No. 1 Kansas jumped out of the gates early, then overcame a second-half ejection of All-America center Hunter Dickinson Tuesday for a tense 75-72 win over 11th-ranked Duke Tuesday night.
The Jayhawks secured the high-profile win in Las Vegas while limiting Duke’s Cooper Flagg to 13 points and forcing the freshman phenom into four turnovers. Flagg’s supporting cast led multiple runs to keep things close before the tone of the game took a dramatic turn midway through the second half.
With Kansas leading 57-55, Dickinson grabbed an offensive rebound in traffic and was undercut by Duke’s Maliq Brown. Both players fell to the floor with their bodies entangled. While on the floor, Dickinson kicked Brown in the head with his right foot, and a brief scuffle ensued.
Officials assessed Brown with a personal foul on the floor, then went to the monitor. After a lengthy review, they issued a flagrant 2 technical foul to Dickinson, a penalty that comes with an ejection. Officials didn’t offer an explanation for how they decided that the foul reached the level of a flagrant 2. Dickinson’s night was done, and he was required to leave the Kansas bench.
Dickinson remained on the bench before officials noticed that he was still there at the next break in action. He was eventually led off the court with an escort.
The game was a back-and-forth battle the rest of the way before Duke had a chance at a go-ahead shot in the game’s final seconds while trailing, 72-71. But Kansas defenders forced Kon Knueppel into a turnover in the lane with 3.3 seconds remaining, and Kansas guard Rylan Griffen came away with the ball.
Griffen hit two free throws on the other end to extend the lead to three, and Duke couldn’t respond on its final possession with 3.3 seconds remaining. Knueppel had one last look at a 3-pointer, but it rolled off the rim as the final buzzer sounded.
It added up to another strong showing from Kansas against a top opponent to improve to to 6-0. The win was the second for the Jayhawks over a top-11 opponent after they withstood a second-half rally from then-No. 9 North Carolina at home on Nov. 8.
On Tuesday, Kansas maintained its composure without its best player down the stretch.
The Jayhawks seized control at the opening tip while racing out to a 16-3 early lead. They repeatedly met Flagg with double teams, physical play and a strong one-on-one defensive effort from senior forward KJ Adams Jr.
But Duke stood its ground and cut the Kansas lead to 41-39 at halftime thanks in part to a buzzer-beating 3-pointer from junior guard Tyrese Proctor. The Blue Devils kept pace despite getting just two points from Flagg in the first half.
Duke then took its first lead since the game’s opening minute with a 42-41 edge out of halftime. But Kansas punched back. The Jayhawks went on a 9-0 run to reassert control of the game with a 50-42 lead.
Duke responded with a 15-7 run before Dickinson’s flagrant foul shifted the tenor of the game. But the Jayhawks didn’t buckle.
A dunk by Flagg put Duke up 67-65 with 5:53 remaining. But Griffen responded with a personal 6-0 run to retake the Kansas lead at 71-67. Duke would tie the game at 71-71, but Kansas never trailed again and survived two go-ahead efforts by Duke in the game’s final four seconds.
Kansas got a balanced effort on offense, led by 14 points from Dajuan Harris Jr. Dickinson had 11 points, six rebounds, three assists and two steals at the time of his ejection. Adams was a force on defense while posting eight points, two rebounds, three assists, three steals and three blocks. The Jayhawks shot 49.1% from the floor and 8 of 17 from 3 (47.1%) while hitting 11 of 12 free throws.
Proctor led Duke with 15 points, six rebounds, two assists and two steals. Flagg added five rebounds and three assists to his 13 points. One of his four turnovers took place as Duke looked to take the lead with 48 seconds remaining.
Duke shot 50% from the field and 42.3% from 3, but it wasn’t enough to overcome a resilient Kansas team.