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Author: Dave Riggert

Missouri State OC Verduzco leaving for Central Florida

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riggertMSUSPRINGFIELD, Mo. – After one season as Missouri State’s offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach, Mario Verduzco has accepted an assistant coaching job at the University of Central Florida, the school announced Tuesday (Dec. 8).

Verduzco joined MSU head coach Dave Steckel’s staff last winter after spending 14 years on the coaching staff of Missouri Valley Football Conference power UNI, including seven as the Panthers’ co-offensive coordinator. The Pittsburg, Calif., native worked with new UCF head coach Scott Frost in Cedar Falls for two seasons, while Frost served as UNI’s linebackers coach in 2007 and defensive coordinator the following campaign.

Steckel, who completed his first season with the Bears in 2015, indicated a search for Verduzco’s replacement will commence immediately.

— MSU Athletics —

Mizzou women defeat Loyola Marymount, improve to 9-0 for 2nd time in school history

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riggertMissouriCOLUMBIA, Mo. – Mizzou (9-0) defeated Loyola Marymount (3-6) 80-48 on Monday evening at Mizzou Arena as the Tigers tied the program record for the best start in school history at 9-0. The only other Mizzou team to begin 9-0 was the 1982-83 squad which finished the season 25-6 and ranked 14th nationally.

“I’m happy for our girls, I thought we really competed hard for 40 minutes,” head coach Robin Pingeton said. “I thought we did a tremendous job out of the gates, just unselfish play, especially from that first group that was on the court.  For them to take the court in the beginning of that second half and maintain and build on that intensity an energy, I thought was outstanding.

“I really appreciate all the fans, we had a great turnout again for our team and I can’t acknowledge them enough. They’ve just been an unbelievable sixth man for us this season.”

Mizzou scored the first 21 points of the game with the first 10 coming from sisters Sophie Cunningham (Columbia, Mo) and Lindsey Cunningham (Columbia, Mo). Sophie scored the first seven points before her older sister knocked down a triple to make it 10-0. LMU didn’t get on the board until the 3:07 mark of the first quarter.

Sophie Cunningham led all scorers with 23 points, going 9-11 from the field and a perfect 3-3 beyond the arc. She also had five rebounds, tied a career-high with three assists and notched two assists.

Throughout the game, 11 Tigers entered the scoring column while 13 players again saw significant minutes. It was the fourth time this season that the team has had 11 players record points.

Mizzou dominated in the hustle stats, registering eight blocks and 13 steals. Those defensive stands led to a lopsided lead in points in the paint (40-12) and fast-break points (18-4). It marked the fifth time the Tigers have recorded 12 or more steals in a game this season after doing so only twice all of last year.

LMU closed the gap to as few as 10 points early in the second quarter, but a 9-0 Mizzou run, sparked by baskets from four different players, reopened Mizzou’s large lead at 32-13. The Tigers led 43-20 lead at the half, holding LMU without a point over the final 4:45 of the second quarter, closing on a 7-0 run.

Mizzou had seven different players score in the first half, led by 17 from Sophie Cunningham.

The second half was more of the same from Mizzou, with the defense holding LMU to 30.3 percent shooting (10-33). The Tigers shot 42.4 in the second half and 50.8 percent for the game. That excellent shooting performance was the second best so far this season; their high came against Wichita State Nov. 18 (51.6 percent). It was the third time this season that Mizzou has shot over 50 percent.

Mizzou heads to Boulder, Colorado, Saturday to face Colorado at 2:30 p.m.

— Mizzou Athletics —

KSU women extend winning streak to four with win over UT Rio Grande Valley

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riggertKansasStateMANHATTAN, Kan. – Kansas State found its offensive legs in the second half and extended its winning streak to four games with a 61-43 win over UT Rio Grande Valley on Monday night.

Sophomore forward Kaylee Page recorded K-State’s first double-double of the season and the first of her career with 13 points, a career-high 12 rebounds and two assists. Junior center Breanna Lewis added a game-high 15 points, pulled in nine rebounds, tied her season-high with six blocks and equaled her career-high with four steals. Senior guard Megan Deines added 12 points, four rebounds and three assists.

The Vaqueros took an early 8-3 lead, but K-State closed out the opening quarter on a 15-2 run to secure an 18-10 lead.

The Wildcats 15-2 run was highlighted by three consecutive 3-point field goals, as Page drained the first and Deines connected on the next two.

Offensively in the second quarter, both teams stalled out with K-State shooting 23.1 percent and UTRGV 25.0 percent in the frame. K-State scored a season-low for a quarter with six points in the second frame but held a 24-20 lead at the half.

K-State shook off the rust in the third quarter and outscored the Vaqueros, 21-9, in the stanza to take a 45-29 lead. The Wildcat defense held UT Rio Grande Valley without a field goal for the final 4:38 of the quarter.

Page registered seven points in the quarter and sparked a 13-2 run to end the quarter. Shaelyn Martin and Young added four points in the quarter.

UTRGV climbed back into the game with an 8-2 run to start the fourth quarter and pull to within 10, 47-37.

The Wildcats halted the UTRGV comeback attempt with a 10-0 run with Page and Kindred Wesemann each knocking down a 3-pointer to push K-State’s lead to 57-37 with 3:17 to play. Lewis tallied four points during the run.

