Agbaji leads Jayhawks to dominant 87-63 win over Mountaineers

The Big 12 Player of the Year got the ball rolling, but it was a total team effort for Kansas as they defeated West Virginia in the quarterfinals of the Big 12 Championship.

Author:
Andy Mitts
Publish date:
Mar 10, 2022 6:42 PM EST

As Bob Huggins was escorted off the court midway through the first half after receiving two quick technical fouls and being ejected, he muttered "we have no chance." Boy, was he right.

At the time, the Kansas Jayhawks had raced out to a 19-4 lead, and Huggins was complaining (likely legitimately) about the lack of a foul call on a challenge to Taz Sherman's most recent shot. The frustration boiled over for Sherman, who had some choice words for the ref, earning himself a technical foul and sparking the reaction from Huggins.

It's easy to argue that Huggins referring specifically to the chances for the Mountaineers based on the tone of the officiating, but it was an accurate description for what was to come.

Big 12 Player of the Year Ochai Agbaji scored 9 of the first 13 points for the Jayhawks, and the team benefitted from a very poor shooting performance from West Virginia in the first half. The Mountaineers went 5-31 from the field through a combination of fantastic defense by Kansas and absolutely frigid shooting from West Virginia.

After Jalen Wilson made 5 of 6 free throws from those technical fouls, Kansas was up by 20 points, and the game only got marginally better for West Virginia. They were able to trade baskets for the rest of the half and go into the break down 41-19.

The second half started about as bad as it could have for the Jayhawks. West Virginia went on a quick 5-0 run in the first minute, and a foul by Dajuan Harris on Taz Sherman led to a quick Bill Self timeout. Sherman made the free throws and the tension in the arena was palpable.

But fans who were flashing back to inexplicable collapses earlier this year had nothing to fear. A quick Agbaji layup and free throw was enough to stop the run, and West Virginia struggled to get that early 2nd half mojo back. Kansas pushed the lead past 20 with 8:19 left to go in the game, and Chris Teahan checked in with more than two minutes left on the clock.

Top Performers

Ochai Agbaji

Stat Line: 18 points, 3 rebounds, 2 steals

Agbaji wasn't the only scorer and catalyst for this team, but his 9 points in the first few minutes was enough to kick start a huge run, and make tensions run high for the Mountaineers. Whenever the Jayhawks really needed a bucket, he was ready on the receiving end of a lob or bounce pass for an easy finish.

Jalen Wilson

Mar 10, 2022; Kansas City, MO, USA; West Virginia Mountaineers guard Taz Sherman (12) shoots the ball while defended by Kansas Jayhawks forward Jalen Wilson (10) in the first half at T-Mobile Center. Mandatory Credit: Amy Kontras-USA TODAY Sports — © Amy Kontras-USA TODAY Sports

Stat Line: 15 points, 5 rebounds, 1 block

Yes, five of his points came on the free throws he shot as a result of the three technical fouls. But the fact that he was the one taking them shows both how important he has become during conference play, and how well he was playing to that point.

He was on the raw end of a couple questionable fouls, but overall played solid defense and did just about everything you could ask for in a game where the bench got extended minutes.

Christian Braun

Stat Line: 11 points, 14 rebounds, 2 assists, 1 steal

At one point it seemed like it was going to be another quiet night for Braun. But the rebounds piled up in such a way that wasn't immediately memorable in the run of play, so looking at the box score afterwards was a little shocking.

He ended up with a double-double, and played solid defense the entire afternoon.

Mitch Lightfoot

Stat Line: 10 points, 5 rebounds, 1 assist, 5 blocks

Arguably the best performer of the day (at least according to Kenpom), Mitch Lightfoot stepped in admirably for David McCormack, who only played 10 minutes. Whether it was due to resting McCormack or Bill Self riding the hot hand, Lightfoot made the most of his 23 minutes, altering almost every shot that was taken within five feet of him.