulled down two rebounds, dished out seven assists, and was credited with one block in 37 minutes of action.
In scoring a career-high 23 points, Harris, Jr., hit 7-of-12 field goals, 5-of-6 shots from behind the arc, and was 4-of-5 from the free-throw line. Late in the game, he hit back-to-back threes and then converted two free throws, which ultimately tied the game with 2:35 left in the game.
Harris, minutes after Kansas defeated Kentucky, 89-84, was asked about his performance.
“That was big boy basketball,” he said. “You know that's always a dogfight every time we play them. I think they wanted me to beat them. They left me open and then I just had to step up and make a shot.”
I think that it's safe to say that it was a frustrating night for both KJ Adams, Jr., and Kevin McCullar, Jr. For the first time this season, which just surpassed the three-game mark, both faced some adversity against Kentucky.
For McCullar, Jr., who ended up with a triple-double (12 points, 10 rebounds, and 10 assists), he found himself in foul trouble against Kentucky and his body language was a bit off, which is absolutely going to happen when you’re frustrated.
And I completely understand why McCullar, Jr., was frustrated and a little emotional. He wants nothing more than to help this team win, so having struggled against Kentucky and with some questionable calls being made, it was just an off-night for KU’s senior guard.
In all, McCullar, Jr., shot just 3-of-11 from the field, 0-of-3 from behind the arc, and 6-of-9 from the free-throw line.
KJ Adams, Jr., who fouled out of the game, had somewhat of a similar experience. These guys were frustrated with some of the foul calls and it showed. Still, in 27 minutes of action, Adams, Jr., scored 16 points and pulled down four rebounds.
You can talk about Dickinson and Harris and Adams and McCullar, but it was freshman Jamari McDowell who also made one of the biggest plays of the game late in the contest. After defending Antonio Reeves, who scored 24 points (7-of-25 from the field and 3-of-17 from 3) to close out the game, McDowell was fouled late in the game and had a chance to shut the door on Kentucky.
Stepping to the free-throw against the Wildcats with just seconds left on the clock, McDowell calmly stepped to the free-throw line and drilled both attempts. That was a big, big moment for the freshman from Houston, Texas.
“I told Jamari that I trusted him,” said Harris late on Tuesday night. “And Coach Self trusts him as well.”
Headed to Hawaii for the Maui Imitational, which kicks off on Monday, Kansas left the United Center late on Tuesday night with a big-time victory. No doubt about it, the Jayhawks earned this one for sure.
Still, Kansas is going to be tested in Maui and I’m interested to see how a few guys respond. Against Kentucky, Nicolas Timberlake was 0-of-4 from the field and 0-of-2 from behind the arc, Elmarko Jackson scored seven points, but also committed three turnovers and looked sped-up at times, which is to be expected from a freshman.
Johnny Furphy, who also looked sped up at times, didn’t score against Kentucky and committed three fouls and one turnover. Obviously, playing Kentucky in the Champions Classic with a national audience watching is a completely different animal than playing North Carolina Central and Manhattan at home.
It was a learning experience for some of the newcomers and I expect to see some different performances, individually, in the Maui Invitational next week.
