Kansas Basketball Collapses in Double-OT Loss to No. 7 Houston

The Jayhawks came up short at home, wasting a significant opportunity.

Jan 25, 2025; Lawrence, Kansas, USA; Houston Cougars forward J'Wan Roberts (13) and Kansas Jayhawks guard Rylan Griffen (6) and guard Mylik Wilson (8) fight for a rebound during the first half at Allen Fieldhouse. Mandatory Credit: Denny Medley-Imagn Images | Denny Medley-Imagn Images

The Kansas Jayhawks endured a heart-wrenching loss at Allen Fieldhouse on Saturday, blowing a late lead to fall 92-86 in double-overtime to No. 7 Houston.

Despite holding a six-point lead with just 15 seconds left in the first overtime, Kansas fell apart in dramatic fashion, leaving the home crowd shocked and frustrated.

The Jayhawks seemed on the verge of a hard-fought victory, fueled by crucial three-pointers from Rylan Griffen that pushed their lead to 79-73 with less than 20 seconds remaining in overtime. However, Houston's Emmanuel Sharp hit a clutch three-pointer, narrowing the gap to 79-76 with 15 seconds to go.

Disaster struck for Kansas when Zeke Mayo attempted an ill-advised pass to Hunter Dickinson, which was intercepted by Houston's Milos Uzan.

Uzan quickly found Mylik Wilson, who drained a game-tying three-pointer with six seconds left to force double-overtime, sending the Allen Fieldhouse faithful into a mix of shock and silence deadlocked at 79-79.

Kansas suffered another critical blow in the second overtime when Flory Bidunga, who had been a force with 19 points and seven rebounds, fouled out with 4:50 remaining.

Houston capitalized immediately. After J’Wan Roberts hit a free throw, Emmanuel Sharp knocked down a dagger three-pointer to push the Cougars' lead to 83-79.

Although Mayo responded with a jumper to narrow the gap to two, Uzan answered with another three to extend Houston’s lead to 86-81.

Mayo kept Kansas in it with an and-one play, trimming the deficit to 86-84, but the Jayhawks couldn't secure a critical rebound after Roberts missed a layup near Hunter Dickinson.

Roberts grabbed his own miss and converted a layup to stretch the lead back to four.

Kansas had chances to stay in the game, but AJ Storr’s two missed free throws with the game standing at 89-84 proved costly, and Houston sealed the win with four straight free throws from Uzan and Sharp.

A last-second layup from Mayo was too little, too late.

As the final buzzer sounded, the fans at Allen Fieldhouse voiced their frustration with loud boos, marking a sour ending to a game that had so much promise for the Jayhawks.

Key Performances

• Flory Bidunga: 19 points (7-10 FG), seven rebounds
• Hunter Dickinson: 17 points, eight rebounds
• Zeke Mayo: 16 points, nine rebounds, but three costly turnovers
• Rylan Griffen: 17 points (5-6 3PT), providing clutch shooting

Kansas shot 45.5% from the field but struggled at the free-throw line, converting just 56.7% (17-30) of their attempts.

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