In terms of value produced, here are summaries for each player:
Jalen Coleman-Lands +11.82. Not only did he have an incredible shooting game, JCL also played solid defense, only giving up 7 points while grabbing a few rebounds. His first team MVP as a Jayhawk was also the fourth-best individual performance of any KU player this season.
Mitch Lightfoot +5.61. It was a good game for veteran players, as KU’s second-best performer was the 6th year senior. Both efficient on offense and stingy on defense, Lightfoot’s score was only hampered by his poor defensive rebounding effort.
Christian Braun +2.46. CB overtook Agbaji as Kansas’ best overall player in this game, although the two are statistically even at this point. He didn’t have a great game, but still played well by knocking down late free throws.
Jalen Wilson +1.96. J-Wil rebounded very well to make up for a poor shooting game. He also defended well, in fact all of KU’s wings have played good defense this season.
Ochai Agbaji +0.95. Agbaji didn’t have a great game offensively, but still defended well and made a nice and-1 on a drive to finish with 11 points. He is a “quiet” defender, in that he doesn’t block shots, grab a ton of rebounds, get many steals, or force many opponent turnovers.
David McCormack -5.62. Bad Dave was back, starting the New Year with only 1 point and a poor value score. He grabbed five offensive rebounds, but never finished any of his put-backs. His defense on the perimeter and interior was worse than Lightfoot’s, which is why Coach Self went with the backup during most of the second half.
Joseph Yesufu – 6.00. With Remy Martin out due to injury, this was a great opportunity for Yesufu to have a break-through game. Unfortunately, it was more of the same. Yesufu’s main issue is on defense, where he gives up both outside shots and drives despite his quickness.
DeJuan Harris -12.62. As good as JCL’s game was, Harris’ outing was bad enough to wipe away enough value from what his teammate added. Harris had a typical offensive game for him, only scoring 4 points, but it was on defense where he struggled, allowing 19 points and multiple 3-pointers. It was a disappointing step-back after his solid performance against Nevada.
TEAM -1.20. KU was 1.20 points worse than a hypothetical bubble-team, who would have been expected to beat George Mason at home by about 10.20 points (for this season, think Creighton as a bubble-team). Looking at the performances, KU got more-than-enough from its super seniors Coleman-Lands and Lightfoot. But it was the three players who had terrible games that held them back. With conference play beginning Tuesday, these types of performances will result in losses.
Charting the Hawks 