Kansas came out hot in the first half and led the No. 1-ranked Wildcats, 52-39, at the break, but the Jayhawks scored just 22 points on 9-of-32 shooting after the break, and Salim Stoudamire scored 20 second-half points as Arizona came back for the victory. KU’s 20-point first-half lead overcome by Arizona was the biggest blown lead in a Jayhawk loss ever.
The Wildcats (15-1) started the second half with a 10-0 run and took their first lead, 54-53, on a three-pointer by Stoudamire. The teams traded leads for the next couple minutes before Arizona took the lead for good.
Keith Langford led Kansas (13-5) with 27 points, but just five after halftime. Nick Collison and Kirk Hinrich each scored 15 points, and Jeff Graves added nine.
Stoudamire led Arizona with 32 points, Jason Gardner added 23 and Rick Anderson had 15. Stoudamire hit 6-of-9 three-pointers, including 4-of-5 in the second half.
Arizona shot 53.6 percent (30-of-56) from the field and made 22 of 26 free throws. After shooting nearly 65 percent in the first half, Kansas finished shooting 47 percent (31-of-66), and was just 4-of-12 from the free-throw line.
HALFTIME REPORT
Keith Langford’s having the game of his career, scoring 22 points on 9-of-11 shooting – including two three-pointers – against the No. 1-ranked Wildcats.
Langford’s shooting exhibition has helped off-set Kirk Hinrich’s foul trouble. Hinrich, who hit an early three-pointer, was whistled for his third foul with just less than eight minutes left in the first half.
The Jayhawks led by as many as 20 points, 44-24, before the Wildcats cut the lead to 12 points with an 8-0 run, ended by a Jeff Hawkins three-pointer.
Nick Collison has added 11 points, and Jeff Graves has five rebounds and eight points – six of which came in the first few minutes as Kansas built an early lead. Michael Lee has also hit a three-pointer for the Jayhawks, and Aaron Miles has made a shot.
Salim Stoudamire leads Arizona with 12 points, including two deep three-pointers. Jason Gardner has 10 points, and Rick Anderson has eight.
Kansas is shooting 64.7 percent (22-of-34) from the field, including 6-of-10 from behind the three-point line. Arizona also is shooting well, hitting 51.9 percent (14-of-27) from the floor, and making 9-of-10 free throws.
