No. 2/2 Jayhawks host Oklahoma State on Saturday in Allen Fieldhouse

Notes Kansas Game Notes (.pdf)
Notes Oklahoma State Game Notes (.pdf)
Notes Big 12 Game Notes (.pdf)

No. 2/2 Kansas (15-1, 4-0) returns home to host Oklahoma State (10-6, 0-4) on Saturday, Jan. 14 at 1 p.m., on ESPN2. Kansas won its 15th-straight game with an 81-70 win at Oklahoma Jan. 10. Oklahoma State is looking to snap a four-game losing streak after its 96-89 loss to Iowa State Jan. 11.

When one looks at the Big 12 standings through games of Jan. 11, only one team remains undefeated. KU’s 4-0 league start ties for the 14th best start for the Jayhawks in the 21-year history of the Big 12.

ABOUT KANSAS
Kansas’ 15-game winning streak is tied for longest in NCAA Division I with Gonzaga (15 and plays at home Jan. 12). The 15-game streak is the sixth longest in Bill Self’s 14 seasons at Kansas. KU averages 86.3 points per game and has scored 80 or more in 13 of 16 games this season. KU has a +16.6 scoring margin. Kansas leads the Big 12 and is fifth nationally with a 50.5 field goal percentage. KU leads the league with a 42.2 3-point field goal percentage, which is fourth in NCAA Division I. KU averages 40.4 rebounds per contest with a +5.8 rebound margin, which is third in the Big 12 and 13th nationally. KU also averages 18.0 assists, 7.1 steals and 5.4 blocked shots per game.

Two-time Big 12 Player of the Week in 2016-17, senior G Frank Mason III is having a national player of the year season. He leads the conference in scoring with a 20.4 scoring average and has scored 54 points in his last two games (26 points vs. Texas Tech on Jan. 7 and 28 at Oklahoma on Jan. 10). He has nine games of 20 points or more and has led Kansas in scoring in 13 of 16 games this season. Mason leads the Big 12 in 3-point field goal percentage at 53.2 percent. He leads KU and is third in the conference with 2.4 3-pointers made per game. The Jan. 9 Big 12 Newcomer of the Week, freshman G Josh Jackson has averaged 18.3 points in his last three games and ranks sixth in the Big 12 in scoring at 15.4 points per game. Jackson is tied for 10th in the conference in rebounds at 6.4 per contest. He has earned Big 12 Player of the Week once and Big 12 Newcomer of the Week three times this season. Jackson leads KU with 22 blocked shots and his 24 steals are second on the team. Junior G Devonte’ Graham is 11th in the league in scoring at 13.0 points per game and has averaged 16.5 points in his last two games. He leads KU with 25 steals and is second on the team with 38 3-pointers made, one behind Mason. Junior G Sviatoslav Mykhailiuk has made 36 3-pointers to complement his 10.6 scoring average. Mykhailiuk has started the last six games and has made 14 3-pointers in that span. Rounding out the starters is senior C Landen Lucas who has three double-doubles in the last four games after his 10 points and 13 rebounds at Oklahoma (1/10). The Jan. 3 Big 12 Player of the Week, Lucas leads KU with 7.3 rebounds per game, which is sixth in the Big 12. Lucas’ 12.0 rebounds in conference play leads the league and he is averaging 12.8 points against Big 12 foes.

Sophomore G Lagerald Vick has started five games this season and is averaging 8.4 points, including 17 points at TCU (12/30). Vick has made eight 3-pointers in his last six games and 20 for the season. Sophomore F Carlton Bragg Jr., pulled down nine rebounds at TCU (12/30) and is averaging 5.4 boards per game. He is scoring 6.3 points per contest. Freshman F Mitch Lightfoot (1.2 ppg, 1.2 rpg) and senior F Dwight Coleby (1.2 ppg, 2.0 rpg) also see time off the bench for KU.

ABOUT OKLAHOMA STATE
Located in Stillwater, Oklahoma, with an enrollment of 35,214, Oklahoma State is 10-6 on the season and 0-4 in Big 12 play after its 96-86 loss to Iowa State Jan. 11. The Cowboys are coached by Brad Underwood who is in his first season at OSU and in his fourth season as a head coach overall with a 99-20 record. OSU averages 88.6 points per game, which is second in the Big 12, and has a +9.8 scoring margin. The Cowboys make 8.9 3-pointers per contest and shoot 37.9 percent from beyond the arc. OSU averages 38.6 rebounds per game and has a +3.8 rebound margin. The Cowboys also average 14.3 assists, 9.1 steals, which is second in the conference, and 3.8 blocked shots per contest.

