A shorthanded Kansas Jayhawk squad jumped out early on Saturday to take control of the second matchup of the season against Iowa State. In a game where the Jayhawks played without Josh Selby and Thomas Robinson, Kansas seemed to heed the call from their head coach for better defense, at least early.
At one point, just under the five minute mark in the first half, Kansas was up by 23 points and had held the Cyclones to just 14 points. While the Cyclones never pushed the game back within reach, Iowa State did start knocking down shots from beyond the arc.
For Kansas it was another highly efficient game on the offensive end as the Jayhawks averaged 1.33 points per possession. The Jayhawks were paced by the Morris twins who controlled the paint and picked up right where they left off in Ames. Marcus finished the game with 16 points and 11 rebounds, while Markieff contributed 14 points and 10 rebounds.
Junior guard Tyshawn Taylor got in on the act with a total of 14 points and 6 assists including a pair of three pointers. The Cyclone defense was content to sag and allow Taylor to shoot and while Taylor isn't deadly from outside, he did play effectively when presented with the challenge.
Kansas also received a nice lift from a familiar face of late in Brady Morningstar. More and more Morningstar's play is paying off big for Kansas and when he's at his best the Jayhawks are tough to stop. Mornigstar added 13 points and 4 offensive rebounds to the Kansas win.
Final score in this one 89-66. Now the Jayhawks head to Manhattan for Big Monday in a game where the Kansas might just find themselves wearing a big target on their back with a potential #1 ranking.