Moments That Popped: No. 1 KU 92, No. 9 North Carolina 89

In the first Allen Fieldhouse meeting between blue blood programs Kansas and North Carolina since 1960, the top-ranked Jayhawks knocked off No. 9 UNC 92-89 in a game that went down to the final shot.

The win moves Kansas to 2-0 on the season. UNC falls to 1-1.

• PHOTO GALLERY FROM FRIDAY • 

The Jayhawks played a whale of a first half, leading 53-38 at the break behind serious tempo and nearly 60% shooting from the floor.

But UNC never went away, flipping the script in the 2nd half to outscore KU 51-39 in the final 20 minutes.

Hunter Dickinson led Kansas with 20 points and 10 rebounds, picking up a couple of huge baskets in the paint down the stretch to help Kansas hang on.

Zeke Mayo added 21 points on 7-of-14 shooting, including 3 3-pointeres. KJ Adams (14), AJ Storr (13) and Dajuan Harris Jr. (10) also reached double figures in scoring for the home team, which got a big stop in the final seconds as UNC looked to launch a game-tying 3-pointer that missed at the buzzer.

Six Tar Heels reached double digits in scoring, with Seth Trimble leading the way with 19 points, including 10 makes in 10 trips to the free throw line.

Next up: KU will head to Atlanta next week to take on Michigan State in another high-profile game, the early tip at the Champions Classic which also will feature Duke and Kentucky squaring off in the nightcap.

Tipoff for that one is slated for 5:30 p.m. on ESPN.

Here’s a look back at some of Friday’s action.

LIKES

• This pace is perfection – There have been plenty of Bill Self teams that were at their best when they played fast. This is one of them. And boy does it look like these guys like to push the pace. The best part about it is it doesn’t really matter who’s out there or who isn’t. They’re able to do it with multiple lineups and different pieces on the floor. The other best part is that they don’t just look to go fast, they also look to finish. Throwing lobs, playing above the rim and getting downhill at the mid-court line is automatic and when they’re clicking, they look pretty much unstoppable.

• Hunter’s fire returns – You saw last season, right away, that Hunter Dickinson came to Kansas with plenty of personality. But the way the season played out and the handful of nagging injuries that forced him to labor throughout much of his first season as a Jayhawk quieted some of that vibe. Things are different now, though. Dickinson’s healthy and hungry and he showed off a ton of that personality on Friday night against UNC. First, he gestured to the KU crowd to get loud after back-to-back Kansas buckets in the first half. Then, a couple of possessions later, he scored in the paint, easily over UNC’s Ven-Allen Lubin, and did the “too small” hand motion as he ran back down the court on defense. Fiery Hunter is good for Kansas and good for college hoops.

• Running plays for Zeke – Before we dive into this one, please indulge me and see if you can help me get the “ZekeFromTheBeak” hashtag into the regular rotation on game nights. Mayo hit three 3-pointers in this one, with his second coming from the beak of the Jayhawk at mid-court toward the south basket. Mayo went nuts after the make — as did the crowd — and there’s no denying that this offense is already well aware of how much of a weapon he can be shooting the ball. A few possessions after the second made 3, KU ran an elevator door set for him to get a look at the top of the key. A foul on UNC blew up the play, but it was pretty cool to see Kansas feature Mayo in some of its sets. The transfer guard and Lawrence native looked to have tired legs in the second half, when he shot 1-of-6 from 3-point range but still managed to score 11 points with some crucial 2-point makes.

• Defense, defense, defense – The fact that they were playing another blue blood program probably had something to do with it, but this team has a bunch of dudes who would be considered “dawgs” on the defensive end. They dig in, want to guard, take it personal and show some pride and then deliver. That was crystal clear throughout the first half in this one, when the Jayhawks limited 35.5% shooting and forced 7 turnovers in the opening 20 minutes. You already know what Dajuan Harris Jr. & KJ Adams can do on D. But now they’ve got Rylan Griffen, Flory Bidunga, David Coit, Rakease Passmore and others out there willing to do it right alongside them. If that continues, Bill Self is going to quickly fall in looooove with this team. Even if he doesn’t always say it ;-)
It didn’t exactly continue in the second half, but some of that can be attributed to the talent of the team the Jayhawks were facing. In a lot of ways, this was the perfect outcome for Self. His team played really well at times and came away with the win but it also had enough lapses that should allow him to get their attention when they go over the film and move forward.

DISLIKES

• Free throw shooting by bigs – In the first half alone, Hunter Dickinson and Flory Bidunga combined to shoot 3-of-7 from the free throw line, with Dickinson missing two of the four in what should be a pretty automatic stat for him. KU’s style this season appears to be wide open so it’s not all that likely that either big is going to just keep getting catches and asked to go to work. But they’re going to need to make free throws, whether that’s because of the opportunities they get or so opposing defenses won’t be able to find a strategy to put them on the line, slowing KU’s pace and negating the chance to run offense and create open shots for the plethora of shooters on this roster. Speaking of free throws, UNC out-shot the Jayhawks 31-17 at the line in this one, making 28 to 12 by the Jayhawks. KU fans will point to the officials for some of that, but the Tar Heels have to be given credit for being the aggressors and forcing the whistles in the second half, too.

• KJ jumpers – The recipe for Kansas forward KJ Adams is pretty simple. Attack the rim, play in the paint and score however you can when you’re anywhere near there. Other than that, don’t shoot unless it’s wide open or late in the clock. UNC left Adams alone on the perimeter quite a bit in this one, almost daring him to pull the trigger, and he did on a couple of occasions, misfiring 3 times on a night when he shot 7-of-13 from the floor overall. Adams can shoot the ball from distance, but, on this team, it’s never going to be the option the Jayhawks want to play to. Even though this is the obvious recipe, there are moments when the jump shot isn’t a terrible choice. He forced a couple of contested shots from the 15-18-foot range in this game, though, and missed when he did.

WHAT THE?

• Throw it down, Dajuan – He’s been around Lawrence long enough for KU fans to know he can dunk. But this one had to be one of the best of his career — if not his life. With KU leading 72-65 midway through the second half, Dajuan Harris Jr., picked the pocket of a UNC guard near mid-court and then rushed the other way with the loose ball. Being hounded through the lane, Harris rose up with one hand on the right side of the rim and hammered a one-handed dunk to send the Fieldhouse into a frenzy. It’s not that he was surprised by the flush, but even Harris, who normally runs back pretty on D ho-hum after even some of his best highlights, did a little flexing and mean-mugging after the big finish.

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