Thursday evening, the Kansas Jayhawks welcomed the Iowa State Cyclones to their home arena in Lawrence, Kansas. This was the match that would make or break any hopes Kansas had of cracking the top 25 in rankings again this season since being knocked off. Not only did this game give them a chance to break into one of those spots, but the match was won with ease, and the Cyclones never came close to having a comeback once the ball got rolling.
It didn’t take long for the Jayhawks to get into gear and make some easy baskets right from tipoff. Immediately after the jump ball, Kansas took an early lead and quickly put a gap between the two groups in points. Once the Jayhawks were on top, they did not give up their lead and continued to make easy layups and take advantage of free throws when awarded them. As the first half ended, the Jayhawks were 12 points ahead of the Cyclones at 39-27, making a statement about their dominance.
From there on, things only got worse for the Cyclones. Since the start of the season, they have been weak both offensively and defensively, which was evident in this game. As they continued to struggle, the home team kept their strong mentality to earn themselves a huge separation on the scoreboard and give them some leverage as they at one point had a 24-point lead at 60-36. Not long after, they increased it even more and were up 74-47, a 27-point lead. Any hopes that the Cyclones had of having a comeback were demolished. By the end of the night, the Jayhawks walked off the court in style and with happy faces, winning 97-64.
The Jayhawks played well together to cruise past the Cyclones, but a couple of players had a fantastic game. Junior Ochai Agbaji was the best scorer for the Jayhawks, posting 19 points, 3 rebounds, playing 32 minutes. Others that were exceptional were Christian Braun with 18 points, 5 rebounds, and 6 assists, and Jalen Wilson, who obtained 16 points, 11 rebounds, and an assist.
All men need to be in tune with each other on the court when competing against any team, and the Cyclones did not show up as a team. Jalen Coleman-Lands had the most points earned by either team of the night with 20 and 3 rebounds. No one else on his squad even came close to showing or putting in the efforts that he did, leaving him to do most of the work when he was on the court.
Both competing teams are members of the Big 12 Conference, where after this matchup, Kansas is sitting comfortably in 4th place, now being 8-5 in the conference, 14-7 overall. The Cyclones are a completely different story, as the team is now 0-10 in their conference and 2-13 overall. They have not won a game out of their last 9 and are sitting at the bottom of the conference standings.
The Jayhawks’ next obstacle is to get back on track and once again crack the top 25 in rankings. This is the first time they have fallen from it in 12 years.
Next Up
The same two teams meet again on Saturday, February 13th, this time at Iowa State’s home arena. Tipoff will start at 3:00 ET and can be watched on ABC Network.
