1 – Gradey Dick – After a rough few possessions to open the game that had teammates and coaches alike yelling at him to up his game, the KU freshman did exactly that, exploding for 19 points on 7-of-13 shooting, with three 3-point makes and the first double-double of his college career. His 11 rebounds were a season high and he also added 5 assists, just one turnover and a steal. His energy level was off the charts good, both in going to the glass on both ends and by simply playing hard and running as much as Howard wanted to run. As far as NCAA Tournament debuts go, not too many Kansas freshmen have had one better over the years.
2 – Jalen Wilson – The Big 12 player of the year scored 20 points — now for the seventh game in a row — and added 7 rebounds in 32 very efficient minutes. He was good on the glass, scored in tight and hit an early 3-pointer to help the confidence of all of his teammates. Simply put, Wilson did what player-of-the-year candidates and team leaders do in the games that mean the most.
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Box score: Kansas 96, Howard 68
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3 – Dajuan Harris Jr. – Recorded 11 points, 7 assists and 4 steals in 35 minutes. Those were the good numbers. The fact that he shot just 5-of-13 and added 4 turnovers to it was the bad part. Still, Harris played a huge role in controlling how this game was played, and he never flinched when the Bison showed they wanted to run. Harris can play any style and he’s comfortable doing all of them. If you want to run, he’ll get up and go. If you want to sit back, he’ll do his best to perform surgery on your defense. Harris was as good as he needed to be in this one and the turnovers were probably the result of the game’s tempo being turned way up.
4 – Kevin McCullar Jr. – Back from the back spasms that kept him out of the Big 12 title game, McCullar contributed in a bunch of different ways, doing what Kevin does best by filling up the stat sheet. You could tell he was feeling it early when he pulled and drained a jumper on KU’s first possession of the game. From there, he only got better, playing hard on defense, running well in transition and being a ball mover on offense. McCullar is so key to this Kansas team, and him being out there again and producing was a reminder of what the Jayhawks were missing against Texas.
5 – KJ Adams – The KU big man finished with a solid but unspectacular line of 13 points on 5-of-10 shooting with 4 rebounds, 2 assists, 2 blocks and a steal. He was active, finished in the paint and played above the rim, much like he has done all season long. Adams could be the biggest key to KU’s matchup with Arkansas in Round 2, and he appears to be ready for it. He moved well, played with confidence and looked explosive in Thursday’s win.
6 – Joe Yesufu – When looking at Yesufu and Udeh both scoring 8 points off the bench in this one, you have to look at something that breaks the tie. For me, it was the fact that Yesufu’s minutes (14-10) and contributions (2 3-pointers and bigger minutes early) were slightly higher. It was a perfect NCAA Tournament opener for Joe, who played key minutes as a reserve in the first half when Jalen Wilson and Kevin McCullar both sat with two fouls for periods of time.
7 – Ernest Udeh Jr. – Udeh was terrific around the rim, finishing multiple lobs and using his size to be a real presence. He’ll need to do more of that against Arkansas for Kansas to advance, so this was a great tune-up for that game. He didn’t do much on the glass, but not much was needed there either. Again, it will be against the Razorbacks.
8 – Bobby Pettiford – Missed two shots, hit two free throws, swiped two steals and played 15 important minutes in a game that featured guard play and up-and-down tempo. It remains to be seen how much he’ll be needed in Round 2, but Bobby had his moments where he looked comfortable in this one. Not enough of them, mind you. But moments.
9 – Zuby Ejiofor – Scored a bucket – nearly had another while running the floor hard with the game long decided, but the pass from Pettiford was *just* out of reach — and also added 2 rebounds and a monster block in limited minutes.
10 – Zach Clemence – It was great to see him get a 3-pointer to fall and even better to see him feel confident enough to fire up another — almost. The second one nearly missed everything and even brought a look of “Oh Sh*t” to Clemence’s face. He said in the locker room he thought the first was off and the second was good. Life of a shooter. The one he made marked just his fourth 3-point basket of the season.
Season standings
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1 – Jalen Wilson, 283
2 – Dajuan Harris Jr., 257
3 – Gradey Dick, 228
4 – KJ Adams, 221
5 – Kevin McCullar Jr., 219o
6 – Joe Yesufu, 126
7 – Bobby Pettiford, 120
8 – Ernest Udeh Jr., 100
9 – MJ Rice, 71y
10 – Zuby Ejiofor, 65u
11 – Zach Clemence, 46z
12 – Cam Martin, 11q
13 – Kyle Cuffe Jr., 2x
*x – Out for 10-12 weeks with a knee injury starting Nov. 13*
*y – Missed 3 of the first 5 games of the season because of injury and illness; also sat out games because of COVID, kidney stones and back spasms*
*z – Missed Duke, Southern Utah and NC State games because of injury. Also injured a knee in road loss at Iowa State, which caused him to miss more time*
*o – Missed Nov. 29 game vs. Texas Southern with a groin injury; Also missed Big 12 title game with back spasms*
*q – Missed first nine games of the season with shoulder injury*
*u – Missed a few weeks during the middle of the Big 12 season with a foot injury*
