It wasn’t looking great for the Kansas Jayhawks at halftime on Wednesday evening. Hosting a solid Arizona State team brimming with talent, the Jayhawks were down 42-36 at halftime. However, Kansas rallied in the second half, leaning on their defense to create easy offense and ultimately cruise to victory, winning by a score of 74-55.
It Was A Tale of Two Halves At the Phog for the Kansas Jayhawks
The Kansas Jayhawks emerged sluggish in the first half. Star big man Hunter Dickinson had an up-and-down first period, and although guard Zeke Mayo was spectacular, ending with 23 points on 8-14 from the field, the Jayhawks found themselves second-best in tracking down loose balls, securing rebounds and getting to the free throw line.
drained.#PayHeed x @zekexmayo pic.twitter.com/T5lFQsY3n0
— Kansas Men’s Basketball (@KUHoops) January 9, 2025
Much of this was to do with Arizona State freshman Jayden Quaintance. The young man was everywhere in the first half, securing 9 rebounds and constantly showcasing tenaciousness and unrelenting effort in every area. He certainly made his mark on the box score, finishing the game with 9 points to go with 11 total rebounds, but it was the effort plays that he made in the first half that gave the Sun Devils the advantage.
Quaintance’s excellent performance in the first half was matched by guard Alston Mason. The senior from Belgium scored 15 points, hitting multiple three-pointers and all five of his free throws. Kansas dejectedly marched into halftime trailing by six, which was frankly a flattering scoreline for Bill Self’s team.
Kansas Used Their Defense To Grab Control of the Game
The second half was completely different for the Kansas Jayhawks. Their defense was extremely active, forcing Arizona State into tough shots consistently. The Sun Devils did not help matters by often settling and shooting early into the shot clock, but Kansas still deserves credit for their effort on the defensive end. In fact, they held Bobby Hurley’s team scoreless for the first seven minutes of the second half, where they turned a 6 point deficit into a comfortable lead that ballooned to 13 with ten minutes gone.
bringing the energy ⚡️#PayHeed x @GriffenRylan pic.twitter.com/lXFaTlQVUv
— Kansas Men’s Basketball (@KUHoops) January 9, 2025
Senior guard Shakeel Moore had himself a great second half, scoring all 8 of his points in the second period and adding 2 steals. Kansas powered itself back in front due to the aforementioned great defense. State turned the ball over 18 times, 13 of which were steals by players like Moore and forward KJ Adams Jr. Point guard Dajuan Harris Jr. and star center Hunter Dickinson also had three steals each.
Phenomenal response from Kansas after trailing Arizona State at halftime. Jayhawks have limited ASU to 11 points and four made baskets after halftime.
Kansas isn’t perfect, but it can still do things like this defensively
— Brian Rauf (@brauf33) January 9, 2025
Dickinson ultimately turned in another solid day, finishing with 15 points and 12 rebounds. Where in the first half, Quaintance ran rampant on the offensive glass, Dickinson was much better in the second period. Meanwhile, Harris finished with 9 points and 7 assists. The Kansas Jayhawks leaned on their veteran players to prevail with the win.
It is clear that Adams is the emotional leader of the team, firing up both his teammates and the crowd with hustle plays. Adams was prominent in transition, as was the whole team. Their 13 steals led to many easy layups or trips to the free throw line. It was a good way to wash away the tough loss at home to West Virginia the prior week.
The Kansas Jayhawks Accomplished Something They Haven’t Done in 22 Years
The Kansas Jayhawks finally triumphed over Arizona State, winning for the first time since March 22, 2003. Now conference rivals, they will play much more often, but in the previous two matchups, the Jayhawks were heavy favorites and still lost, losing by 10 at home in 2017 and by 4 on the road in Tempe the following year.
The Kansas Jayhawks now have the proverbial monkey off of their back against Bobby Hurley’s bunch. They now look to move forward into the meat of their conference schedule. The Jayhawks have a two tough games ahead. Firstly, they will take on the Cincinnati Bearcats on Saturday shortly before a measuring-stick affair against #3 Iowa State next Wednesday.
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