LAWRENCE, Kan. – A stellar performance on both ends of the court propelled the No. 5 Kansas Jayhawks to a 112-57 win over the Monmouth Hawks Friday night inside Allen Fieldhouse. Six Jayhawks posted double-figure scoring efforts, led by senior Isaiah Moss, who turned in 21 points, his most in his brief tenure in Lawrence.
The win improved KU to a 2-1 on the year and marked its 23rd-straight victory in Lawrence. Monmouth fell to 1-3 in its 2019-20 campaign.
The Jayhawks jumped on Monmouth from the opening tip, building a double-digit lead less than six minutes into the contest. While the KU offense hummed in the early minutes, it was the defense that ignited the Jayhawks’ fast start. Monmouth was held without a field goal until the 10:30 mark of the opening frame, helping the home side to a 20-point lead (26-6) by the midway point of the opening half.
Moss led the charge on the offensive side over the first 20 minutes. The Chicago product hit his first four shots of the night, all from 3-point range, to pour in 14 of his game-high 21 points in the first frame. Moss’s torrid shooting led the Jayhawks to a 62.5 percent clip (20-of-32) from the field before the intermission, all while holding the Hawks to just 23.1 percent from the field and six field goals.
The Jayhawks’ led 59-21 at the break, marking their highest output in a half in almost two years, with their 38-point lead at the break KU’s largest in a decade.
It was more of the same after the two teams returned from the locker rooms, but the Jayhawks took their offense from long-range to the paint. Junior Silvio De Sousa, who earned his first-career start Friday, scored KU’s first eight points of the half before David McCormack took over. The sophomore forward muscled in 13 points over the final 20 minutes en route to his first-career double-double. McCormack ended his night with 17 points, one shy of his career-high, and collected 11 rebounds, his second time in three games this season hitting double-digit boards.
The Kansas bench also shined on a night when all 12 Jayhawks who hit the floor entered the scoring column. KU’s bench combined for 66 points on the night.
Joining Moss and McCormack in double figures was sophomore Devon Dotson, who turned in a 17-point performance with help from a 7-of-9 clip from the charity stripe. Senior Udoka Azubuike added 12 points and pulled down eight rebounds, while De Sousa and freshman Christian Braun each chipped in 11 points apiece.
The Jayhawks ended the contest with 62.5 percent shooting from the field, which included a 14-for-30 mark from 3-point range. KU’s 14 threes were its most in a game since March of 2018. Conversely, Kansas’ stingy defense forced 15 Monmouth turnovers and held the visitors to 23.1 percent shoots (18-of-60). It marked the worst-shooting night for a Jayhawk opponent since the 2012-13 season.
UP NEXT
Kansas concludes its three-game homestand when it plays host to East Tennessee State on Tuesday, Nov. 19, at 7 p.m. (Central) on Big 12 Now on ESPN+. The contest is a campus round game for the 2019 Maui Jim Maui Invitational.
KU leads the series with ETSU, 3-0, with the last meeting on Jan. 4, 1996, at KU 108-73 victory. East Tennessee State is the preseason Southern Conference favorite and the second SoCon team to visit Allen Fieldhouse this season. KU defeated UNCG, 74-62 on Nov. 8.
