BYU played its A game and took advantage of a huge opportunity to boost its NCAA Tournament resume with a big win over a blue blood program.
That program, the 23rd-ranked Kansas men’s basketball team, didn’t even make it difficult, falling to the Cougars 91-57 in Provo, Utah on Tuesday night.
It was the Jayhawks’ worst loss since falling to USC by 34 in the second round of the 2021 NCAA Tournament. And tied for the third-largest loss in KU basketball history.
The loss was the fourth straight on the road for the Jayhawks, who struggled from the jump and will leave the state of Utah with two of the worst losses of the season in its suitcase.
Before we get to the specifics (if you make it that far), here’s a list of a few general things that stood out to me during Tuesday’s disaster of a basketball game against BYU:
• At no point did it look like anyone on the Kansas side was having any fun out there. I get that when you’re getting blown out. But this vibe surfaced long before the score got away from them.
• Too often, KU’s offense looked like it was simply five guys playing for themselves and looking to get their own shots. Part of that is a natural response to tough times, with players starting to press to make something happen. But the majority of it seems to underscore what these guys have been saying for the past few weeks – too much individual play and not enough team ball.
• The Cougars beat Kansas by doing exactly what they’re known for and what they do well — moving the ball, spreading things out and firing up 3-pointers — and that, for those of you still searching or paying attention, is the biggest concern about what happened here. It’s one thing for a team to catch you off guard, but when they beat you — and beat you bad — by doing exactly what you knew they were going to do, that’s a really bad sign.
• BYU never quit. Even when the reserves were out there in the second half, the Cougars had the hungrier, more aggressive, harder-playing team on the floor.
Next up, KU (17-9 overall, 8-7 Big 12) will return home this weekend to take on Oklahoma State at 3 p.m. on Saturday at Allen Fieldhouse.
Here’s a look back at some of Tuesday’s action against the Cougars.
LIKES
• Nothing. – I could’ve found a thing or two to force in here, but, given the way the game went and where the program is at right now, highlighting the good seems more than a little tone deaf. The players laid an egg, the coaches had no answers and the Jayhawks left Provo with one of the worst losses of the Bill Self era.
DISLIKES
• Another horrific start – This one had the feel of a make-or-break game for the rest of KU’s season, and, at least before tipoff, there was reason to believe that KU would come out with great energy and fight, ready to get back what it gave away in a loss to Utah on Saturday night. But then the game started, KU forgot to play defense and the Cougars made ‘em pay from the jump. The Jayhawks were down 8-0 before they could blink. And it only got worse from there. To double digits, then to 15 and finally to 20 by halftime. There were a dozen reasons why the Jayhawks trailed 46-26 at the break, but their latest slow and sloppy start played a huge role in it. For as big as it was heading into the night, this game was basically over shortly after it started for all of the same reasons that have plagued this team for the past two months.
• Terrible 3-point defense – It’s one thing for a team to kill you from the outside by draining 3-pointer after 3-pointer. It’s another thing entirely to not even get a hand up on their 3-point shots while they’re doing it. That was a major issue in the first half of Tuesday’s game, with KU closing out slowly and not putting a hand up to contest shots while the Cougars rained in 3s from the outside. When they did — rarely — the Cougars often misfired. But there were far too many completely wide-open looks or easy rhythm jumpers over a flat-footed defender and that led to 10 3-pointers in the first half alone for the home team. By the end of the night, the Cougars had hit 14 of 36 3-point shots for a 39% clip from behind the arc. At one point in the first half, KU had 9 made field goals and 8 turnovers while BYU had 8 made 3-pointers. Oof.
• Can’t. Make. Shots. Again! – KU could’ve made every shot it got and still struggled to keep up with the red-hot Cougars. But, needless to say, they didn’t. That allowed BYU to build big leads quickly, and, far too often, this team will have possessions where it moves the ball, makes the extra pass, gets the good look and just can’t knock it down. That’s when they run good offense, which, unfortunately for Kansas fans, isn’t all that often any more. But it certainly qualifies as a buzzkill when they finally do and then can’t finish the play by burying the shot. KU finished the night with 36.5% shooting overall and a 9-of-32 mark from 3-point range, good for 28%.
• 2nd half start, but not the way you think – Sure, the Jayhawks were a little flat to start the second half in this one the way we’ve seen so many times this season. But there was a little life on the offensive end. On defense, however, it was barbecue chicken. BYU scored its first 8 points of the half in the paint against little to no resistance by the Jayhawks, and the Cougars’ lead grew from 20 to 25 in the first three minutes of the second half. That’s no way to even begin to stage a comeback.
WHAT THE?
• Storr biffs the lob – It might’ve been a tough pass to handle, but boy was this moment the KU season in a nutshell. Midway through the first half, with the Jayhawks already in a hole, Dajuan Harris and AJ Storr had a 2-on-1 break that looked like it was going to lead to easy points. Instead, it ended with Storr failing to catch the lob pass from Harris and watching it fall out of bounds for yet another KU turnover. It’s been well documented how much Storr has struggled this season and how he has been anything but the player the Jayhawks thought they were getting. But this underscored it in red, two or three times. It’s just not there and it doesn’t appear as if it’s going to be either. Tough night. Tough moment. Tough season.
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