Postgame Notes
Jan. 28, 2013
NO. 2/1 KANSAS 61, WEST VIRGINIA 56
Postgame Notes
Jan. 28, 2013
KU STARTERS (Season/Career Starts): C Jeff Withey (20/60), G Elijah Johnson (20/66), G Ben McLemore (20/20), F Travis Releford (20/62), F Kevin Young(17/17)
SERIES INFO: Kansas leads 1-0
ATTENDANCE: 12,402 (capacity 14,000)
KANSAS’ WIN:
– Made Kansas 19-1 on the season and 7-0 in Big 12 Conference play
– Gave KU a record of 19-1 or better for the third time in the last four seasons and the fifth time in the 10-year Bill Self era
– Gave KU its 18th-straight win, which leads the NCAA (second, Akron, 11)
– Made KU 7-0 in Big 12 play for the second-straight season and the fifth time under Bill Self
– Makes Kansas 1-0 in the all-time series against West Virginia
– Moved Bill Self to 288-54 at Kansas and 495-159 overall in his career
– Improved KU to 2,089-807 all-time
TEAM NOTES:
– Prior to Monday night, West Virginia had an 80.7 winning percentage against teams making their first visit to WVU Coliseum (126-31).
– Out of its 20 games, Kansas has held 14 of its opponents under 60 points.
– Kansas grabbed 36 rebounds to West Virginia’s 27, tying the Mountaineers season-low. KU has outrebounded 17 of 20 opponents in 2012-13.
– Monday marked the first time Kansas has played a conference game in the Eastern Time Zone.
– Kansas shot 54.1 percent (20-for-37) on Monday, the ninth time this season KU has shot over 50 percent from the floor in 2012-13.
– Kansas came into Monday’s conference as the Big 12’s leader in defensive rebounds, while West Virginia came in as the best in offensive rebounds. The Jayhawks tied the Mountaineers with nine offensive boards and led the defensive margin, 27-18.
– The Jayhawks held the Mountaineers without a field goal for more than seven minutes to start the game, jumping out to a 14-2 run in the process. WVU sunk its first bucket at the 12:36 mark.
– After trailing by as many at 15 in the first half, WVU cut its deficit to two points multiple times in the second half (last, 48-46, 10:18).
– Following that mark, KU went on a 7-0 run that ended up being the difference in the game, which took less than two minutes (9:34-7:36).
– Kansas shot 59.1 percent (13-for-22) in the first half, marking the 17th time KU has shot 50 percent or better for a half this season – and its highest shooting performance for a half in Big 12 play.
– The Jayhawks made 18-of-34 free throws for the game (52.9 percent) – their most misses from the line this season (previously 11 misses at Ohio State and vs. Iowa State).
INDIVIDUAL NOTES:
– Redshirt freshman G Ben McLemore’s 13 points led the floor and marked the eighth-straight contest he has scored in double-digits.
– McLemore went 1-for-3 from the three-point line, extending his Big 12-leading three-point shooting percentage to 37-for-82 (45.1 percent).
– For the ninth time in 20 games, McLemore scored first – this time with a three-pointer at the 19:03 mark.
– Senior G Travis Releford has contributed double-digit points in 15-straight games, extended by his 15 points at West Virginia.
– Releford’s 15 points were his most in Big 12 play this season and his most in a league game since scoring a career-high 28 points at Oklahoma (1/7/12).
– Senior G Elijah Johnson dished out five assists, giving him 326 and moving him past Jayhawk great Keith Langford (322) for 19th on KU’s career assist list.
– Freshman G Andrew White III scored his first point in league play with a free throw in the second half. His six minutes were also the most he’s played in a Big 12 game.
– Senior C Jeff Withey had 10 points in the first 10 minutes of the game, collecting his ninth and 10th points with 10:02 remaining in the first half.
– Withey’s four blocks moves him just seven rejections away from tying KU’s all-time record (258, Greg Ostertag).
