LAWRENCE, Kan. – No. 3/3 Kansas used an early 19-2 run to propel itself to an 81-60 win over Kansas State in 292nd Sunflower Showdown before a sold-out crowd of 16,300 at Allen Fieldhouse on Tuesday night.
Kansas (15-3, 5-1 Big 12) led for nearly 35 minutes in the game, breaking open an early 7-all tie with 9 consecutive points to take a 16-7 lead and force a timeout by K-State head coach Bruce Weber at the 12:29 mark. After a basket by freshman Montavious Murphy, the Jayhawks answered with a 10-0 run to force yet another Weber timeout and lead at 26-9 with 10:29 before halftime. The team would lead 39-23 at the break.
K-State (8-10, 1-5 Big 12) was able to close the deficit to 49-36 early in the second half after a 3-pointer by freshman DaJuan Gordon at the 14:03 mark but Kansas was able to push the lead back to 20 by scoring 13 of the next 16 points to extend the lead to 62-39 with 9:08 to play.
Junior David Sloan led three Wildcats in double figures with a season-high 17 points on 7-of-11 field goals, including 2-of-4 from 3-point range, to go with game-tying 5 assists and 4 rebounds in just his second career start and first at Allen Fieldhouse. Senior Xavier Sneed added 16 points on 5-of-12 shooting, including 3-of-8 from beyond the arc, while fellow senior Makol Mawien chipped in 11 points.
Freshman Christian Braun led all scorers with 20 points for the Jayhawks, as he connected on 7-of-15 from the field, including 6-of-10 from 3-point range, while sophomore Devon Dotson had 18 points on 6-of-12 shooting to go with 5 rebounds, 3 assists, 3 steals and 1 block in 28 minutes. Senior Udoka Azubuike added a double-double with 10 points on 4-of-5 field goals and a game-high 14 rebounds.
The loss extended the Wildcats' misery in Allen Fieldhouse, as they now lost 14 consecutive games at the building. K-State has not won in Lawrence since a 59-55 victory on Jan. 14, 2006.
HOW IT HAPPENED
The teams traded blows in the early going, as they battled to a 7-all tie at the first media timeout at the 15:37 mark. Junior David Sloan scored the Wildcats' first points on a layup off a steal by junior Cartier Diarra, while junior Xavier Sneed followed with his first points on a 3-pointer for a 5-2 edge, but the Jayhawks responded with 5 straight points, including the first of back-to-back treys by freshman Christian Braun.
The second Braun 3-pointer started a 9-0 run by Kansas that extended the lead to 16-7 and forced head coach Bruce Weber to call his first timeout at the 12:29 mark. A jumper by freshman Montavious Murphy ended the run out of the timeout but the Jayhawks again responded with another run, this time, 10-0, to push the lead to 26-9 and again force Weber to call at timeout with 10:29 remaining before halftime.
During the combined 19-2 run, Kansas scored 14 of its 19 points off 7 K-State turnovers.
Consecutive baskets by senior Makol Mawien closed the gap to 26-13 with 7:52 to play, but a quick 7-3 spurt gave the Jayhawks a 33-16 advantage heading into the final media timeout of the first half at the 3:50 mark.
A 3-pointer by Diarra and a Mawien jumper got K-State to within 14 (35-21) with 1:07 before halftime, but Kansas scored 2 of the last 3 field goals to head into the locker room with a 39-23 lead.
K-State connected on 40 percent (10-of-25) from the field in the first half, including 30 percent (3-of-10) from 3-point range, while Kansas hit on 45.5 percent (15-of-33, including 38.5 percent (5-of-13) from long range. The Jayhawks took advantage of 11 Wildcat turnovers, scoring 20 of their 39 points.
Mawien led the Wildcats in the first half with 8 points on 4-of-9 field goals and 5 rebounds in 17 minutes, while Braun led the Jayhawks with 11 points on 4-of-6 field goals, including 3-of-4 from 3-point range.
Braun opened the half with his fourth triple, as Kansas scored the first 8 points to extend the lead to 47-23 just 2 minutes into the second half on a 3-point play by sophomore Devon Dotson.
Trailing by 24 at the 18:08 mark of the second half, Sloan got the Wildcats back into the game with a layup that started a 13-2 run and closed the deficit to 49-36 with 14:03 to play. Sloan accounted for 6 of the 13 points, while freshman DaJuan Gordon capped the run with a 3-pointer from the top of the arc.
However, K-State could get no closer the rest of the way, as Kansas responded with 13 of the next 16 points to push the lead back out to 62-39 with 9:08 remaining in the game. The lead grew to as many as 26 in the second half, as the Jayhawks led 73-47 with 4:21 to play.
