National Basketball Association
Kansas 76, Oklahoma 72
When: 2:30 PM ET, Saturday, February 13, 2016
Where: Lloyd Noble Center, Norman, Oklahoma
Officials:
# Don Dailey, # Gerry Pollard, # Mark Whitehead
Attendance:
12247
By The Sports Xchange
NORMAN, Okla. -- Kansas coach Bill Self wanted defense out of Devonte' Graham.
A big offensive day was a bonus.
Self got a big surprise Saturday when Graham excelled on both ends of the floor, containing Oklahoma's Buddy Hield and hitting big shot after big shot as the No. 6 Jayhawks beat the No. 3 Sooners 76-72 in front of an estimated 11,707 at Lloyd Noble Center.
Graham shook his head at the suggestion that he played good defense on Hield.
"I just tried to make every shot tough on him," Graham said. "He still knocked down five trey balls. He still got his shots off. He had a good game. I just tried to lock up and play the best defense I could."
Graham and the Jayhawks made things difficult for Hield all game, but it was a play with no defense that helped Kansas (21-4, 9-3 in the Big 12) put the game away.
With 25.3 seconds left and the Jayhawks up two, Hield drew a foul on Graham to go to the line with a chance to tie it.
Hield made the first, but his second hit off the back of the rim, then the front before bounding away to where it was grabbed by Brannon Greene.
After Graham's two free throws with less than 20 seconds left, the Sooners had one more chance.
Oklahoma coach Lon Kruger gave Isaiah Cousins the option of attacking the basket to either kick out to Hield for a 3-pointer or score himself or to take a 3-pointer.
Cousins opted for the outside shot and it fell off the mark to give Kansas the season sweep.
The Jayhawks beat the Sooners 109-106 in triple overtime at home Jan. 4.
In that game, Hield had 46 points, so Self mixed things up defensively, starting Graham on Hield with the thought of moving Frank Mason III to him late in the game if he could avoid foul trouble.
But he never needed to make the switch and Graham responded by holding Hield without a field goal in the first half.
Graham scored a career-high 27 points of his own. Hield scored 24, 18 in the second half.
"He didn't get tired," Self said of Graham. "That didn't seem possible to me. We did a great job on Buddy. ... He did a remarkable job -- some of the stuff (Hield) got was in transition or off of offensive rebounds.
"And then for him to be out best player offensively by far and make two or three plays down the stretch. He had to make every one of them for us to have a chance. I think he grew up a little bit today."
Graham hit three of his six 3-pointers in the final five minutes -- all with the Jayhawks trailing and all to either tie the game or put Kansas ahead.
"He made big plays when they needed him, especially when we had that little bit of a lead and couldn't get a stop," Sooners coach Lon Kruger said. "He's a talented guy and he stepped up there and made key buckets for them."
For Oklahoma (20-4, 8-4), the loss puts them in a tough position in the conference race, a game behind both the Jayhawks and West Virginia.
"You don't like to lose anywhere but certainly you've got to protect your home court," Kruger said. "We've got to find one somewhere else now as a result of this. To lose at home in this league, it's tough to get it back."
As good a job as Graham did in the first half, Hield found space after halftime.
The Sooners trailed by as many as 14 before the break but trimmed the lead to only five at halftime and started the second half on a tear with three 3-pointers -- two by Cousins -- in the first four minutes to take their first lead since the game's opening minutes.
After that flurry, though, the game settled into a back-and-forth battle the rest of the way.
The Sooners led by five with eight minutes to go before Kansas scored seven consecutive points in less than a minute, taking advantage of two quick Oklahoma turnovers, to grab the lead back.
"Our coaches tell us we have to enjoy every moment," Graham said. "When you're on this stage, you just try to have fun. I was just out there having fun."
Kansas has won five in a row while Oklahoma had its 19-game home winning streak snapped.
NOTES: With 3:18 left, Frank Mason III of Kansas fouled Jordan Woodard on a made 3-pointer, giving the Sooners a four-point play to go up 69-66. Devonte' Graham answered with a 3-pointer. ... Perry Ellis of Kansas scored all 10 of his points in the first half. ... Isaiah Cousins, who was 2-of-14 from the field in the first meeting, had 21 points. ... Kansas hosts Oklahoma State on Monday. The Jayhawks lost to the Cowboys 86-67 on the road on Jan. 19. ... Oklahoma returns to action Wednesday at Texas Tech. The Sooners beat the Red Raiders 91-67 at home Jan. 26.
Top Game Performances
Kansas |
|
Oklahoma |
Devonte' Graham 27 |
Scoring |
Buddy Hield 24 |
Frank Mason 3 |
Assists |
Isaiah Cousins 5 |
Landen Lucas 10 |
Rebounds |
Ryan Spangler 7 |
Devonte' Graham 5 |
Free Throws Made |
Buddy Hield 9 |
Cheick Diallo 1 |
Steals |
Isaiah Cousins 3 |
Cheick Diallo 1 |
Blocks |
Khadeem Lattin 1 |
Team Stats Summary
Team |
Points |
FG% |
3PM-3PA |
FTM-FTA |
Assists |
Rebounds |
Blocks |
Steals |
Turnovers |
Kansas
|
76 |
46.3 |
11-26 |
15-20 |
11 |
38 |
3 |
3 |
14 |
Oklahoma
|
72 |
33.3 |
10-32 |
22-27 |
12 |
33 |
1 |
5 |
11 |