Carlton Bragg’s dunk puts tag on No. 2 Kansas’ 88-46 rout of Montana

The cue was a finger pointing toward the sky. Wayne Selden saw it — saw the play unfolding before him — so he let it fly, hoisting a basketball toward the rim from 50 feet away. As the ball hung in the air, Carlton Bragg galloped for the basket, like a wide receiver running a post route.

It was, in basketball terms, an audacious play. The timing had to be perfect. The catch had to be clean. The finish would come with a defender in Bragg’s left pocket.

“He just pointed up, so I just threw it up,” Selden, Kansas’ junior guard, would say. “I didn’t realize how far I was when I threw it.”

When the ball finally reached the basket, Bragg snatched it with two hands and threw down a two-handed slam, landing on the shoulders of Montana forward Martin Breunig. Bragg spun a full rotation on the defender's shoulders, offering Breunig a facefull, and transforming Allen Fieldhouse into a house of revelers. A few feet away, on the Kansas bench, Devonte’ Graham came to his feet and thrust two arms in the air.

“We saw each other,” Bragg said. “I raised my hand. He threw it.”

Here was the defining image from No. 2 Kansas’ 88-46 demolition of Montana on Saturday afternoon, a second-half alley-oop from a veteran guard to a freshman forward, another highlight in a dominating performance. The Jayhawks rolled again, running their winning streak to eight games this season and to 29 on their home floor, overwhelming another nonconference opponent in the process.

But it was Bragg, a 6-foot-9 freshman forward, who may have benefited most from the blowout. On a Saturday afternoon inside Allen Fieldhouse, Bragg did more than just dunk. He finished with nine points on 4-of-6 shooting. He offered a strong audition while Kansas coach Bill Self sorts through his puzzling frontcourt rotation. He earned an opportunity to start the second half alongside senior forward Perry Ellis.

“He is going to be a terrific basketball player,” Self said.

In the aftermath of the victory, Self said he went with Bragg in the second half because he wanted to experiment with different lineups. In specific, he wanted to see if Bragg could handle guarding Breunig, Montana’s burly forward and leading scorer. If Bragg is going to play alongside Ellis in the frontcourt, Self said, he will have to guard bigger post men in the Big 12. Breunig got into more foul within minutes, messing up the experiment. But as Self continued his sorting process for options opposite Ellis, perhaps Bragg, the former McDonald’s All-American, could emerge as a reliable choice.

“I think you could make a case that we were at our best when he was in the game to start the second half,” Self said.

For now, though, Self is clear the situation is fluid. And that didn’t change on Saturday. As Self sat in the Allen Fieldhouse media room, he scanned the box score, looking at the performances from big men. Two days after Self publicly challenged Ellis, asking for more production from the Big 12 forward, Ellis responded with a team-high 18 points and nine rebounds.

“I got out and I started attacking,” Ellis said, welcoming the challenge. “(I wasn't) worrying about what’s happening.”

Self continued. He pointed to senior Hunter Mickelson, who had seven rebounds in 15 minutes, and junior Landen Lucas, who had six boards in 9 minutes. He pointed to freshman big man Cheick Diallo, who had two early dunks before sitting much of the game in foul trouble. At some point, of course, the frontcourt rotation has to be streamlined. But for now, the picture is still unclear.

“It’s confusing to me,” Self said. “Because i think everybody brings something different. But today, they all played well. But nobody can say: ‘This guy definitely needs to be out there in the majority of all situations because everybody is different.’”

Self was then asked if he liked having all the different options.

“That’s like asking: ‘Would you rather have Joel (Embiid) or four really good players?’ ” Self said. “Well, I’d rather play Joel 40 minutes. But the bottom line is we don’t have that.”

For one Saturday, though, the Jayhawks had plenty of firepower in all facets. Kansas shot 57 percent from the floor while holding the Grizzlies to 26.4-percent shooting. Junior Brannen Greene started in place of sophomore Devonte' Graham and drilled three three-pointers in the first half. Graham, who overslept a morning shootaround, took the punishment in stride, coming off the bench and finishing with nine points. In total, the Jayhawks had eight players score at least seven points.

“To be honest with you," Self said, "I thought all 11 guys that played ample minutes — I thought they all looked like players today.”

For a day, Bragg was just part of the puzzle. But as his maturation process continues, he continues to display signs of more. A native of Cleveland, Bragg has proved to be coachable and adaptable, like a smiling version of former Kansas star Marcus Morris. In his spare time, Bragg plays the piano in the KU student union. He has ingratiated himself with his older teammates. Self says he’s never had a player who checks in or out of the game faster.

“Seriously,” Self said, “I kind of get scared when he runs toward me. If he doesn’t stop, it could be a bad collision.”

If Bragg remains a complementary piece, that could be fine, too. But with two days off before the Jayhawks’ first true road game — a matchup at San Diego State on Tuesday — Bragg sat inside the Allen Fieldhouse. Can Bragg be a solid pairing for Ellis inside? He certainly thinks so.

“I think we play really well together,” Bragg said. “He’s got a great feel for the game. I got a great feel for the game. We can go high-low. He can go high; I can go low. And vice versa.”

Indeed. Bragg can be more than just a solitary highlight. But that alley-oop on Saturday afternoon? That was nice, too.

“It was really impressive,” Selden said. “I liked the ending of it, too.”

No. 2 KANSAS 88, MONTANA 46

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Percentages: FG .264, FT .600. Three-Point Goals: 6-19, .316 (Gfeller 3-6, Lopez 1-2, Moorehead 1-3, Wright 1-6, Breunig 0-1, Bradshaw 0-1). Blocked Shots: 2 (Krslovic, Breunig). Turnovers: 13 (Oguine 3, Wright 2, Lopez 2, Breunig 2, Boehning 2, Gfeller, Krslovic). Steals: 4 (Gfeller 2, Oguine, Wright). Technical Fouls: None.

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Percentages: FG .569, FT .789. Three-Point Goals: 7-16, .438 (Greene 3-4, Mykhailiuk 2-4, Mason III 1-1, Graham 1-2, Manning 0-1, Selden Jr. 0-4). Blocked Shots: 5 (Traylor 2, Diallo, Bragg Jr., Mason III). Turnovers: 11 (Traylor 3, Graham 2, Self 2, Diallo 2, Greene, Selden Jr.). Steals: 8 (Selden Jr. 2, Lucas, Ellis, Bragg Jr., Greene, Diallo, Mickelson). Technical Fouls: None.

Half: Kansas 44-24. Att: 16,300. Officials: Gary Maxwell, Jeb Hartness, Bret Smith.

AP-WF-12-19-15 2121GMT

This story was originally published December 19, 2015 at 2:08 PM with the headline "Carlton Bragg’s dunk puts tag on No. 2 Kansas’ 88-46 rout of Montana."