Kansas’ Hunter Dickinson on free-throw issues vs. BYU: ‘I got in my head a little’
It’s rare to see Kansas star Hunter Dickinson at a loss for words.
After KU’s collapse against BYU on Tuesday at Allen Fieldhouse, Dickinson wasn’t his usual energetic self at the Jayhawks’ postgame news conference.
He stared downward at the stat sheet while clasping a towel between his hands. Not once during the press conference did Dickinson look up toward the media.
The way Kansas had lost — a 10-2 run by BYU after leading for 35 minutes, 30 seconds of game time — left Dickinson shell-shocked.
When asked why the Jayhawks struggled on offense late, Dickinson didn’t have an answer.
“I’m not sure,” he said. “I’m not really sure.”
Although Dickinson had a team-leading 17 points and 11 rebounds, his play down the stretch was a tale of missed opportunities.
After he hit a 3-pointer to tie the game at 66-all with 2:28 left, he wouldn’t score the rest of the way. Not only would he not attempt another shot, but he missed the two free throws he did attempt.
Those free throws capped a stretch where he missed his last six at the line. Overall, Dickinson shot a dismal 6-for-15 (40%) from the line — he shoots 74.2% for his career.
“I’d be lying if it didn’t (creep into my mind),” he said. “It definitely affected me out there. I do think I got in my head a little when I started to miss and I think that it kind of snowballed. … It really kind of made it hard out there.”
Despite the Jayhawks — as a team — shooting just 3-for-15 (20%) from 3, Kansas coach Bill Self pointed out the struggles at the line as one of the main reasons KU lost. Kansas shot just 19-for-31 (61%) at the line, including Dickinson’s nine misses.
“You’ve got to make shots to win a game, but I thought where it hurt us the most was we didn’t score in tight and we missed our free throws,” Self said. “I thought that was more telling than not making 3s.”
With the extended absence of KU leading scorer Kevin McCullar due to injury, every mistake is amplified.
That was especially true in a game where BYU outscored the Jayhawks by 30 from the 3-point line, which meant every extra point at the line was going to be magnified.
For what it’s worth, Dickinson didn’t use the absence of McCullar as an excuse for Tuesday’s loss.
“I think the guys are pretty used to the roles at this point. It’s what, our fourth or fifth game without him?” Dickinson said. “I don’t think its new to us at this point. We’ve just got to play in those roles now that they’ve been established.”
This story was originally published February 27, 2024 at 11:24 PM.
