KANSAS CITY, Mo. – In the first regular season meeting since 1993, No. 2 Kansas defeated Wichita State, 86-67, Saturday afternoon in the T-Mobile Center.

Wichita State (8-5) has now lost its last five games vs. ranked opponents and falls to 3-13 all-time vs. Kansas.

Dalen Ridgnal scored 10 of his team-high 13 points after halftime to go with seven rebounds. Xavier Bell added 11 points and Quincy Ballard recorded his second straight game in double figures with 10.

Colby Rogers extended his three-point streak to 13 in a row, but was held to just nine points, marking just the second time this season he was held below 10 points. His streak of games with multiple three-pointers was snapped, as he went just 1-for-7.

Both teams shot 42 percent, but were a combined 11-of-47 from beyond the arc. Kansas outrebounded Wichita State by 10, the largest margin this season for the Shockers which entered as one of the top rebounding teams in the country.

Turnovers proved costly, as Wichita State had 15 to just eight for KU. KU turned those 15 turnovers into 15 points.

KU had a pair of 20-point scorers in Hunter Dickinson (22) and Kevin McCullar Jr. (20).

Behind a pair of Dajuan Harris Jr. three-pointers, KU started the game on an 8-2 run. At the 10:00 minute mark, KU held a 14-9 lead, but five in a row from Wichita State tied the game at 14-14 behind a Kenny Pohto layup and Dalen Ridgnal corner triple.

On the next possession, Wichita State had a chance to take the lead, but a missed layup turned into a nine-point swing the other way. Seven straight points from KU’s Elmarko Jackson put the Jayhawks up 21-14 with 7:25 left in the half.

KU’s offense started clicking from that point, outscoring the Shockers 22-13 to grab a 43-27 lead at halftime. Wichita State shot 38 percent in the half and turned the ball over eight times. KU had just three first half turnovers and shot 47 percent from the field.

The 43 first half points for KU were the most Wichita State had allowed this season.

An 8-0 run in the blink of an eye to begin the second half stretched KU’s lead to 51-27, forcing a Wichita State timeout just 1:18 into play.

KU would lead by as many as 28 in the second half, as that opening stretch of the half proved to be too much to overcome.

Up Next
Wichita State opens American Athletic Conference play by welcoming new member, North Texas, to Charles Koch Arena on Thursday, Jan. 4 at 8 p.m. on ESPN2.