Field Level Media
Mar 7, 2020
Devon Dotson recorded 17 points, including two free throws with 19 seconds remaining in the second half, as No. 1 Kansas posted a 66-62 victory over Texas Tech on Saturday at Lubbock, Texas.
Udoka Azubuike added 15 points and 11 rebounds as the Jayhawks (28-3, 17-1 Big 12) captured the Big 12 championship outright with their 16th straight victory.
Second-place Baylor dropped a 76-64 decision at West Virginia earlier on Saturday, thus giving the conference title to Kansas. The conference championship is the 62nd for the Jayhawks and comes after a 14-year string of Big 12 crowns was snapped last season.
With his performance, Dotson became the fifth Jayhawk to lead the Big 12 in scoring, finishing the regular season with an 18.1-point average. Other Kansas players who topped Big 12 scorers were Drew Gooden (2002), Wayne Simien (2005), Frank Mason (2017) and Dedric Lawson (2019).
Dotson needs just 14 points to reach the 1,000-point club as a sophomore.
The victory capped a 9-0 swing for the Jayhawks in Big 12 road play, the first time they swept conference rivals in road games since going 8-0 in 2002.
Kansas got successive buckets from Azubuike, Christian Braun and Marcus Garrett just after Texas Tech (18-13, 9-9) forged a tie with 2:11 remaining on a 3-pointer by T.J. Holyfield. Garrett added nine points and eight rebounds.
Davide Moretti scored 18 points to lead the Red Raiders, who dropped their fourth straight game after shooting just 37.1 percent from the floor.
Kansas only shot 41.0 percent as cold shooting and tight defense became a theme early in the game. The Jayhawks were able to forge ahead and record a 32-24 lead at halftime.
Dotson scored nine first-half points and Azubuike added eight, while each grabbed five rebounds as part of Kansas' 28-16 edge on the boards at intermission.
The Red Raiders missed nine of their last 10 shots and shot 30.3 percent for the half. They were led by Moretti with nine points. Texas Tech's closing funk came after it grabbed a 22-20 lead, before Kansas went on a 9-0 clip.
--Field Level Media