OSU has two of the three leading scorers in the Big 12, behind KU’s Frank Mason III, with sophomore G Jawun Evans second at 18.4 points per game. Evans is also second behind Mason in 3-point field goal percentage at 47.2 percent and he is fourth in the Big 12 in assists with a 5.2 average. Additionally, he is third in the league in steals with a 2.1 average. Junior G/F Jeffrey Carroll is third in the league in scoring at 16.4 points per game. His 7.0 rebound average ranks eighth in the league and his 57.2 field goal percentage is fifth. Senior G Phil Forte III leads the Big 12 with 2.6 3-pointers made which complements his 14.1 scoring average. Forte leads the Big 12 with a 96.1 free throw percentage. Senior F Leyton Hammonds is a starter who averages 7.9 points and 5.3 rebounds per game. Freshman F Cameron McGriff (5.3 ppg, 4.0 rpg) got his first start against Iowa State (1/11) and had 10 points and six rebounds.

Freshman G Brandon Averette scores 6.3 points per contest and he is second on team with 32 assists and third with 18 steals. Junior F Mitchell Solomon (4.2 ppg, 4.5 rpg) leads OSU with 18 blocked shots.  Freshman F/C Lucas N’Guessan (3.2 ppg, 2.8 rpg) is next with 13. Freshman G Thomas Dziagwa (5.5 ppg, 22 3-pointers made) is also a regular for the Cowboys. Walk-on sophomore F Will Lienhard’s great uncle is former Kansas standout Bill Lienhard, who was a member of KU’s 1952 NCAA National Championship team. Bill Lienhard was also a member of the USA gold medal team in the 1952 Olympics.

THE SERIES
The Kansas-Oklahoma State series dates back to 1926 with KU holding a 111-57 all-time advantage. KU has won nine of the last 13 meetings. KU is 61-11 against OSU in games played in Lawrence, including a 46-9 record inside Allen Fieldhouse. Kansas has won 19 of the last 20 meetings in Allen Fieldhouse starting in 1990. OSU’s lone win in that stretch was an 85-80 Cowboys victory on Feb. 2, 2013. Since the inception of the Big 12, Kansas is 22-10 versus OSU: 17-8 in regular-season play and 5-2 in the Big 12 Championship. The Jayhawks have defeated the Cowboys in each of their last three Big 12 Championship meetings in 2014, 2011 and 2006. KU head coach Bill Self is 15-11 all-time against his alma mater, including a 14-8 record at Kansas. Brad Underwood will be facing Kansas for the first time as a head coach, though he did face KU many times while on the staff at Kansas State from 2006-12.

A KANSAS WIN WOULD …
Make Kansas 16-1 or better for the sixth time in the Bill Self era and first since the 2012-13 Jayhawks went 19-1 … Make Kansas 5-0 in Big 12 play for the fifth time in the 21-year history of the league … Give Kansas its 16th-straight win, which would tie for the fifth-longest winning streak in the Self era … Make the KU-OSU series 112-57 all-time in favor of KU, including a 47-9 record inside Allen Fieldhouse … Extend the nation’s longest home court winning streak to 52 games, including 49 inside Allen Fieldhouse … Make Kansas 753-109 all-time in Allen Fieldhouse, including 215-9 under Self … Improve Self to 401-84 at Kansas and 608-189 overall … Make KU 2,202-837 all-time.

A KANSAS LOSS WOULD …
End a 15-game winning streak, making KU 15-2 overall and 4-1 in Big 12 play … End the longest active home court winning streak at 51 games, which includes 48 in Allen Fieldhouse … Make Oklahoma State the first team to post two wins inside Allen Fieldhouse in the Bill Self era … Make the KU-OSU series 111-58 in favor of the Jayhawks … Make Kansas 752-110 all-time in Allen Fieldhouse, including 214-10 under Self … Make Self 400-85 while at KU and 607-190 overall … Make KU 2,201-838 all-time.

