Stingy defense leads men’s basketball to 84-59 rout of No. 3/4 Kansas

LAWRENCE, Kan. — Five Longhorns scored in double figures Saturday to help the No. 8/9 Texas men’s basketball team pull off one of the most surprising results of the season so far: an 84-59 rout of No. 3/4 Kansas at Allen Fieldhouse.

The victory improved the Longhorns’ overall record to 8-1, and 2-0 in games against Big 12 opponents, while the Jayhawks slipped to 8-2 overall and 2-1 in conference games.

The 25-point margin marked the most lopsided home loss since Bill Self took over as KU’s head coach in 2003. The Jayhawks were the Longhorns’ highest-ranked victims since Texas knocked off then-No. 3 Oklahoma Feb. 27, 2016, and held the highest AP ranking of any team Texas has beaten on the road since UT upset the Jayhawks Jan. 22, 2011. The 25-point margin also tied the record for the Longhorns’ largest victory in the series.

Junior guard Courtney Ramey hit 7 of 11 shots from the floor, including 3 of 5 from behind the three-point line, en route to a team-high 18 points. Senior forward Jericho Sims notched his first double-double of the season, and fifth of his career, with 11 points and a game-high 12 rebounds. Guards Andrew Jones and Matt Coleman scored 14 and 13 points, respectively, while forward Kai Jones added 12.

Texas, which played just eight players, scored the game’s first four points and never trailed.

Facing an eight-point (37-29) halftime deficit, the Jayhawks tried to rally in the second half, but the Longhorns’ lead swelled in the second half, as UT enjoyed a 47-30 advantage after the intermission. The Horns connected on 57.1 percent (16 of 28) of their field goals in the second half, including 61.5 percent (8 of 13) from behind the three-point line. Needing to play catch-up, the Jayhawks did the opposite, connecting on just 29 percent (9 of 31) of their shots from the floor, and just 12.5 percent (2 of 16) from beyond the arc.

For the game, the Jayhawks were frigid from long range, converting just 3 of 23 (13.0 percent) three-point attempts.

Sims led the way on the glass, but had help, including 7 rebounds from Andrew Jones and 6 from Coleman. For the game, UT outrebounded Kansas, 46-37, improving to 7-0 this year when outrebounding its opponent.

The Longhorns will be back in auction Tuesday when they host Iowa State at 7 p.m. at the Frank Erwin Center in a game that will be televised on the Longhorn Network.