LAWRENCE (AP) — Lagerald Vick scored 21 points, Marcus Garrett added a career-high 20, and No. 7 Kansas held on to beat Texas 80-78 on Monday night when Jase Febres’ 3-pointer at the buzzer never came close.
Dedric Lawson added 17 points and eight rebounds for the Jayhawks (15-2, 4-1 Big 12), who blew a 10-point second-half lead before escaping with their 10th straight win over the Longhorns.
The game was tied at 73 when Lawson made a pair of foul shots. Texas big man Dylan Osetkowski was forced into a jump ball at the other end to give Kansas possession again, and Vick knocked down a 3 from the wing with 1:31 left in the game to give the Jayhawks a cushion.
The teams swapped empty possessions and Texas (10-7, 2-3) was forced to foul Lawson, who missed the second of two free throws. The Longhorns pulled down the rebound and Courtney Ramey buried a 3-pointer to get them within 79-78 with 8.9 seconds left in the game.
They quickly fouled Garrett, a 64-percent foul shooter, and he made the second of two free throws to give the Longhorns a chance. But after racing the ball up floor, they settled for a contested 3 from Febres that clanked harmlessly off the side of the rim.
Matt Coleman II had 16 point to lead five Texas players in double-figures scoring. Kerwin Roach II added 13, Febres had 12 and Osetkowski finished with 11 points and nine rebounds.
The Longhorns led 40-38 at halftime, but how the teams got there was wildly different.
Kansas played the first 20 minutes without committing a single turnover, got the ball in transition but struggled at the foul line, where the Jayhawks were just 2 of 7 in the half.
Texas knocked down eight 3-pointers and dominated on the glass. But it was the Jayhawks who heated up beyond the arc to open the second half, knocking down four in the opening minutes to retake the lead. Vick curled in a pair, one off a nifty feed in front of his bench, and Kansas eventually stretched its lead to 57-45 with 11 1/2 minutes to play.
Febres made it interesting in the closing minutes.
The Jayhawks still led 71-64 when the Longhorns’ sophomore sharpshooter knocked down a 3-pointer. He added another after a jump ball at the other end, then hit a third in succession to answer Lawson’s bucket and pull Texas into a 73-all tie with 2:16 remaining in the game.
Kansas had opportunities to put the game away with free throws, but Lawson and Garrett missed key attempts down the stretch, and the Jayhawks finished just 11 of 21 from the line.
BIG PICTURE
Texas lost for the first time in seven games when it hit at least 10 3-pointers, going 13 of 34 from beyond the arc. The Longhorns also had an advantage on the glass, but they were unable to make defensive stops when they needed to in the closing minutes.
Kansas only committed four turnovers in the game, and an 11-of-22 clip from beyond the arc helped to mitigate the Longhorns’ long-range shooting. Freshman forward Ochai Agbaji, who had his redshirt removed a week ago, continued to contribute with four points in 25 minutes.
UP NEXT
Kansas visits West Virginia on Saturday.
No. 7 KANSAS 80, TEXAS 78
TEXAS (10-7)
Osetkowski 5-13 1-1 11, Hayes 4-5 0-0 8, Mitrou-Long 2-7 0-0 6, Roach 4-11 2-2 13, Coleman 7-12 0-0 16, Sims 0-0 2-2 2, Ramey 3-7 2-2 10, Febres 4-14 0-0 12. Totals 29-69 7-7 78.
KANSAS (15-2)
D.Lawson 6-8 5-8 17, Garrett 8-11 1-4 20, Dotson 3-6 3-4 10, Grimes 2-5 0-0 6, Vick 7-14 2-2 21, Lightfoot 0-1 0-2 0, McCormack 1-3 0-1 2, Agbaji 2-5 0-0 4, Moore 0-1 0-0 0. Totals 29-54 11-21 80.
Halftime—Texas 40-38. 3-Point Goals—Texas 13-34 (Febres 4-11, Roach 3-8, Coleman 2-3, Ramey 2-4, Mitrou-Long 2-6, Osetkowski 0-2), Kansas 11-22 (Vick 5-8, Garrett 3-4, Grimes 2-5, Dotson 1-2, Moore 0-1, Agbaji 0-2). Fouled Out—Hayes. Rebounds—Texas 37 (Osetkowski 9), Kansas 29 (D.Lawson 8). Assists—Texas 19 (Coleman 8), Kansas 14 (Dotson, Vick 4). Total Fouls—Texas 18, Kansas 12.
