RELATED:Kansas basketball vs West Virginia recap: WVU captures first victory in Allen FieldhouseThe No. 7 Jayhawks (9-3, 0-1 in Big 12 Conference) mounted a significant comeback effort after trailing by as many as 18 points. But the Mountaineers (10-2, 1-0 in Big 12) were able to handle that run KU made, and come away with […]
RELATED:Kansas basketball vs West Virginia recap: WVU captures first victory in Allen FieldhouseThe No. 7 Jayhawks (9-3, 0-1 in Big 12 Conference) mounted a significant comeback effort after trailing by as many as 18 points. But the Mountaineers (10-2, 1-0 in Big 12) were able to handle that run KU made, and come away with that one-point victory. Kansas never led at any point and saw West Virginia take the lead for good with just seconds remaining in the second half on a free throw.Storr returned to the starting lineup with this matchup, and that move didn’t prove to be beneficial for Kansas. He barely played after halftime. Griffen, who played a bit more in the second half than Storr, didn’t play much after halftime either and that is concerning for both moving forward.Kansas came into this game having won the past 33 conference openers it had played, including 14 inside Allen Fieldhouse. But that streak is over after the Jayhawks’ loss against West Virginia. Although there were moments in the second half during which it appeared as if Kansas would be able to salvage the game, the Mountaineers made enough plays to leave the building with a victory.
Kansas loses conference opener for first time in more than 30 years
It’s a defeat that puts into focus just how far Kansas has to go in order to enjoy the success it entered the season capable of. Allen Fieldhouse is a place that can help the Jayhawks win games they otherwise wouldn’t because of the team’s fan base, but it’s clear that’s not going to be enough for this KU squad this season. Despite making strides in practice, there’s more Kansas needs to do.
Zeke Mayo, a senior guard, garnered a lot of attention as a transfer from South Dakota State because of his talent and that he’s from Lawrence. However, he’s exceeded expectations so far this season. It’s been critical for Kansas, especially with the issues Griffen and Storr have had at times to date this season.
Kansas needs more from Rylan Griffen, AJ Storr
People might have expected Griffen and Storr to have more significant roles given their experience at the high-major level coming into this season, compared to Mayo, but it hasn’t happened. Think about where the Jayhawks would be without Mayo right now. He had 27 points in the loss against West Virginia, and it’s unclear who could have been the one scoring those points outside of him the way Kansas was struggling to have success offensively.
LAWRENCE — Kansas basketball just suffered a 62-61 defeat on Tuesday at home against West Virginia inside Allen Fieldhouse.
Kansas is lucky to have Zeke Mayo and have him playing as well as he is
Jordan Guskey covers University of Kansas Athletics at The Topeka Capital-Journal. He is the National Sports Media Association’s sportswriter of the year for the state of Kansas for 2022. Contact him at jmguskey@gannett.com or on Twitter at @JordanGuskey.
Here are a few takeaways from the game:
Rylan Griffen and AJ Storr, two junior guards who joined the team as transfers during the offseason, have to be more of a factor than they were collectively Tuesday. Across about 27-and-a-half minutes, they combined for three points — Griffen hitting a 3-pointer. And it’s not as if one could look at their holistic performances and say they affected the game a lot in other ways, because they had their issues defensively as well.
