Kansas signee Tyon Grant-Foster not surprised by Jayhawks’ 79-53 rout of Iowa State
Future Kansas shooting guard Tyon Grant-Foster made the short, 90-minute drive from Ottumwa, Iowa, home of Indian Hills Community College, to Ames on Wednesday for the KU-Iowa State game at Hilton Coliseum.
“I was actually expecting this,” the 6-foot-7, 195-pound preseason juco All-American said of a lopsided KU victory.
Grant-Foster was speaking to The Star while standing behind the KU bench at halftime of No. 3-ranked KU’s 79-53 victory over the unranked Cyclones before a sellout crowd of 14,384.
KU (12-2, 2-0) led ISU (7-7, 0-2) by 20 points at the break.
“I came in (Hilton) and my teammates were asking me how much we were going to win by. Honestly, I said it’d be like this,” Grant-Foster stated.
KU’s offense clicked Wednesday. The Jayhawks hit 28 of 54 shots for 51.9%. Led by Udoka Azubuike’s 4 of 5 effort, KU hit 13 of 17 free throws for 76.5%. The Jayhawks committed just 12 turnovers and went 10 of 19 from three for 52.6%.
“I love it,” Grant-Foster said, asked his impression of KU’s offense. “You could say it’s real organized, but at the same time he (Bill Self) gives you a lot of freedom to make plays.”
Grant-Foster averages a team-leading 17.0 points per game and is second in rebounding (6.4 rpg) for Indian Hills (15-2). The Kansas City Schlagle High School graduate has made 92 of 191 shots for 48.2%. He’s cashed 28 of 81 three-pointers for 34.6%
The sophomore also has converted 43 of 64 free throws for 67.2%. He has 29 assists to 44 turnovers, 16 steals and 15 blocks.
“I talked to some of the guys like Christian (Braun) who said they were looking forward to playing with me next year,” Grant-Foster said.
Ellis continues recovery from knee surgery
Former KU forward Perry Ellis, who joined his alma mater’s basketball staff as a video coordinator in September, continues to rehab his surgically repaired right knee.
He tore his patellar tendon last summer while playing for KU’s entry in The Basketball Tournament.
“It’s going well. I just started doing light court workouts, jogging and stuff,” Ellis said in a direct Facebook message to The Star. “So probably in a month or two,” he added, referring to when he’ll be allowed to play basketball again.
He’s planning on continuing his pro career next season.
Ellis, 26, the No. 9 leading scorer in KU history (1,798 points), has played professional basketball in the NBA’s G League, Australia, Italy, Germany and Turkey. He signed to play in Japan this season but was unable to compete because of injury. He was a consensus second-team All-American as a KU senior after averaging 16.9 points and 5.8 rebounds per game.
KU recruiting Skyy Clark
Skyy Clark, a 6-foot-2 sophomore point guard from Heritage Christian High School in Northridge, California, has been offered a scholarship by Kansas, he reported on Twitter.
Clark, who is ranked No. 18 in the recruiting Class of 2022 by Rivals.com, is also being recruited by UCLA, Arizona, Arizona State, Auburn, DePaul, Florida State, Memphis, Texas Tech, Vanderbilt and others, Zagsblog.com reports.
Clark committed to DePaul as an eighth grader but has since reopened his recruiting.
“(I’m) blessed to receive an offer from Kansas! Thank you coach Self and coach (Kurtis) Townsend for believing in me. All glory to God always,” Clark wrote on Twitter.
He told Zagsblog.com in a text message: “I know that coach Self is an amazing coach and they have a great history with guards. I feel like I’d be a great fit! Coach Self develops point guards really well.”
According to youth1.com, former NBA guard Gilbert Arenas has nicknamed Clark “Hibachi” because he “can catch heat quickly.”
Clemence on KU’s list
Kansas is recruiting Zach Clemence, a 6-10, 205-pound junior forward from Sunrise Christian Academy in Bel Aire, Kansas, who is ranked No. 39 in the recruiting Class of 2021 by Rivals.com.
Clemence, who is from San Antonio, Texas, played at Findlay Prep in Las Vegas in 2018-19. He has a recruiting list of KU, Baylor, Texas Tech, Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, Arkansas, TCU, Nebraska and others.
“It is going great. I couldn’t ask for anything better. Well, I could with not getting injured. It (minor knee injury) put me back a couple of weeks, but it is amazing getting back onto the floor,” Clemence told Rivals.com in a recent interview. “To be honest, I probably needed it. It has made me want it 10 times more. I couldn’t wait to play today. I think that I sat out three or four games. That is too many.”
Next
KU will meet No. 4-ranked Baylor at 12 p.m., Saturday at Allen Fieldhouse. Baylor is off to a 12-1 start, 2-0 in the Big 12. The game will be shown on CBS. Oklahoma and TCU join KU and Baylor as the league’s unbeaten teams through two games.
This story was originally published January 9, 2020 at 3:11 PM.
