LAWRENCE, Kan. (AP) — Tre White scored 19 points, Darryn Peterson added 16 and Kansas answered a second-half run by Iowa State with a big charge of its own, sending the second-ranked Cyclones to their first loss of the season, 84-63 on Tuesday night.
Melvin Council Jr. added 15 points and Flory Bidunga had 10 for the Jayhawks (12-5, 2-2 Big 12), who answered their fall out of the AP Top 25 this week by knocking off one of five unbeatens left in Division I men’s hoops — and one of two receiving No. 1 votes.
Joshua Jefferson had 12 points to lead the Cyclones (16-1, 3-1), but he also had five of their 12 turnovers. Tamin Lipsey added 10 points on 4-of-15 shooting, while Milan Momcilovic had 11 points and Nate Heise had 10.
The Jayhawks were rare home underdogs, according to BetMGM Sportsbook, a byproduct of the teams’ resumes to date: The Cyclones had impressed all season, trouncing then-No. 1 Purdue by 23 on the road, while Kansas had recently lost to unranked UCF and West Virginia.
Yet they looked like total opposites Tuesday night.
It was Kansas dominating both ends of the floor, forcing ball-secure Iowa State into 10 first-half turnovers while committing only two itself. White hit four early 3-pointers, the Cyclones went cold from the arc, and the Jayhawks built a 44-23 halftime lead.
Iowa State fell behind by 26 but chipped away at its deficit in the second half. Lipsey scored back-to-back buckets, Heise suddenly got involved, and back-to-back 3s got the Cyclones within 53-42 with 13 1/2 minutes to go.
But after Iowa State came up empty on two chances to get within single digits, the Jayhawks answered with a 10-0 run.
Their lead quickly stretched back to 24 before Kansas coasted its eighth straight win over the Cyclones in Allen Fieldhouse.
Up next
Iowa State visits Cincinnati on Saturday.
Kansas plays Baylor on Friday night.
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