Oklahoma ahead Jalen Hill, left, drives previous Kansas guard Dajuan Harris Jr. (3) within the second half of an NCAA faculty basketball sport Saturday, Feb. 11, 2023, in Norman, Okla. (AP Photo/Sue Ogrocki)
By CLIFF BRUNT AP Sports Writer
NORMAN, Okla. (AP) — Even an elite scorer like Jalen Wilson wants a confidence enhance generally.
He received one on Saturday, scoring 18 factors to assist No. 9 Kansas roll previous Oklahoma 78-55.
Wilson, who entered the day main the Big 12 with practically 21 factors per sport, bounced again from a two-point outing in opposition to Texas on Monday. He began off slowly in opposition to Oklahoma however scored 10 factors within the last 4:14 of the primary half to place the Jayhawks in management.
“He needed to see the ball go in the basket,” Kansas coach Bill Self stated. “For a guy that’s averaging 20, you wouldn’t think he needed to see the ball go in the basket, but he did. I can tell.”
During that run, Wilson made 4 of 5 area objectives, and Kansas pushed a 21-20 result in 35-22. His last bucket of the half was a contested 3-pointer with three seconds left.
Wilson additionally had 5 rebounds, 5 assists and 5 steals. Teammates Dajuan Harris scored 16 factors on 7 of 11 area objectives and Kevin McCullar added 13 for the Jayhawks (20-5, 8-4 Big 12).
Harris offered wanted scoring help for Wilson, particularly with Oklahoma limiting Kansas’ freshman sharpshooter, Gradey Dick, to 5 photographs — none of them 3s. Harris has posted three of his 4 highest-scoring video games this season in his previous three contests.
Self stated the unselfish guard helps his staff when he seems to be for his shot.
“For us to be good, he’s got to score. … He sees the game differently,” Self stated. “He sees the game that, sometimes his numbers don’t really equate to winning when I’m trying to convince him, ‘Your numbers do equate to winning.’”
Jalen Hill scored 14 factors and Otega Oweh added 11 for Oklahoma (12-13, 2-10).
Grant Sherfield, who leads the Sooners with practically 17 factors per sport, was held to 10 factors and missed 10 photographs. He scored 25 within the earlier assembly, when Kansas squeaked out a 79-75 win.
“That was our emphasis, not to let him beat us,” Self stated.
Oklahoma was in a stable place a month in the past however has since misplaced seven of eight — together with 4 straight since beating No. 2 Alabama 93-69 on Jan. 28. On Saturday, it damage itself with sloppy play.
“The storyline of the game is the decision-making and the barrage of turnovers,” Oklahoma coach Porter Moser stated. “Twenty-four turnovers and five assists. Say no more.”
“I thought we came out playing the right way,” Moser stated of a 10-4 lead eight minutes into the sport. “We jumped out to a lead. I thought our defense was really good in the beginning.”
It didn’t final. Kansas took its first lead on a layup by McCullar with just below seven minutes remaining earlier than halftime.
Wilson didn’t rating till he made a jumper with about 4 minutes left within the first half, and he was simply getting began. He knocked down two 3-pointers within the last minute, and the Jayhawks led by not less than 5 factors the remainder of the way in which.
Despite Saturday’s blowout and Monday’s 88-80 win over No. 5 Texas, Self nonetheless sees quite a lot of work forward for the Jayhawks.
“I don’t think the team can be good until they actually know who they are, and I think we’re still figuring out who we are and what our identity is,” he stated.
BIG PICTURE
Kansas: The Jayhawks wanted the win to remain inside vary of Texas within the Big 12 race. They did it with protection, holding the Sooners to 36% taking pictures. Self stated protection must be the important thing.
“We’re not good enough offensively to carry the load against other teams who are playing well,” he stated.
Oklahoma: The Sooners are falling aside. It was Oklahoma’s fourth consecutive double-digit loss. The schedule gets no simpler, with 5 ranked opponents within the last six regular-season video games.
UP NEXT
Kansas: Visits Oklahoma State on Tuesday.
Oklahoma: Hosts No. 12 Kansas State on Tuesday.
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Follow Cliff Brunt on Twitter: twitter.com/CliffBruntAP
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More AP faculty basketball: https://apnews.com/hub/college-basketball and https://twitter.com/AP_Top25
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