Kansas basketball suffered a 74-57 loss Wednesday on the road in Big 12 Conference play against Iowa State.
The No. 10 Jayhawks (12-4, 3-2 in the Big 12) only led for a few minutes during the contest. The No. 2 Cyclones (15-1, 5-0 in the Big 12) controlled the vast majority of the game, even when Kansas took advantage of its opportunities to reduce the deficit. It’s not just that Iowa State had the advantage of playing in front of a home crowd inside the Hilton Coliseum, it’s also that they were the better team overall.
Here are some things to consider after the Jayhawks’ latest loss:
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Turnovers look big for Kansas
If there was one moment that indicated how costly turnovers were for Kansas during this game, it was early in the second half. So quickly, Jayhawks star center Hunter Dickinson committed back-to-back turnovers. In a situation where Kansas needed to gain some momentum, in order to mount a comeback in the second half, the Jayhawks found themselves throwing it away.
By the end of the game, Kansas had committed 17 turnovers to Iowa State’s 13. The Cyclones had scored 23 points on KU errors, while the Jayhawks had scored 14 points on ISU errors. Four different Kansas players, including Dickinson, finished with at least three turnovers, and that’s not a game plan that will have much success on the road against a top 10 opponent – especially when some of them are the guys their coach is supposed to trust. the most.
Zeke Mayo can’t be Kansas’ only 3-point shooting threat
At the end of the game, Kansas guard Zeke Mayo – who led the Jayhawks with 17 points – finished 3 of 9 on shots from behind the arc. As a team, Kansas was 5 of 16 from 3, so outside of Mayo, the Jayhawks combined to shoot 2 of 7 from behind the arc. This is not a stat line that will be conducive to success in the future.
Kansas is already a team that opponents will try to take points away from in the paint, and if there is just one player who is constantly threatening to shoot from behind the arc, then opponents might try to find a way to remove it as well. Mayo shouldn’t be the only player on a given night to walk away after attempting more than two 3s in a game on the Jayhawks’ lineup. It’s not about other players forcing shots, it’s about finding ways to make sure they maintain honest defense in that regard.
Kansas’ margin for error in Big 12 title race tightens
Even though it’s only mid-January, losing a game like this means Kansas will need more help from the league than it already had before the game. The Jayhawks are now a few games behind an Iowa State team that could very well celebrate a Big 12 regular season championship at the end of the season. Beating the Cyclones when the two teams meet later in the regular season, in Lawrence, only helps KU so much.
Whatever momentum Kansas had after winning three straight games heading into this game seems to have dissipated pretty quickly, especially since there is now an injury concern surrounding forward KJ Adams. Against both a Big 12 and a national championship contender, the Jayhawks seemed far from either. There’s still time for KU to find its way this season, but the window to do so is closing and Iowa State is doing everything it can not to keep it open.
Jordan Guskey covers University of Kansas sports at the Topeka Capital-Journal. He is the National Sports Media Association Sportswriter of the Year for the state of Kansas for 2022. Contact him at jmguskey@gannett.com or on Twitter at @JordanGuskey.
This article was originally published on Topeka Capital-Journal: Kansas basketball doesn’t have a top-10 chance at Iowa State
