No. 8 Jayhawks to Host No. 7 Wildcats Tuesday in the Dillons Sunflower Showdown

By KU Athletics Release January 30, 2023

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LAWRENCE, Kan. – No. 8 Kansas (17-4, 5-3) returns home to host No. 7 Kansas State (18-3, 6-2) in the Dillons Sunflower Showdown on Jan. 31. The game from Allen Fieldhouse will begin at 7 p.m. (Central) and be televised on Big 12 NOW via ESPN+ with Jon Sciambi, Jay Bilas and Kris Budden on the call.

TIPOFF

  • This contest is KU’s Team IMPACT game honoring teammate Jonathan Phog “JP” Bemberger, who has been a part of the Kansas men’s basketball program for the past three seasons.
  • At halftime of the game there will be a Folds of Honor recognition that includes Folds of Honor CEO Dan Rooney, a KU graduate and former Jayhawk golfer.
  • The Naismith Trophy, which tours top venues, will be in Allen Fieldhouse in the Booth Family Hall of Athletics prior to the KSU-KU contest.
  • Last season, Kansas became the all-time winningest program in NCAA Division I, currently at 2,374 victories.
  • Kansas leads the overall series with Kansas State, 203-95, including a 52-18 record in Allen Fieldhouse.
  • Kansas is No. 8 in the NET Rankings through games played on Jan. 29. Kansas is No. 1 in NET Strength of Schedule and its eight Quadrant 1 wins are the most in NCAA Division I.
  • Redshirt-junior Jalen Wilson leads the Big 12 in scoring at 21.4 ppg, which is ninth nationally. Wilson also leads the Big 12 with eight double-doubles, which is 29th nationally. Wilson has scored 113 points over his last four games, which marks the most points by a Kansas player in a four-game stretch since the inception of the Big 12 in 1996-97.
  • Redshirt-junior Dajuan Harris Jr. leads the Big 12 in assist-to-turnover ratio at 3.11 (seventh nationally). His 6.5 assists per game are second in the league and fifth nationally.
  • Named to the 2023 Naismith Defensive Player of the Year watch list, redshirt-senior Kevin McCullar Jr. leads the Big 12 in steals (2.5), which is ninth nationally.
  • Freshman Gradey Dick leads the Big 12 and is 18th nationally in three-point field goal percentage at 42.7%.
  • Kansas is celebrating 125 years of men’s basketball in 2022-23.

UP NEXT
Kansas will play at No. 13 Iowa State on Saturday, February 4. Tip from Hilton Coliseum will be at 11 a.m. (Central) and the game will be televised on ESPN. Kansas leads the overall series with Iowa State, 189-66, including a 73-40 record in meetings in Ames and 29-22 mark in Hilton Coliseum. KU has won the last seven meetings with ISU dating back to Jan. 8, 2020, including a 62-60 win in Allen Fieldhouse on Jan. 14, 2023.