WHAT’S TRENDING
• Kansas leads the Big 12 and ranks eighth nationally in field goal percentage at 50.5 percent. The Jayhawks also sit first in the conference, fourth nationally, in 3-point field goal percentage at 42.2 percent, tied for first in won-loss percentage at 93.8 and tied for first in 3-point field goals made per game at 9.0. Additionally, KU ranks in the upper half in the Big 12 in scoring (third at 86.3), scoring margin (second at +16.6), rebounding (second at 40.4), rebounding defense (fifth at 34.7), rebound margin (third at +5.8), assists (second at 18.0), assist-to-turnover ratio (third at 1.4) and blocked shots (second at 5.4).
• Kansas shot 15-of-18 from the free throw line at Oklahoma (1/10), including a 13-for-16 clip in the second half. During Big 12 play, KU is shooting 77.6 percent at the charity stripe — nearly a 20-percentage point jump from nonconference games (59.2 free throw percentage).
• Senior G Frank Mason III leads the Big 12 in scoring at 20.4 points per game, 3-point field goal percentage (54.9) and is second in assists at 5.6 per game.  He has led KU in scoring in 12 of 16 games this season, including seven of the last nine contests.
• Senior C Landen Lucas is averaging a double-double in Big 12 play with 12.8 ppg and a league-leading 12.0 rebound average. Lucas’ 67.7 field goal percentage is second in the league in conference games played.
• Freshman G Josh Jackson ranks sixth in the Big 12 in scoring at 15.4 ppg, which leads the conference freshman class. His 6.4 rebounds per game are tied for 10th in the league.
• Junior G Devonte’ Graham is 10-for-23 (43.8 percent) from 3-point range in his last three games. In the three games prior Graham was 1-for-15 from beyond the arc.
• Junior G Sviatoslav Mykhailiuk pulled down a career-high nine rebounds at Oklahoma (1/10). He has made multiple 3-pointers in four of his last five games and in 11 contests this season. He is sixth in the Big 12 in 3-point field goals made at 2.3 per game and seventh in 3-point field goal percentage at 47.4.

MASON AND JACKSON ON WOODEN MIDSEASON TOP 25
Senior G Frank Mason III and freshman G Josh Jackson were named to the John R. Wooden Award Midseason Top 25, the Los Angeles Athletic Club announced Jan. 11. Chosen by a poll of national college basketball experts, the list comprises of 25 student-athletes who are front-runners for the John R. Wooden Award, based on their performances during the first half of the 2016-17 season. Kansas is one of five school with two players chosen. Mason and Jackson are two of four student-athletes from the Big 12 Conference on the list.

STREAKING
Here are some active Kansas streaks, all of which lead the nation:
• 12 Big 12 Conference regular-season titles
• 27 NCAA Tournament appearances
• 27 seasons with 20+ wins
• 51 wins at home, including 48 in Allen Fieldhouse
• 150 weeks ranked in AP Top 25
• Won at least 12 league games for 16-straight years.

Milestones Victories in 2016-17
• Bill Self becomes the third coach in Kansas history to win 400 games while at KU
• Kansas gets all-time victory No. 2,200, currently at 2,201
• Bill Self becomes the ninth fastest coach to 600 career victories
• Bill Self becomes the winningest coach in Allen Fieldhouse history (Nov. 18, 2016, 86-65 vs. Siena), currently at 214-9.

Kansas Coaching Victories
Coach (years at KU)          W-L (Pct.)
Phog Allen (1907-09; 1919-56)        590-219 (.729)
Roy Williams (1989-2003) 418-101 (.805)
Bill Self (2004-present)     400-84 (.826)
Ted Owens (1964-83)        348-182 (.657)
Larry Brown (1984-88)       135-44 (.754)
W.O. Hamilton (1909-19)   121-82 (.596)
Dick Harp (1956-64)           121-82 (.596)
James Naismith (1898-1907)           55-60 (.478)

KU NOTCHES WIN 2,200
With its 85-68 win against Texas Tech on Jan. 7, Kansas became only the second team in NCAA Division I to have won 2,200 all-time games.

NCAA Division I All-Time Victories (as of 1.11.17)
School   W-L
Kentucky               2,219-684
KANSAS               2,201-837
North Carolina     2,192-777
Duke      2,101-867
Syracuse               1,953-872

IN THE POLLS
Kansas jumped one spot to No. 2 in the Associated Press (AP) Top 25 and remained at No. 2 in the USA Today Coaches’ Poll, released Jan. 9. KU entered the 2016-17 season with the exact same ranking — No. 3 in the AP poll and No. 2 in the coaches’ poll.

The Jayhawks have been ranked in each of the last 150 AP polls dating back to the 2008-09 season, which is the longest active streak in NCAA Division I.

Kansas was ranked in the preseason for the 25th time in time in the 28-year history of the coaches’ poll. The No. 2 preseason ranking marked the sixth time KU has been preseason No. 2 or higher in the coaches’ poll.

The AP ranking marked the highest preseason rank for the Jayhawks since entering the 2009-10 season No. 1. This is the fourth-straight season KU has been ranked No. 5 or higher by the AP preseason poll. KU was No. 4 last season in the AP preseason poll and No. 5 in 2014-15 and 2013-14. It is also the seventh time in the last eight seasons that the Jayhawks have entered the season No. 7 or higher by the AP.

TOP GUARDS
When you talk top guards in the Bill Self era at Kansas, senior G Frank Mason III has to be part of the discussion. Mason leads the Big 12 with a 20.4 scoring average.

