KU’s Dotson delivers at line: ‘Act like you are in the backyard shooting free throws’
One of Kansas’ best free throw shooters during the 2018-19 nonconference season, Devon Dotson went 4-for-4 from the line in the last 70 seconds of No. 1-ranked Kansas’ 74-71 victory over No. 17 Villanova on Saturday at Allen Fieldhouse.
The 6-foot-2 freshman from Charlotte, N.C., who is 22 of 28 overall (78.6 percent, second to Charlie Moore’s 80 percent), said he had positive thoughts as he helped assure victory over the defending national champs.
“Just make the free throws. Knock down the free throws. I had to come through for the team,” Dotson said of his mental approach from the line in crunch time.
He hit two free throws with 1:10 left and KU leading, 63-58, and two more with 36 seconds left and KU ahead 67-62. He also hit a layup to give the Jayhawks a five-point advantage with 2:23 remaining.
“You do it a countless amount of times. Act like you are in the backyard shooting free throws. Knock ‘em down,” Dotson added of his philosophy.
KU hit 12 of its first 18 free throws before finishing 11 of 12 Saturday.
“I would say we can get better. We need to keep working on knocking them down,” Dotson said of the Jayhawks, who are tied with TCU for seventh in the Big 12 in free throw percentage (66.0). “After every practice, we go to the free-throw line and work on it. Coach (Bill Self) emphasizes the importance of it. We try to knock them down.”
Junior forward Dedric Lawson, who has made 50 of 65 free throws for 76.9 percent, hit two free throws with six seconds to play, giving KU a 74-70 lead. He was fouled after accepting an inbound pass against a late, effective Villanova press.
“If you have a big guy like that who you can inbound the ball to who can make free throws, that’s valuable,” Villanova coach Jay Wright said of the 6-foot-9 Lawson, who hit 7 of 9 free throws and 10 of 15 floor shots for 28 points.
KU senior guard Lagerald Vick also was steady late. He made four free throws without a miss in the last 50 seconds and finished 8 of 10 from the line and 9 of 15 from the field for 29 points.
“He’s a lot more aggressive this year,” said Villanova senior Phil Booth. The 6-5 Vick scored eight points in 33 minutes in KU’s 95-79 Final Four semifinal loss to the Wildcats last March in San Antonio.
“I mean last year they had such a well-rounded team of scorers. He didn’t really need to be as aggressive. He’s been working a lot on his game, as you can see. He pulls up and gets to the rim, very athletic. He’s a completely different player,” Booth added after leading the Wildcats, also with 29 points.
Vick averages 17.7 points a game on 53.8 percent shooting. He’s 32 of 60 from three for 53.3 percent and 13 of 17 from the line for 76.5 percent.
“You get good Lagerald sometimes and then you get not quite as good Lagerald. This was good Lagerald today. He was terrific,” Self said. “He was aggressive looking for his shot. Defensively he was engaged, (he) missed a couple of blockouts and they dunked it over our heads and he has got to do a better job with that.”
KU will next meet South Dakota at 7 p.m. Tuesday at Allen Fieldhouse.
It’s unlikely that 7-foot junior center Udoka Azubuike will play in that game or Saturday’s contest at Arizona State, but his sprained right ankle that has sidelined him for two games is improving rapidly.
“He looked good today, walking around and everything. He is actually on the court, not practicing or anything, but he is doing rehab on the court,” Self said. “So he is actually working on shooting a stationary jump hook and jumping a little bit. I still don’t know what his availability to play in a game is, but I think the (initial) thought (that) we would have him 100 percent by after Christmas is very realistic.”
Self has said KU is hopeful a decision on sophomore forward Silvio De Sousa’s eligibility could come in the near future.
Self has not commented specifically about the case since Oct. 24 when he announced at Big 12 Media Day that an eligibility review would be conducted by KU and the NCAA regarding facts that came out in a federal trial relating to corruption in college basketball.
In the federal trial in New York, an Adidas representative testified that he gave De Sousa’s guardian $2,500 so De Sousa could take online classes in order to be eligible for participation second semester of last season at KU.
Back in October, Self said in a release: “Information was presented during the current trial in New York — some of which we knew, some of which we didn’t. We have decided to withhold Silvio from competition until we can evaluate and understand the new information. We have already discussed trial developments with the NCAA and will continue to work with NCAA staff moving forward.”
De Sousa has not yet played in a game this season.
