Game Summary:
In a disappointing result, Kansas gave up a four-point lead with a minute to play to lose 79-76. Texas scored the final 7 points to send the Jayhawks home with their second conference loss. The game was a high-scoring affair considering how good Texas’s defense has been this season.
Jalen Wilson earns team MVP honors for a value score of over +10 points. He scored and rebounded well, while giving up only 9 points in nearly 32 minutes of play. Joseph Yesufu also had his best game of the season, pouring in 8 points and an assist with efficient numbers. He gave up 5 points in 15 minutes, which is right on the pace of an average defender. This was Yesufu’s first time to outscore his man since the Missouri game. The game seems to be coming back to him, which can only help this team.
Other positives included Ochai Agbaji and Christian Braun. Och played fine with constant attention, he continued to defend and rebound. Braun had a nice game going until the last 3:30, missing 2 FT’s and allowing his man a tip-in and then a midrange jumper during UT’s 9-4 closing stretch.
Dejuan Harris did not have a great game, but he still distributed it well enough (5 assists) to show a serviceable value number. David McCormack’s solid offensive game (1.29 PPPaf, 16 points, 3 off rebounds) was erased with a dreadful defensive game (21 points allowed). Texas continued to attack him by having his man set high ball-screens. He was slow rotating back on numerous occasions. He did give up the late banked-in 3, a lucky shot but one that was possible due to slow rotation.
The other reserves were not value-adding in their limited minutes of play. K.J. Adams showed poor post defense. Mitch Lightfoot was the same. Bobby Pettiford had a disastrous turnover which led to a late 3 to end the first half.
The TEAM score of +6.80 is below the season average (+9.91), but still within the realm of respectability. KU played well enough to win were it not for a run of poor play and bad luck down the stretch. The performance was good enough to win most nights, just not against a Top 20 team on the road.
Charting the Hawks 