KU Guard Top Seasons Under Bill Self
Name (season)   PPG        APG        SPG
Frank Mason III (2016-17) 20.4        5.6          1.3
Sherron Collins (2008-09) 18.9        5.0          1.1
Andrew Wiggins (2013-14)               17.1        1.5          1.2
Tyshawn Taylor (2011-12) 16.6        4.8          1.3
Ben McLemore (2012-13) 15.9        2.0          1.0

NOT BAD COMPANY
Senior G Frank Mason III is 26th in KU men’s basketball history with 1,431 all-time points and 12th with 474 career assists. Mason is only the sixth Jayhawk to rank that high in both categories.

Name (KU seasons)          Rank/Points         Rank/Assists
Sherron Collins (2007-10) 1,888/5th               552/8th
Darnell Valentine (1978-81)             1,821/6th               609/5th
Kirk Hinrich (2000-03)        1,753/11th             668/4th
Kevin Pritchard (1987-90) 1,692/12th             499/10th
Tyshawn Taylor (2009-12) 1,580/15th             575/6th
Frank Mason III (2014-pres.)           1,459/24th            479/12th

15-GAME WINNING STREAK
With its 89-71 win against Davidson (12/17), Kansas posted its 10th-straight win. Under Bill Self, KU has won 10 or more straight games 15 times. KU’s current 15-game win streak ranks the 11th longest in the Self era.

KU 10-Plus Winning Streaks Under Bill Self (2003-04)
20           Nov. 9, 2007-Jan. 26, 2008
18           Nov. 15, 2012-Jan. 28, 2013
18           Nov. 12, 2010-Jan. 17, 2011
17           Jan. 30, 2016-March 24, 2016
16           Feb. 27, 2008-Nov. 24, 2008
15           Nov. 15, 2016-present
14           Nov. 13, 2009-Jan. 6, 2010
14           Feb. 7, 2007-March 22, 2007
14           Nov. 19, 2004-Jan. 19, 2005
13           Nov. 23, 2015-Jan. 9, 2016
13           Jan. 13, 2010-Feb. 22, 2010
11           Feb. 19, 2011-March 25, 2011
10           Dec. 22, 2011-Jan. 23, 2012
10           Dec. 4, 2006-Jan. 15, 2007
10           Nov. 21, 2005-Feb. 21, 2006

FAST BIG 12 STARTS
No doubt fast starts are important but in Kansas’ 16 Big 12 regular-season titles in the 20-year history of the league, eight have seen KU open conference play with a 7-0 record or better. On the flip side, in five of the titles, KU started 3-0, then lost, yet went on the claim the crown. Naturally, the 2001-02 team set the mark as the only team in Big 12 history to go undefeated in league play at 16-0. (see chart in left column)

CONFERENCE SUCCESS
Including 2015-16, Kansas has won 16 of the 20 Big 12 regular-season titles (includes ties), including the last 12, which ranks second on the NCAA all-time consecutive list. Kansas’ 59 conference titles are the most in NCAA Division I. Kentucky is second with 53 and Penn third at 37. KU’s 12-straight league titles are the longest active streak in NCAA Division I and the longest streak in school history. UCLA, from 1967-79, holds the NCAA record of 13 straight, which was under two coaches. Kansas’ current run has been under head coach Bill Self.

DOMINATING DEFENSE
In Bill Self’s 13 seasons at Kansas, the Jayhawks have led the Big 12 in field goal percentage defense nine times and finished no lower than fourth. Nationally, Self-coached Jayhawks have ranked eighth or higher in all but four seasons in field goal percentage defense and have ranked in the top five on eight occasions, including first in 2005-06 and 2012-13.

THIS DATE IN KANSAS BASKETBALL HISTORY
Kansas is 22-5 all-time on Jan. 14.
Jan. 14, 2008: Four Jayhawks scored in double figures as third-ranked Kansas cruised to a 30-point, 85-55, victory against Oklahoma on ESPN’s Big Monday in Allen Fieldhouse. KU’s Darnell Jackson scored 17 points on 8-of-10 shooting, while Brandon Rush made four 3-pointers en route to 16 points and added nine rebounds and four assists. Two other Jayhawks reached double-digit point totals as Darrell Arthur had 14 points to go along with eight rebounds and two blocks, and Mario Chalmers scored 13 points on 4-of-5 shooting and added five assists and three steals. With the win, KU improved to 17-0 on the season and eventually would go on to win the school’s fifth national championship with a 37-3 overall record.

UP NEXT
Kansas will play its first of four ESPN Big Monday games at Iowa State on Jan. 16 at 8 p.m. The Jayhawks return home to host Texas on Jan. 21 at 1 p.m., on CBS.KU will then play at West Virginia on Tuesday, Jan. 24 at 6 p.m. (Central) on ESPN2.

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