K-State connected on 39.4 percent (13-of-33) of its field goals in the second half, including 41.7 percent (5-of-12) from 3-point range, while Kansas hit on 46.9 percent (15-of-32) from the field, including 30.8 percent (4-of-13) from long range. Sloan led all scorers with 13 of his 17 points after halftime on 5-of-8 shooting, including 2-of-3 from 3-point range, while Sneed added 10 points.
PLAYER(S) OF THE GAME
Junior David Sloan led the way with a season-high 17 points on 7-of-11 field goals, including 2-of-4 from 3-point range, with a team-high 5 assists and 4 rebounds in 32 minutes.
STAT OF THE GAME
19-2 – Kansas broke open a 7-all tie with a combined 19-2 run early in the first half, flipping the tie game into a 26-9 advantage with 10:29 to play before halftime.
IN THEIR WORDS
K-State Head Coach Bruce Weber
On the game…
"I didn't see what happened at the end of the game. Obviously, I'm disappointed it ended that way. Credit to Kansas, they kicked our butt in so many ways. Christian (Braun) had a special night and made some 3s. We had a special night against West Virginia (on Saturday) and DaJuan (Gordon) was our spark. I thought we started off okay. They had 4 turnovers to start the game then they didn't have a turnover the rest of the half. The second chance points were big (22-11, a lot of ours were late, while theirs were when it mattered. I thought we battled Azubuike and McCormack inside, but those guards got downhill and they had 40 points in the paint. You have to protect the paint against them. It was an eye-opening moment, a tough environment, for our young guys to play in and we didn't handle it very well."
BEYOND THE BOXSCORE
- Kansas now leads the all-time series with K-State, 198-94… It is the sixth-most played series (292) and eighth-most consecutive games played (114) in Division I… The Jayhawks now lead 91-35 in games played at home, including 14 straight wins at Allen Fieldhouse… The Wildcats have not won at Allen Fieldhouse since a 59-55 victory on Jan. 14, 2006.
- The Wildcats' starting lineup consisted of junior Cartier Diarra, junior David Sloan, senior Xavier Sneed, junior Levi Stockard III and senior Makol Mawien… This was the second time using this lineup and the fifth different lineup used this season.
- Sneed has now played in 123 career games, including 90 starts (51 consecutive)… Mawien has played and started in every game in his career, which now stretches to 89… Diarra has now played in 81 games, including 49 starts (20 consecutive)… Stockard made just his third career start (first time to start in back-to-back games, while playing his 86th career game… It was the second career start from Sloan and 18th career game played.
- Freshman Montavious Murphy was the first player off the bench.
- Junior Mike McGuirl missed his third consecutive game due to injury (concussion).
Team Notes
- K-State scored 60 points on 39.7 percent (23-of-58) shooting, including 36.4 percent (8-of-22) from 3-point range, and went 6-of-13 (46.2 percent) from the free throw line.
- The 81 points were a season-high for an opponent, as Kansas connected on 46.2 percent (30-of-65) from the field, including 34.6 percent (9-of-26) from 3-point range, and hit on 70.6 percent (12-of-17) from the free throw line.
- Kansas outscored K-State in points in the paint (40-22, points off turnovers (20-6, second-chance points (22-11) and off the bench (37-9).
Player Notes
- Junior David Sloan led the way with a season-high 17 points on 7-of-11 field goals, including 2-of-4 from 3-point range, to go with a game-tying 5 assists, 4 rebounds and 1 steal in 32 minutes… It was his first time leading the team in scoring and the first time in double figures.
- Senior Xavier Sneed scored 16 points on 5-of-12 field goals, including 3-of-8 from 3-point range, and a 3-of-4 effort from the free throw line to go with 4 rebounds in 35 minutes… He has now scored in double figures in 67 career games, including 14 this season.
- With his 16 points, Sneed moved into No. 14 slot on the all-time scoring list with 1,273 points, passing former Wildcat Jamar Samuels (1,259/2008-12).
- Senior Makol Mawien finished 11 points on 5-of-14 field goals to go with 5 rebounds, 1 assist and 1 block in 28 minutes… He has now scored in double figures in 28 career games, including 6 this season.
WHAT'S NEXT
K-State returns to action on Saturday night, as the Wildcats travel to Tuscaloosa, Ala., to take on Alabama (10-7, 3-2 SEC) at 5 p.m., in the seventh annual Big 12/SEC Challenge at Coleman Coliseum on ESPN2.