Aldrich Leads No. 1 Kansas Basketball To 81-51 Win Against Belmont
Dec. 29, 2009
Postgame Videos Aldrich | Withey | Mc. Morris
Aldrich Ends 2009 Calendar Year on High Note
Boxscore in PDF Format 
LAWRENCE, Kan. – Cole Aldrich dominated the inside with his 27th career double-double to lead No. 1 Kansas to an 81-51 basketball victory against Belmont late Tuesday night.
Aldrich scored 11 points on four-of-five shooting, while adding 14 rebounds and a season-high six blocked shots. He also recorded a career-high tying three steals.
The win extended the nation’s longest home-court winning streak to 50 games as the Jayhawks improved to 12-0 on the season, including a 10-0 mark at home. Belmont fell to 7-5 overall.
KU has recorded 50 straight home wins for the third time in school history. KU’s record is a 62-game streak from 1993-98. KU also had a 55-game streak from 1984-88.
Only two Jayhawks scored in double-figures as Marcus Morris registered a game-high 14 points on six of seven shooting to join Aldrich. KU starting guards Sherron Collins (nine points, four assists), Xavier Henry (eight, five) and Tyshawn Taylor (seven, five) combined for 24 points and 14 assists.
Belmont was led by Ian Clark and Drew Hanlen, who each scored 11 points.
The KU bench scored 32 points in the game as CJ Henry had eight points and four steals in just nine minutes and Elijah Johnson contributed seven points and three assists in 10 minutes of play.
The Jayhawks, who rank fourth in the country in field goal percentage, shot 56.1 percent from the field, scoring 40 points in the paint, including 21 fast break points. KU had 24 assists on its 32 baskets.
Belmont hit just 30.8 percent from the field and went to the free throw line just eight times. The Bruins matched KU on the board, trailing in that category by just one, but committed 23 turnovers, which led to 24 Jayhawk points.
Kansas started the game on a roll both offensively and defensively. The Jayhawks jumped out to an 11-0 lead before Belmont registered its first points of the game on a three-pointer by Drew Hanlen at the 14:47 mark.
In the first five minutes of the game KU was four of five shooting, while holding the visitors to 0 of nine shooting. Aldrich recorded four blocked shots in the first five minutes.
After scoring the game’s first 11 points, KU then went cold from the field, missing nine consecutive shots and going 6:07 between baskets. Belmont went on a 15-3 run in that time frame to take a 15-14 lead at the 9:44 mark.
However, KU scored on four straight possessions to start an 8-0 run, which gave the Jayhawks a 22-15 lead. After Belmont cut the margin to 29-26 late in the half, KU scored the final seven points before the break.
KU then continued its run to start the second half, scoring the first nine points after the break as part of a 16-0 run. Belmont got on the board five and one-half minutes into the second half but by then the Jayhawks led 47-28.
Kansas will return to action when it travels to No. 18 Temple on Saturday, Jan. 2. Tipoff is slated for 4:30 p.m. Central time and the game will be televised on ESPN2. The Jayhawks’ next home game will be against Cornell on Wednesday, Jan. 6.
