After an 0-2 week on the road, Kansas basketball beats NC State by 15 at home.
Kansas looked comfortable throughout, holding a double-digit lead for most of the game. Hunter Dickinson, Zeke Mayo, and Dajuan Harris led the way for Kansas basketball, while Ben Middlebrooks added 14 points and 8 rebounds for the visiting NC State.
Read below for three takeaways from today’s matchup.
Takeaway #1: Zeke Mayo returns to form
Since scoring 40 points in his first two games with the Jayhawks, Mayo has struggled, failing to score more than 12, and most recently scoring just four points against Missouri. Today, something clicked, and he was outstanding all game long. Mayo led all scorers with 26 points on 9-14 shooting, which includes 5-9 from three.
The question all season has been who can be the #2 option after Hunter Dickinson. Dajuan Harris has been the answer too often, even though they hoped it would be Mayo, AJ Storr, or Rylan Griffen. Zeke Mayo doesn’t need to score 25 points a game, but if he can be a constant scoring threat like he was, it will allow Kansas to hit its ceiling, as we saw in those first two games of the season.
Takeaway #2: Hunter Dickinson needs to play those extra minutes, whether Bill Self wants it or not
When Hunter played today, Kansas was +30 on the court. When he didn’t, they were -15. That’s a pretty crazy stat, but the combination of Flory Bidunga and Zach Clemence weren’t able to help out and give him that extra rest, especially Bidunga, who had four fouls and a -12 +/- in seven minutes of play.
Bill Self made sure to state early in the season that he didn’t want guys like Dickinson and Dajuan Harris playing 32-35 minutes a game like they did last year, but today proved if they want to win, they need them on the court. Dickinson finished with with 21 points on 9-13 rebounds, and also added 14 rebounds, 7 assists, 2 steals and 1 block. As long as he isn’t in foul trouble, he should be on the court.
Takeaway #3: Kansas basketball is not shooting free throws at a high rate
Kansas is ranked 354th in the country in free throw attempts today, and today was a repeat of that, shooting just 7 and making 5. In the first half, they only shot one, and that came with under a minute and a half to go. Zeke Mayo and Hunter Dickinson were the only two players to shoot free throws.
Free throw attempts aren’t the secret to winning and losing, but getting to the line allows guys to get some rest, especially the big men, and put their opponents in tough positions with foul trouble. Kansas has not done a great job of that so far, and in Big 12 play that could definitely hurt them. Kansas should be getting to the line at least 20 times a game at home, so we’ll see if that becomes a focal point in future games.
Next up for Kansas Basketball (8-2): vs. Brown (7-3) – Dec 22 at 2 p.m. (CT)
Next up for NC State Basketball (7-4): vs. Rider (4-7) – Dec. 22 at 4 p.m. (ET)