1 – Gradey Dick – The freshman was so good in the later part of the first half and to open the second half, and his jumper single-handedly put Kansas in charge and left the Cowboys playing catch-up the rest of the night in Tuesday’s 87-76 Kansas victory. Dick had everything working in this one and his jumper had a terrific rhythm to it that’s not always there. He rushed a couple and missed them, but didn’t let those decisions or misses keep him from attacking in future possessions. It wasn’t just the jumper, though. Gradey really got it going by attacking the rim in transition. That made him feel comfortable, took the lid off the basket and then forced Oklahoma State to have to account for him all over the floor. That opened up the jumper, but it also opened up back cuts to the rim and his teammates did a great job of screening for him and getting the ball to him so he could do his thing. It won’t be like that every night. And opposing coaches will continue to gameplan so it doesn’t happen to them. But this was a reminder of the potential that exists any time Dick is on the floor. He can get lights-out hot in an instant and the Jayhawks become awfully tough to guard when he’s doing that and the others are working in harmony around it.
2 – Kevin McCullar Jr. – McCullar played his toughest game as a Jayhawk in this one, grinding on defense, fighting on offense and making plays for others as much as for himself. He finished with 8 assists and no turnovers and also seemed to shoot at the right time, pass at the right time and dig in on defense at the right time. That’s a player who’s comfortable with his game and his role, and McCullar talked after the game about how his main focus right now is on taking what’s there and not trying to force anything. This game was a beautiful example of both his ability to do that and what can happen when he does.
3 – Dajuan Harris Jr. – Nine assists and one turnovers, some of it coming on a bum ankle. What a player. Harris wasn’t great offensively in this one, but give OSU’s defense credit for a lot of that. They did a solid job of keeping him out of the paint and made him work for everything he got. But he was really good at setting up his teammates (per usual) and he did hit a huge shot late that put Kansas back up double figures and completely took the wind out of the OSU sails. If your point guard is going to shoot 2-of-7 from the floor, you might as well watch him get 9 assists, 5 rebounds and 2 steals to help impact the outcome and that’s exactly what Harris did while also playing tough man defense on OSU’s guards.
4 – Jalen Wilson – Wilson’s a gamer, you all know that, and he made a couple of huge shots and plays late to help KU win this one. Give him credit for keeping his mind right to do that after struggling through foul trouble for much of the night. Wilson’s the best player in the Big 12. He’s this Kansas team’s unquestioned leader. And there’s a lot of responsibility and attention that comes with both of those things. But Wilson’s not too big for any of it. His objective is to win, however it happens and whoever’s responsible. He shows that on the bench by staying engaged and helping his teammates rather than pouting. Pay close attention to that over the next several games and enjoy watching Wilson while you can. We already know he’ll be gone next season, but we also now know that his jersey will one day be hanging in the Allen Fieldhouse rafters.
5 – KJ Adams – Adams’ 15 points were a huge part of the night because they helped offset what the KU big men gave up to OSU’s Kalib Boone, who finished with a game-high 27 points. Adams made six of nine shots and three of four free throws but also struggled with foul trouble and played just 20 minutes, forcing Udeh and Ejiofor into more than 21 minutes combined. Adams said after the game that the foul trouble he has encountered of late has been on him and that he needs to fix it mentally as much as physically. The biggest part of this one for Adams was probably the two jumpers he hit in the paint near the free throw line. Both were huge shots at the time and if he can continue to hit those, it will keep the rim area open for cutting teammates.
6 – Joe Yesufu – His chucker mentality still needs to be reined in, but as long as he stays aggressive KU will probably live with the ill-advised shots. They kind of have to. Because Yesufu’s speed and athleticism are critical components off the bench. He made a couple of huge plays in this one, both in the way of steals and jump shots. And it looks as if the more athletic and up-and-down the game is, the more comfortable Yesufu appears to be, even when he gets sped up.
7 – Zuby Ejiofor – Udeh played more. But Ejiofor made more plays. All after just recently coming back from injury and being thrown out there because of foul trouble to KU’s front court. Not only did he have a tough finish in traffic on a pass from McCullar. But he also dished a pass to Dick for a key 3 and set a hard screen that gave McCullar room to knock down what was arguably the biggest jumper of the night, one that kept Kansas in control and paved the way for the win. All season, the biggest thing Ejiofor has provided Kansas has been his ability to be ready at a moment’s notice. That paid off big time in this one and it likely will continue to be the perfect role for him moving forward, a luxury of sorts for the Jayhawks who know they have reliable and capable insurance behind Adams and Udeh.
8 – Ernest Udeh Jr. – Udeh had been the flavor of the week in recent games, but he struggled in this one. Understandably so. The OSU front line is tough, physical and athletic and that showed up in a big way when Udeh was on the floor. He played 13:32 but fouled out with two points and two rebounds. He did swipe two steals, the best of which came when he forced Kalib Boone to post up at the 3-point line — way higher than he wanted to post — and then poked away the entry pass that followed. The fouls were a bit of a setback, but, in the big picture, Udeh continued to show he can be a reliable option behind Adams and should be the first big man off the bench for the Jayhawks.
9 – Bobby Pettiford – He was available and cleared to play, but he’s probably still not 100%. He spent most of the first half riding a stationary bike and only went into the game when Harris had to come out because of the ankle injury. Pettiford gutted it out and didn’t look terribly slowed down by the hamstring. But he didn’t do much and wasn’t out there long. More rest will be the recipe for his return, and with Yesufu starting to play better Pettiford should be able to get the time he needs to be as healthy as possible by March.
10 – MJ Rice – Played just 2:20 and once again looked a little off while he was out there. His charging call on an inbounds play was curious and may have been a bad call, but he also looked like he went the wrong way or was in the wrong spot on the play. He finished with just the one foul and turnover and was the only KU player with a negative plus/minus number.
Season standings
———–
1 – Jalen Wilson, 211
2 – Dajuan Harris Jr., 186
T3 – KJ Adams, 171
T3 – Gradey Dick, 171
5 – Kevin McCullar Jr., 163o
6 – Bobby Pettiford, 99
7 – Joe Yesufu, 94
8 – Ernest Udeh Jr., 68
9 – MJ Rice, 60y
10 – Zuby Ejiofor, 57u
11 – Zach Clemence, 44z
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
*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*
