In the grand scheme of things, it was just one play during No. 3 Kansas’ 75-72 win over Texas Tech on Tuesday evening inside United Supermarkets Arena in Lubbock, Texas. But it honestly tells the whole story.
The play in question was made by freshman Gradey Dick, of course.
Clinging to a five-point lead midway through the second half, Dick fired a 3-pointer from the left wing and knew immediately something was wrong. He followed his shot, catching the basketball in stride after it ricocheted off the rim, and moving over to the other side of the court. He turned around, drilling a baseline jumper to give Kansas a 59-52 advantage over Texas Tech.
On a night where nothing came easy — a concept that will likely become the norm during Big 12 play — the Jayhawks (13-1, 2-0 Big 12) were willing to do the little things to prevail in their first conference road test of the season. The Red Raiders fell to 10-4 (0-2 Big 12) on the season, and had their 29-game home winning streak snapped.
It started when Kansas faced a quick 13-5 hole in a raucous environment. The Jayhawks, who just erased a 15-point second-half deficit in the Big 12 opener against Oklahoma State, didn’t panic. Veteran guard Dajuan Harris made sure of that, hitting two of his career-high five 3-pointers to keep his team afloat within the first eight minutes.
Once Kansas weathered the initial storm, it became a hard-fought battle between two physical teams. Buckets were earned the hard way, with the officials letting both teams play and not calling a defensive foul on TTU for the first 25-plus minutes of the game.
When Texas Tech made a late charge to make it a 1-point game in the final minute, Kansas didn’t falter either. The defense came up with a pivotal stop on the game’s most important possession. A steal by Kevin McCullar Jr. led to a ferocious dunk by K.J. Adams Jr. on the other end.
These are the types of games that Bill Self-led teams are typically built for, especially this group, and it showed on Tuesday. Four players finished in double figures, led by an 18-point effort from Harris. Jalen Wilson scored 16 points, Adams registered 14, and Dick recorded 11.
Kansas finished with 22 assists on 31 made field goals in the win, dissecting Mark Adams’ no-middle defense with skip passes for much of the contest. It was a huge win for the Jayhawks on a night where Texas fell at home to Kansas State.
KU will travel to West Virginia at 5 p.m. on Saturday.