Kansas Jayhawks used eight-man rotation in first half vs. Missouri: ‘Nobody was tired’
Kansas men’s basketball coach Bill Self shortened his rotation to eight players during the first half of the Jayhawks’ 102-65 rout of the Missouri Tigers on Saturday afternoon at Allen Fieldhouse.
He liked what he saw from the group that consisted of starters Ochai Agbaji, Christian Braun, Dajuan Harris, Remy Martin and David McCormack and bench players Mitch Lightfoot, Jalen Wilson and Jalen Coleman-Lands, who helped KU (8-1) storm to a 22-point halftime lead over the rival Tigers (5-5).
“I thought tonight was more how I’ll coach in league,” Self said. Coleman-Lands played three minutes, Wilson eight and Lightfoot 10 in the all-important initial half.
“I’ve been trying to get guys in the game (in first eight games of season). That’s with starters playing well. Tonight we decided if we are playing well, don’t play guys just to try to get them in the game, (but) play guys that’s best for your team moving forward. Playing those eight guys in the first half I thought was best for the team because nobody was tired.
“I asked C.B. (Braun), ‘Need a blow?’ He said, ‘No.’ They were juiced. Nobody was tired. Ochai played 30 minutes. Nobody else played 30. They (Joseph Yesufu, Zach Clemence, KJ Adams) still got a chance to play, but that’s probably more how it’s going to look like moving forward.”
Yesufu played eight minutrs the final half, Clemence seven and Adams six. Walk-ons Chris Teahan and Michael Jankovich logged three minutes and one minute respectively. Former rotation Bobby Pettiford did not suit up because of the abdominal strain that has him out of action until around Jan. 1.
Teahan hit the three-pointer that put KU over the century mark in points.
“He does that all time at practice. I was saying (at practice), ‘You can’t guard Chris,’’’ Lightfoot said of Teahan, who is 2-of-4 from three this season. “He and Michael do a great job on the Red (scout) team. They are two of the best shooters on the team,” Lightfoot added.
Lightfoot provided a big spark off the bench Saturday with nine points, two rebounds (and five fouls) in his 12 minutes. Wilson had seven points and four boards in 18 minutes and Coleman-Lands eight points, two boards, two assists and two steals in 12 minutes.
“It was fun. The fans were unbelievable,” Lightfoot said. “We came in for the NBA shootaround (early shootaround) and I looked up in the corners and they were all full (90 minutes before game). We knew what we were playing for,” he added. “We were focused, very poised and very jacked up with energy. I think we need to try to duplicate that moving forward.”
The Jayhawks won going away in the first of six games scheduled versus Missouri over six seasons. Self, who improved to 10-0 at home versus Missouri and 16-4 overall as KU coach, was asked if the victory had the same feel as when the Jayhawks played the Tigers in Big 12 Conference games.
“I personally think it didn’t have the same feel,” Self said. “To me when you play Missouri it’s such a big game for both teams but it’s magnified because it’s for a bigger picture.
“Today wasn’t for a bigger picture. Today was just a nonconference game that at the end of the season won’t mean anything except just us playing each other, where in the past our games have impacted whether we won the league or not for both teams. You do want bragging rights for 365 days,” he added.
KU, which is entering final exams week, will next meet Stephen F. Austin at 7 p.m. Saturday at Allen Fieldhouse.
