**1 – Dajuan Harris Jr. -** Harris delivered arguably the two biggest blows of the game in the opening minutes, scoring on a hard drive to the basket on KU’s first possession and then flat-out taking the ball from UT’s Tyrese Hunter on defense a couple of possessions later. There was plenty more where both of those came from, but the Longhorns (and the Jayhawks) knew then and there that Harris was going to be a problem all night. He finished with 17 points on 16 shots and added 6 rebounds, 5 assists and 4 steals. Big time stuff from a national champion player.
**2 – Joe Yesufu -** Yesufu’s contribution was massive. To get 14 points from him on a night you win by eight in an absolutely-gotta-have-it game cannot be overstated. He made five of nine shots, looked lightning quick all over the floor and even played with a little fire and passion that seems to be missing from his game most nights, likely because he’s often over-thinking his role and play. He wasn’t on Monday. He was just ballin’ and KU benefited big time.
**3 – Gradey Dick -** His defense was merely average and Texas attacked him all night, but he more than made up for it on the offensive end, knocking in 7 of 11 shots, including a couple of huge 3-pointers, one that put Kansas up 14 in the first half and the other that put the Jayhawks up nine late. After both, the kind of passion and joy that we saw him play with throughout the early part of the season resurfaced and the fans responded in kind.
**4 – Kevin McCullar Jr. -** The biggest thing that jumped out about McCullar’s night was the nine fouls drawn. That was just two less than his seven other teammates combined. He attacked the paint hard, was strong with the ball when he did and got to the free throw line 13 times, making 10, to finish with 16 points and 6 assists on the night. Just like with Dick, it was a big time answer to a sub-par game last Saturday.
**5 – KJ Adams -** Adams was really good early, playing above the rim and attacking the Longhorns with absolutely no fear. Kansas needed that tonight, especially from one of their few big bodies. And it looked as if it did just enough to rattle and stagger the Longhorns early on. Although they got the game tied and made it a fight, Adams’ early bucket in the second half by way of a follow-dunk kept Kansas in front and brought back the momentum to the building. The Jayhawks never trailed in this one and Adams was a big reason why. He finished with 10 points and 8 rebounds in just over 30 minutes.
**6 – Jalen Wilson -** Two points on 1-of-7 shooting to go along with three turnovers. Huh? Forget about it. Wilson will. And, besides, KU won. That’s all he cares about. If you take his 38-point game against K-State and pair it with this one, that’s still an average of 20 per game. That’s how good Wilson has been this season and he will be again, as well. Tonight, his teammates picked him up, which was exactly what KU coach Bill Self and the Jayhawks needed to see happen.
**7 – Ernest Udeh Jr. -** Udeh made all three shots he attempted while playing above the rim and with a little bit of intensity and passion. It wasn’t always pretty, but nobody’s keeping track of style points. Those were 6 big points in a huge game on a night he knew he would need to play. Hat tip to him for delivering KU’s second biggest individual plus/minus number of the night (+9) while playing just 8:31.
**8 – MJ Rice -** Speaking of plus/minus, how about the freshman guard who has been basically MIA during the past few weeks? Rice was great in his 14 minutes of action on Monday night and that’s said with a serious face even after looking at his 1-for-5 shooting line. He grabbed 3 rebounds, scored 2 points and dished an assist and a steal. More importantly, to borrow a phrase from Self, he belonged. The game wasn’t too big, he didn’t trip all over himself and he wasn’t discouraged or disengaged at all. He showed up for the moment and helped his team win. Perhaps *that* is the springboard people have been looking for with him. Time will tell.
Season standings
———–
1 – Jalen Wilson, 196
2 – Dajuan Harris Jr., 171
3 – KJ Adams, 161
4 – Gradey Dick, 156
5 – Kevin McCullar Jr., 148o
6 – Bobby Pettiford, 97
7 – Joe Yesufu, 87
T8 – MJ Rice, 56y
T8 – Ernest Udeh Jr., 56
10 – Zuby Ejiofor, 52u
11 – Zach Clemence, 44z
12 – Cam Martin, 11q
13 – Kyle Cuffe Jr., 2x
*x – Out for 10-12 weeks with a knee injury starting Nov. 13*
*y – Missed 3 of the first 5 games of the season because of injury and illness; also sat out games because of COVID, kidney stones and back spasms*
*z – Missed Duke, Southern Utah and NC State games because of injury. Also injured a knee in road loss at Iowa State, which caused him to miss more time*
*o – Missed Nov. 29 game vs. Texas Southern with a groin injury
*q – Missed first nine games of the season with shoulder injury
*u – Missed a few weeks during the middle of the Big 12 season with a foot injury*
