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Quick recap: Jayhawks hang on for dear life, emerge victorious over Duke 75-72

Quick recap: Jayhawks hang on for dear life, emerge victorious over Duke 75-72

On November 27, 2024By Littum

Lucas Peltier/AP

Kansas forward KJ Adams (24) shoots the ball against Duke guard/forward Cooper Flagg (2) during the first half of an NCAA college basketball game Tuesday, Nov. 26, 2024, in Las Vegas.

Las Vegas — Kansas played some of its best basketball at the start of each half Tuesday night against Duke, only to see one extended lead after another — as many as 13 points early and eight points in the second half — fall away.

Still, the top-ranked Jayhawks held firm against the 11th-ranked Blue Devils, and after the ejection of star center Hunter Dickinson in the second half, his replacement Flory Bidunga made a play to force Kon Knueppel into a turnover in the final minute. . Rylan Griffen hit a pair of free throws, Knueppel’s final attempt rattled out and KU held on for a white-knuckle 75-72 victory at T-Mobile Arena.

Dajuan Harris Jr. led four double-digit scorers for KU with 14 points and added nine assists, while Zeke Mayo earned a hard-fought 12 and AJ Storr put up 11 in his first game start for the Jayhawks. Dickinson had 11 before his dismissal for a flagrant foul.

Tyrese Proctor took all seven of his shots beyond the arc and made five to serve as the game’s leading scorer. Freshman phenom Cooper Flagg struggled to get involved in the first half, largely due to the defense of KJ Adams, but finished with 13.

At the start of the game, KU jumped ahead 10-3, helped by 3-pointers by Mayo and Dickinson, both of whom tried to hype the KU-friendly part of the neutral crowd, and a couple of turnovers by Cooper Flagg. The Jayhawks further increased their early advantage on a contested jump shot by Storr that turned into a three-point play.

The Blue Devils came back within single digits on Flagg’s first point of the night, a pull-up jumper at the 14-minute mark, only for Harris to answer with an and-1 off a floater in the lane.

Duke had plenty of time to find its rhythm because the Jayhawks trailed for four minutes until Flory Bidunga finished off an alley-oop from Harris to make it 25-16, and then Storr drained a dead-center 3 out of the ensuing media timeout.

KU regained some of its offensive lust, but also committed a series of fouls that put the Blue Devils into the bonus and allowed them to keep pace at the free throw line. Proctor hit his second 3-pointer of the game with just under five minutes left in the half, and Maliq Brown made his first 3 of the season as part of a 12-0 run for Duke that tied the game at 32. Harris brought the a merciful end by connecting himself from the deep.

The Jayhawks found themselves in a favorable position up 41-36 with the ball and the shot clock off, but Griffen took a transition 3 and missed badly before Proctor connected at the buzzer at the other end to cut KU’s lead to two points at . pause.

Kon Knueppel gave Duke its first lead since 3-2 on a close-range fadeaway early in the second half, but Storr promptly erased it with a corner 3 and Adams scored twice as part of a 9-0 run.

The Blue Devils got hot from long range and Flagg hit a 3 for just his second field goal of the night, but then Adams blocked him inside to give KU an important bit of momentum going into a media timeout up 54-48 .

Once again, the strong start early in the half gave way to a sluggish middle, and with 10:26 to go, Dickinson was called for a flagrant 2 foul when he was fouled while going for an offensive rebound, fell to the ground over Brown, and appeared to extend his leg and stab Brown in the head while both were on the floor. The newly qualified Bidunga was pressed into the side for longer when Dickinson was sent off.

Duke briefly tied the game at 59 and 61 while punting repeatedly, then again at 65 before going ahead on a dunk by Flagg with six minutes left, only for Griffen to hit an off-balance 3 out of a timeout. He then finished a long and chaotic possession with a layup through contact for a more conventional three-point play.

Duke tied the game once again, only for Mayo to rattle in a go-on floater with two minutes remaining. With KU up 73-72, Flagg turned the ball over to allow the Jayhawks to run significant clock, but Mayo couldn’t muster another heroic shot and Duke had a pair of late opportunities.

The Jayhawks, who remained undefeated, return to Lawrence to host Furman on Saturday at 5 p.m. in a match that is technically considered part of the Vegas Showdown.

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