Dotson delivers, KU defeats Iowa State, 80-76: ‘We locked in, buckled down’
Kansas freshman Devon Dotson went from committing seven turnovers in a disappointing loss Saturday at West Virginia to dishing eight assists against no errors just 48 hours later against Iowa State.
“I took it personally as a point guard, that game I had. I wanted to turn it around really bad, try to make up for it,” Dotson said after the No. 9-ranked Jayhawks’ 80-76 victory over No. 24 Iowa State on Monday night at Allen Fieldhouse.
Dotson — he and his KU teammates squandered a six-point lead the final 2 1/2 minutes against previously winless (in the Big 12) West Virginia on Saturday in Morgantown — this time outplayed ISU (14-5, 4-3) in crunch time.
“We made key possessions down the stretch. We locked in, buckled down and really wanted to get the win,” Dotson said after scoring 11 points on 3-of-12 shooting. He was 5 of 6 from the free throw line, icing the game by hitting two free throws with 5.9 seconds left to give KU a two-possession lead.
“We made key plays on the offensive end. Players stepped up and got the win,” Dotson added.
Dotson — he had just one assist to go with his seven turnovers in 34 minutes at West Virginia — on Monday led a KU offense that committed just 11 turnovers compared to the 24 miscues in a 17-point blowout loss to the Cyclones on Jan. 5 at Iowa State.
“It’s what drives me nuts about this team. You would think in a high-pressure game like tonight, it would be a night you may get excited and turn it over. We did it that way in Morgantown,” KU coach Bill Self said. “We’ll have moments like that especially when we are as young as we are. He (Dotson) was really good. Lagerald (Vick) made a huge shot (three-pointer to break 69-69 tie with 2:11 left). He played well (in hitting two threes and scoring 14 points). The two players of the game were Marcus (Garrett, 16 points, five rebounds, three steals) and Dedric (Lawson, 29 points, 15 rebounds). They were great,” Self added.
Self — his Jayhawks (16-3, 5-2) did surrender an eight-point lead with 4 1/2 minutes left; ISU tying the game at 69 with 2:20 to play — most importantly outscored ISU, 11-7, down the stretch, compared to getting outscored 7-0 at the end of a 65-64 loss to West Virginia.
“We’ve had some talks since Saturday,” said Self. He was quite miffed at letting one get away in Morgantown. “We’ve got to become a team. People can say what they want to. Teams aren’t teams in November or December. We’ve been playing without Doke (Azubuike, out for season with hand injury) now three weeks. We’ve played six games without him (winning four). It takes time to become a team and who you are. So much is a mindset. If we are going to be soft or timid, this team can’t be like that and outskill people. We’ve got to be more an attack type team on both ends. We were not great at that tonight. I thought offensively we did play with a lot more confidence especially the second half.”
Vick hit the huge three to give KU a 72-69 lead at 2:11. It was 74-72 KU when Lawson cashed his second three of the night with 22 seconds to play.
It was 78-76 when Dotson was fouled and calmly converted a pair of free throws at 5.9 seconds, effectively ending the game.
“I like him at the line at game point,” Self said of Dotson. “He did a good job of getting open (against press). We threw the ball to our best shooter, a little bit different than we’ve done in the past. I thought he showed some poise late to knock them down.”
Dotson said KU has been concentrating on closing games since the West Virginia meltdown.
“Oh I think we went through some (drills at practice),” Dotson said. Self was especially upset that KU, without benefit of a timeout, had a poor possession in the final eight seconds against West Virginia. Vick missed a three instead of taking the ball to the basket. Lawson grabbed the rebound but missed a last-second stickback attempt, KU ultimately losing by one point.
“We did some situational stuff down at the end to close out games,” Dotson added of drills at practice.
Freshman Ochai Agbaji, who started the second half in place of an ineffective Quentin Grimes (zero points, 19 minutes), scored eight points and grabbed five rebounds before fouling out.
Marial Shayok led the way for ISU with 26 points and six rebounds. Talen Horton-Tucker had 16 points, Michael Jacobson 12 points and 11 boards and Nick Weiler-Babb 10 points, four boards and four assists. ISU hit 12 of 30 threes; KU 6 of 14.
“One thing I’ve learned is I’m glad we don’t play the Cyclones again,” Self said with a smile, thoroughly impressed this season with ISU.
The Jayhawks will next meet No. 8-ranked Kentucky at 5 p.m., Central time, Saturday at Rupp Arena in Lexington, Ky. The game is part of the SEC/Big 12 Challenge. Kentucky, 14-3 overall and 4-1 in the SEC, has won four straight games heading into Tuesday’s home contest against Mississippi State.
Notes
▪ Mitch Lightfoot did not play, coach’s decision. “They played four guards the entire time,” Self said of ISU. “It was easier for us to play four guards.”
• Anthony Edwards, a 6-4 senior forward from Holy Spirit Prep School in Atlanta, will visit KU on Feb. 9 for the 11 a.m. KU-Oklahoma State game, he tells Rivals.com. Edwards, who is ranked No. 3 in the recruiting Class of 2019 by Rivals.com, is considering KU, Georgia, Kentucky, North Carolina and Florida State. “I really like Kansas, I really like (Bill Self). I like the assistant coach, Coach (Norm) Roberts. They got some players that I like and they let their guards play so I like Kansas,” Edwards tells Rivals.com.
▪ Cassius Stanley, a 6-5 senior shooting guard from Sierra Canyon (Calif.) High School, will announce his college choice on April 17, the first day of the NCAA late signing period, according to Zagsblog.com. Stanley, the No. 32-ranked player in the recruiting Class of 2019 according to Rivals.com, has a final list of KU, Oregon and UCLA. He scored 25 points and grabbed nine rebounds in a 77-58 loss to Montverde (Fla.) Academy at last weekend’s Hoophall Classic.
▪ Precious Achiuwa, a 6-9 senior forward from Montverde Academy, who is ranked No. 9 in the Class of 2019 by Rivals.com, tells Zagsblog.com he is considering KU, North Carolina, UConn and St. John’s. Achiuwa’s mentor, Oz Cross, was an assistant coach at St. John’s when KU assistant Norm Roberts was head coach. Achiuwa scored 13 points and had 11 rebounds in Montverde’s 67-48 win over Holy Prep (Ga.) at the Hoophall Classic. Achuiwa was chosen MVP of the event.
This story was originally published January 21, 2019 at 10:19 PM.
