North Dakota State Bison vs Kansas Jayhawks Match Player Stats On Dec 05, 2020

Jalen Wilson scored 14 points and added 15 rebounds Saturday for his second double-double of the season as No. 7 Kansas withstood an upset bid and nipped North Dakota State 65-61 at Lawrence, Kan.

The Jayhawks (4-1) led for only 8 minutes and needed seven unanswered points at the end of the game to hold off the Bison (0-4), who missed their last nine shots.

Ochai Agbaji added 13 points but Kansas shot just 38.7 percent and had difficulty solving North Dakota State's methodical pace. The Bison often worked for good shots after entering the game with a 54.3-point scoring average on 32.4 percent shooting.

Their offense slumped late, however, as Kansas grabbed the lead for keeps on a drive by Tyon Grant-Foster with 1:20 remaining. Grant-Foster, a backup, was instrumental down the stretch, recording a key block while finishing with eight points and eight boards.

Champions of the Summit League each of the last two seasons, North Dakota State came into the game after falling to Nebraska, Nevada and Creighton, but found an offensive flow the Jayhawks could not solve.

Tyree Eady led the Bison with 14 points and Rocky Kreuser added 11. The Bison scored their last bucket at the 4:55 mark and finished with a 39.6 percent touch. Their last point came off a free throw with 3:57 left.

Kansas forged a 43-32 rebounding advantage behind Wilson.

North Dakota State jumped to an 8-0 lead and led for 12-plus minutes of the first half behind nine points from Eady. A jumper by Agbaji at the 3:39 mark allowed Kansas to lead until the break as the Bison went cold on 0-for-8 shooting down the stretch.

Agbaji scored nine first-half points for the Jayhawks, who led just 35-33 at halftime. Kansas also had a string of eight straight misses while making just two 3-pointers during the half.

Only family members of players attended the game, though Kansas will change its protocols next week and allow 2,500 fans Tuesday when No. 9 Creighton visits.

--Field Level Media