Kansas basketball bounces back against Oklahoma without Dotson
Kansas basketball picked up a solid road victory against Oklahoma, even without star point guard Devon Dotson.
Kansas basketball bounced back after their loss to Baylor in a big way. The Jayhawks went on the road against Oklahoma as just a 4.5 point favorite (odds courtesy of The Action Network) and came away with a 14 point victory over the Sooners.
Even more impressive, the Jayhawks did it without their best player.
Devon Dotson left last Saturday’s game against Baylor with a hip pointer, then came back later in that same game. Head coach Bill Self even seemed to believe that Dotson would play against the Sooners:
"“Every time [Dotson] gets hit it’s going to linger, but it’s not something that I think you sit for according to the reports I’ve got from trainer…” – Bill Self"
Matt Tait broke the news that Dotson would be out for the game about three and a half hours before the tip-off, and gamblers acted on the information almost immediately. Kansas went from about a 6.5 favorite to a 4.5 favorite, and it appeared the Jayhawks’ may have a battle on their hands. After all, with no Dotson, Kansas would be losing the number one scorer in the Big 12.
It looked like Kansas might drop two games in a row, but three Jayhawks stepped up big time in Dotson’s absence.
Marcus Garrett was forced to play the point guard position, and he did it better than anyone could have expected. Garrett totaled 15 points, five assists, five rebounds, and only one turnover leading the Kansas offense.
Isaiah Moss had one of his best games as a Jayhawk, leading the team with 20 points on 6-of-11 shooting from behind the arc. If Moss can shoot as confidently as he did every single night, it will have an immediate positive impact for Kansas, not only giving them another viable scoring threat but also creating space for others to work.
Finally, Udoka Azubuike posted another double-double, scoring 16 points and grabbing 14 rebounds. The big man anchored the Kansas offense and did his part to help secure the victory.
HOOPS. Jayhawks play one of the toughest schedules in the country. light
Despite the game being touch-and-go for a little bit, Kansas basketball finished strong and came away with a solid road win. Hopefully, Dotson will be back sooner rather than later, as the Jayhawks will travel again this weekend to take on Texas.
You can catch the Jayhawks’ next game this Saturday afternoon against the Longhorns at 1:00 PM central time on ESPN.