Jayhawks Boom Sooners 109-106

Um.

Yeah.

So that just happened.  I'm still trying to catch my breath.

After Oklahoma scored the first five points of the game, Kansas raced out to a 37-26 lead.  Oklahoma, of course, answered, storming back to take a 44-40 lead into halftime - aided by a horrible foul call on Frank Mason that led to a Bill Self technical.

The Sooners would stretch their lead to 54-44 early in the second half.  Kansas closed to 63-60 and 70-68 before finally retaking the lead at 73-72.  After the Jayhawks took a 77-75 lead, another horrible foul call against Mason allowed Buddy Hield to shoot two free throws to tie the game and send it into overtime.

Oklahoma took a five point, 86-81 lead in OT, but Kansas answered right back on a Devonte Graham jumper and Perry Ellis three-ball to tie it up again.  Wayne Selden would end up missing a wide-open three as time expired to send the game into a second overtime tied at 86.

Once again, Oklahoma scored first, but Kansas continued to battle.  Landen Lucas scored five of KU's eight points in the second overtime, but neither team scored over the last 2:18, sending the game to a third OT at 94-all.

This time, KU took the early lead, but found themselves trailing by a point, 106-105, with 43 seconds remaining.  Oklahoma would turn the ball over on two of their final three possessions while Kansas sank free throws to set up a three-point lead.  OU would miss a 25-footer at the buzzer and the game mercifully ended.

Final score - Kansas 109, Oklahoma 106.

Stats

Buddy Hield led all scorers with 46 points while going 13/23 from the floor, including 8/15 from three and 12/14 from the free throw line.

Hield tied the record for points scored in a single game by a visiting player in Allen Fieldhouse (Mike Wroblewski, 1961-62).

Perry Ellis led all Jayhawks with 27 points, but only went 11/28 from the field.  Ellis was 2/3 from behind the arc, however.

Three other Jayhawks scored in double figures: Selden (21), Graham (20), and Mason (15).

Mason had 6 assists but gave away 4 turnovers.

Kansas outrebounded Oklahoma 60-55.  Ellis led the way with 13 while Lucas chipped in eight.

As a team, Kansas hit 11/22 (50.0%) from behind the arc.  Selden led the way, going 3/7, while Ellis and Greene each hit 2/3.

Oklahoma was 16/33 (48.5) from behind the arc (which includes the desperation shot at the end of the game).

Kansas went 18/23 (78.3%) from the free throw line.

Oklahoma was 18/24 from the line.

Each team was called for 22 personal fouls, although it sure didn't feel like it.

The Sooners blocked 12 shots, 6 by Khadeem Lattin.

Jamari Traylor led KU with 3 blocks, two of which were HUGE.

The Jayhawks only led for 19:47, or 36% of gametime.

Bill Self is now 198-9 in Allen Fieldhouse.

Kansas has won 32 straight in Allen Fieldhouse.

Barely.

Takeaways

Oklahoma deserves every single #1 vote they got this week.

They probably deserve a few next week as well (assuming they keep winning).

I'm pretty sure KU stuck with the same lineup in all three overtimes and at the end of regulation.

That meant Graham, Mason, Selden, Ellis, and Lucas.  No Mickelson.  No Greene.

We just didn't go to the bench at all late in the game.

This may have been the two best teams in the country playing it out tonight - apologies to Michigan State with a healthy Valentine.

KU didn't stop Hield much at all (obviously), though I thought Mason did a solid job on him in the second half - even after Mason picked up his fourth foul, which happened with 22 seconds left in regulation.

And yes, two of the fouls against Mason were absolutely and completely BOGUS.  Interestingly, both of the bogus foul calls came right before the end of each half.

Can we please put the crazy KU ref 8-on-5 conspiracies to bed?  I mean, good grief.

Even though Hield went crazy, Isaiah Cousins was very much held in check, going only 2/14 from the floor.

Woodard and Hield just torched the Jayhawks from behind the arc - Woodard 6/9, Hield 8/15.

It's nice to be 2-0, but now we gotta hit the road in conference.

Up Next

The Jayhawks will travel to beautiful Lubbock, TX to face the Red Raiders of Texas Tech on Saturday, January 9.  The game is scheduled for an 8 PM tip and will be televised on ESPNU.