One area where KU basketball’s offense has improved dramatically from a year ago
It was a half-hour after Kansas’ 79-53 victory over Iowa State on Wednesday when Bill Self commented on the peculiarity of his team’s outing.
“We ran more plays today than I can remember running in a long time,” Self said. “Maybe we need to do more of that to try to make sure guys get touches in certain spots. It worked out pretty well.”
There were reasons this particular game turned into a slow-it-down affair. KU held a lead throughout, which led to Self being comfortable chewing up some clock (Iowa State’s 64 possessions were a season low). The Cyclones also did a decent job of getting back in transition, which left fewer opportunities for the Jayhawks on fast breaks.
Big picture, though, KU’s offense was just fine without pushing the pace, posting the highest point-per-possession total that any team has had against Iowa State this season.
And though coaches are constantly looking for ways to get their teams to run more — in an attempt to score against unset defenses — Wednesday was another example of KU succeeding just fine in the half-court while grinding its way to efficient scoring.
The Jayhawks have had vast improvement in this area from a season ago; numbers compiled at Hoop-Math.com had KU ranked 121st in adjusted shooting percentage in half-court settings then, while this year, the team is up to third nationally in the same statistic.
National leaders, non-transition effective field goal% (via Hoop-Math.com)
| eFG% | |
| 1. McNeese | 59.3% |
| 2. Dayton | 59.0% |
| 3. Kansas | 57.0% |
| 4. Furman | 56.4% |
| 5. Liberty | 56.4% |
| 6. Gonzaga | 56.3% |
Interestingly, KU’s half-court gains have come in a season when its transition game has been lagging some.
Which leads to something else of note: KU, through 14 games, is getting nearly the same production on fast breaks as it is in the half-court. The Jayhawks’ adjusted shooting percentage is 57.8% when running (during the first 10 seconds of the shot clock) and 57.0% when slowing it down. To give some context, median NCAA teams have shot 53.8% in transition and 48.8% in non-transition this season.
Synergy Sports Technology’s logs reveal many of the same findings about KU. The Jayhawks score 1.05 points per possession in transition (70th percentile) and 0.96 in the half-court (95th percentile).
So what has led to the Jayhawks’ improvement with their delayed attack? The easiest answer is the return of Udoka Azubuike following last year’s hand injury, as he’s the source of KU’s best shooting percentages in late-clock situations thanks to his ability to overpower opponents at the rim.
Self and his staff also have played a part, creating clever plays that have put defenses in tough situations while trying to defend both Azubuike and All-America candidate Devon Dotson at the same time.
Dotson and Marcus Garrett also deserve individual credit. Self spoke Friday about the modern game requiring guards that can penetrate and force help in half-court settings, and both players have been able to frequently create offensive advantages by playing to their driving abilities.
KU should continue running when it can. The Jayhawks have both speed and athleticism, which means we should expect the team’s fast-break shooting numbers to continue trending upward as the season progresses.
The Jayhawks don’t have to force things, though.
They’ve proven, so far, to be plenty capable while going against five stationed defenders.
And Self saw Wednesday just how beneficial that trait can be.
