Michael Hickey/Getty Photography
No. 1 survives.
In basically the very best game of the young men’s college basketball season, the tip-ranked Kansas Jayhawks outlasted the No. 17 Kentucky Wildcats for an 89-84 victory in Tuesday’s Champions Classic on the United Middle in Chicago.
It became once a relieve-and-forth affair in the midst of, and there had been extended stretches the set it gave the impression like both groups would sooner or later pull away for the set shut. Yet snatch taking pictures from Dajuan Harris Jr. and a dominant efficiency from Hunter Dickinson became once ample for the Jayhawks to prevail.
Dickinson performed with 27 ingredients, 21 rebounds and three steals, while Harris added 23 ingredients and seven assists on the relieve of 5-of-6 taking pictures from three-level fluctuate. Throw in a triple-double of 12 ingredients, 10 assists and 10 rebounds from Kevin McCullar Jr., and Kansas had too worthy firepower.
The efficiency drew reward from social media:
Jeff Borzello @jeffborzello
By @ESPNStatsInfo: Hunter Dickinson is the foremost player with 20 ingredients and 20 rebounds vs. Kentucky over the last 25 seasons. It be additionally the foremost 20/20 game in Champions Classic ancient past.
NCAA March Madness @MarchMadnessMBB
Hunter Dickinson beats the horn 🚨
Kentucky leads 48-41 on the half of! pic.twitter.com/dFojiiGzSX
Sam Vecenie @Sam_Vecenie
Dajuan Harris is one of these stud. Was once so true last year. I additionally continue to no longer rule him out as NBA player as a backup PG. So standard. Will get every person invovled. Wholly unselfish mentality. Sizable defender. If the taking pictures is exact like it became once tonight, has a case as most effective PG in the nation
NCAA March Madness @MarchMadnessMBB
Dajuan Harris catching FIRE from deep 🔥 @KUHoops pic.twitter.com/kTboEaO9q5
Andrew Lind @AndrewLindTV
.@KUHoops is now 26-1 when Dajuan Harris has 10 or extra ingredients.
It be clear as day, the Jayhawks are greater when he is no longer true a plod first level guard.
Jeff Goodman @GoodmanHoops
FINAL: Kansas 89, Kentucky 84
Jayhawks had been down 14 at one level in the 2d half of, but Dajuan Harris hit some HUGE 3’s and Hunter Dickinson had a monster game (27 ingredients, 21 rebounds).
Give Kentucky credit ranking. Had been genuine there with Reeves and Wagner combined 8-36 from field.
The Jayhawks are the tip team in the nation with national championship aspirations attributable to the presence of a different of headline veterans, while Kentucky became once the one with some questions about childhood and inexperience.
It did not see that formula in the foremost half of.
Freshman Have interaction Dillingham supplied a advise activate the bench with a barrage of three-pointers and a willingness to facilitate when Kansas collapsed on him. Combine that with sophomore Adou Thiero controlling the boards and scoring from completely different areas, and the SEC representatives jumped out to a seven-level halftime lead and extended it to double digits.
Nonetheless, the reputedly inevitable Kansas bustle arrived.
Dickinson started overwhelming Kentucky’s bigs down low, and McCullar procedure up Ok.J. Adams Jr. for multiple probabilities in a row that incorporated an alley-oop. McCullar then transformed an and-one, and true like that the Sizable 12 team had the lead.
NCAA March Madness @MarchMadnessMBB
HERE COME THE JAYHAWKS!
7-0 bustle for @KUHoops 👀 pic.twitter.com/bp46WDr152
It would had been straightforward for the Wildcats to fold down the stretch after Kansas gave the impression to snatch set watch over, but they did the reverse. Remarkable like Dillingham in the foremost half of, freshman Reed Sheppard supplied a key ward off the bench with his out of doors taking pictures, and Antonio Reeves created multiple scoring probabilities.
The relieve-and-forth defined the 2d half of, but Harris’ red-sizzling taking pictures from the out of doors and a key basket down low from Dickinson in crunch time secured the set shut for the Jayhawks.
They’ll see to withhold the momentum rolling after they face Chaminade on Monday.
