Jayhawks Fall to Villanova
Jan. 22, 2005
PHILADELPHIA, Pa. – The University of Kansas men’s basketball team dropped its first game of the season with an 83-62 loss to Villanova, Saturday at the Wachovia Center in Philadelphia, Pa.
The Wildcats connected on 12-of-19 from behind the three-point line and shot 51 percent from the field in the win.
With the loss, KU fell to 14-1 and still remain 4-0 in Big 12 play. Villanova improves to 10-4 on the season.
Senior Wayne Simien led the Jayhawks with 15 points and added game-highs with eight rebounds and six assists. Sophomore J.R. Giddens added 11 points, while freshman Sasha Kaun scored a career-high 11 points and grabbed five rebounds of the bench.
The Wildcats got off to a quick start hitting 7-of-10 three-points attempts in the first half to go into the break with a 41-34 lead.
Villanova’s Allan Ray and Curtis Sumpter combined for 52 points in the win. Ray led all scorers with 27 points, while Sumpter chipped in with 25 points, which included 5-of-6 from three-point range. Mike Nardi added 11 points for the Wildcats.
“We did not show a lot of poise today,” Kansas head coach Bill Self said. “They were a lot better than us today, no question about it.
“I hate that this happened today but maybe a little humiliation will do us some good,” Self added.
Kansas will return to Big 12 action Tuesday night when the Jayhawks travel to Waco, Texas to take on Baylor. Tip-off is scheduled for 6:30 p.m.
