No matter how frustrating this Kansas basketball team can be, some things never change in Lawrence — including winning on Senior Day. The Jayhawks had a decades-long streak on the line on Saturday with a game against No. 24 Arizona, but Bill Self and Co. prevailed in front of the Allen Fieldhouse crowd.
It was a thrilling back-and-forth contest that featured arguably the best basketball that KU displayed in Big 12 play. The Jayhawks surrendered a 14-point lead at one point in the second half, but they scored timely buckets en route to a 83-76 win.
Kansas basketball’s senior streak lives on in exciting ranked victory
Heading into the contest, there was serious concern from Jayhawk fans that the school would lose on its Senior Day for the first time since 1984. The team had lost two consecutive games against Texas Tech and Houston, so they did not have much momentum.
However, KU corrected its mistakes from the previous loss. It won the offensive rebounding battle 13 to seven and only committed five turnovers. The difference between this performance and the one earlier in the week in Fertitta Center, where they allowed 17 offensive rebounds and turned it over 20 times, was night and day.
Hunter Dickinson continued his offensive domination, scoring over 30 points for the second time in four games. He finished with a 33-point double-double on 15-for-23 shooting. Zeke Mayo had a bounce-back performance, sinking five 3-pointers and scoring 20 points. KJ Adams was active on the defensive end, adding 12 points and eight rebounds.
Now that Baylor lost to Houston, the Jayhawks officially secured the No. 6 seed in the conference. The team will have multiple days of rest before playing its first game of the Big 12 Tournament, which will come on Wednesday, March 12 vs. the winner of No. 11 seed Utah vs No. 14 seed UCF.