One KU basketball player ‘dominated’ against Houston. He only scored four points
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- Kansas forward Flory Bidunga altered shots and helped limit Houston to 24 paint points.
- KU defense held Houston to season-low 31.8% FG and 20.8% 3PT.
- Bill Self called Bidunga a key defensive piece and said he dominated the game.
A quick glance at Kansas forward Flory Bidunga’s stat line against Houston would make his night seem rather ordinary, if not underwhelming.
The reality was anything but that.
Bidunga finished with four points on 2-for-6 shooting. He recorded seven rebounds in 36 minutes.
But those numbers don’t come close to telling the whole story of Bidunga’s performance in No. 14 KU’s 69-56 win over No. 5 Houston on Monday night. Just ask Kansas coach Bill Self, who said in the immediate aftermath that the player with four points “totally dominated the game.”
“I thought he was great,” Self continued in his postgame news conference. “... To me, he can hedge a ball screen, he can take it with a guard, he can cover for a guy. He did a lot of really good things tonight. I thought he was terrific.”
Of course, Self is referring to Bidunga’s defense, which was a major reason why the Jayhawks first hung with the Cougars and then turned the game into a rout. KU led by as many as 20 points in the second half at Allen Fieldhouse.
Bidunga recorded two blocks and a steal. He was a deterrent around the rim. Houston finished with only 24 paint points and went 5-for-11 (45%) on layups.
KU’s lengthy big man also switched onto Houston’s star guards, Kingston Flemings and Emanuel Sharp. Bidunga and his teammates held that duo to a combined 21 points on 7-for-28 (25%) shooting.
On another sequence, Bidunga harassed a third Houston guard, 6-4 Milos Uzan, on the perimeter enough that the Cougars called for a ball screen to get back to a normal matchup. KU forced the miss and Bidunga sprinted into the paint to grab the rebound. He then scored at the rim on the other end over three Houston defenders.
Bidunga has previously spoken about wanting to bait guards into driving on him so he can reject them at the rim.
Defense has been a focus for the Jayhawks since their loss to Cincinnati on Saturday — a stunning upset after the Jayhawks entered as 11.5-point favorites.
That message was received. Houston shot only 31.8% from the field and 20.8% from 3, both season-lows for the Cougars.
“When we play to our ability, defense, nobody can stop us,” guard Melvin Council said. “Like I said before, we didn’t reach our ceiling yet. When we reach it, it’s going to be fun to watch.”
Self isn’t exactly sure what KU’s ceiling is at the moment. But to make a deep postseason run, the Jayhawks will need to improve across the board. And they’re still figuring out how to play with star freshman Darryn Peterson.
But Bidunga is one key piece of that equation. If he continues to look like the Big 12 Defensive Player of the Year, and perhaps a candidate for the national award, the Jayhawks (21-7, 11-4 Big 12) can play with just about anyone.
Self has made that clear a number of times this season.
“With Flory, (he can defend a) ball screen or ... guard his man and go bluff to take away a cut or take away a shot and get back to his man,” Self said. “There are a lot of things he does. If you look at plus-minus, the guy scores four points and he’s plus-17. So I thought he was great. I just think he is so good defensively.”