K-State pulled in a season-high 49 rebounds, including a season-best 36 defensive boards.

The Wildcats shot 23-of-55 (.418) from the field, while UTRGV shot 17-of-64 (.266). This is the third opponent K-State has held to under 30.0 percent shooting from the field.

The Wildcats pocketed 12 steals and blocked seven shots.

— KSU Athletics —

Royals keep Chris Young, bring back Joakim Soria

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riggertRoyalsNASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — The Royals liked what they saw of Chris Young so much they decided to keep him. And they liked Joakim Soria so much from his past stint in Kansas City they struck a deal to bring him back.

The World Series champions announced an $11.5 million, two-year contract with Young on Monday and also agreed to a $25 million, three-year deal with Soria that still needs to be finalized.

“Him and Chris Young are very similar people,” general manager Dayton Moore said at the winter meetings.

Details of Soria’s agreement were provided by a person familiar with the negotiations who spoke on condition of anonymity because it had not yet been announced.

“We’re working towards an agreement. Nothing is official at this point,” Moore said. “He’s very poised, great command of his fastball, just very efficient with his pitches. A tremendous presence in the clubhouse.”

A 6-foot-10 right-hander who turns 37 in May, Young was the 2014 AL Comeback Player of the Year with Seattle after missing a season while recovering from shoulder surgery. The Princeton graduate signed a $675,000 deal with the Royals this year and went 11-6 with a 3.06 ERA in 18 starts and 16 relief appearances, earning $2.55 million in performance bonuses.

Among pitchers with 120 or more innings, he led the AL in opponents’ batting average (.202) and fewest hits per nine innings (6.64).

“Our players absolutely loved him. They learned a lot by watching him compete,” Royals manager Ned Yost said. “It was that winner’s mindset that he brought in the clubhouse, not only his ability to produce as a pitcher on the mound but everything he brought to the table with him that was so important to our team.”

Young won the World Series opener by pitching three hitless innings of relief against the New York Mets and started Game 4, allowing two runs in four innings. Kansas City plans to use him in its rotation next year.

“Chris Young is special,” Moore said. “He’s an unbelievable competitor, and you can make a case that he was the MVP of our pitching staff.”

Young gets $4.25 million next season and $5.75 million in 2017, and the deal includes an $8 million mutual option for 2018 with a $1.5 million buyout. Young can earn $250,000 annually in roster bonuses: $125,000 each for 90 and 120 days on the active major league roster.

Soria, a 31-year-old right-hander, was 3-1 with a 2.53 ERA in 72 relief appearances with Detroit and Pittsburgh this year. He had 160 saves in 180 chances for the Royals from 2007-11.

“Coming back from the Tommy John, I thought his stuff was a little bit softer in his first couple months back. But last year, I thought he was all the way back,” Yost said. “He was the Soria that we had, and it was very impressive to sit back and watch.”

— Associated Press —

Kansas State sweeps final Big 12 weekly football honors

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riggertKansasStateMANHATTAN, Kan. – For the first time in school history, Kansas State swept the Big 12 weekly honors as wide receiver Deante Burton (offense), linebacker Charmeachealle Moore (defense) and kick returner Morgan Burns (special teams) were each named the Big 12 Player of the Week for their efforts in the Wildcats’ 24-23 win over West Virginia, the conference office announced Monday.

Burns’ honor marked the first time in Big 12 history a player has been honored in four-consecutive weeks. Prior to last week, only Texas Tech quarterback Graham Harrell (2008) and Texas running back Ricky Williams (1998) had won three-straight player of the week honors. It was the first-career honors for both Burton and Moore.

A product of Manhattan, Kansas, Burton had a career game against the Mountaineers as he carded five receptions for a career-high 135 yards and a touchdown. His touchdown went for 77 yards – the Wildcats’ longest play from scrimmage this season – in the third quarter and gave the Cats their first lead of the game at 17-13 while sparking the second-half rally. Burton, who shared the weekly conference honor with West Virginia running back Wendell Smallwood, bettered his previous career high of 65 receiving yards set earlier this year against TCU. He recorded the Wildcats’ second 100-yard receiving game this year.

Moore was all over the field against West Virginia as he set career highs in tackles (17), solo tackles (16), tackles for loss (4.0) and sacks (2.0) against the Big 12’s second-ranked rushing team. His 16 solo tackles are tied for the most nationally this season and the most by a Wildcat since at least 1999. His biggest stop came late in the game when he recorded a fourth-down tackle of WVU quarterback Skyler Howard with just over two minutes remaining and the Wildcats holding on to the one-point lead.

Burns scored the game-winning touchdown with his Big 12 record-tying fourth kickoff return score of the season. Burns returned three kickoffs for 201 yards, which included his 97-yard touchdown return in the fourth quarter. It was his fourth kickoff-return score of the year and the fifth of his career as he tied both the K-State and Big 12 records. The senior’s 201 kickoff-return yards rank second in school history for a game behind his record-setting 221 yards at Texas Tech earlier this season. Burns also blocked a West Virginia punt in the first quarter a week after recovering a blocked punt for a touchdown at Kansas.

Riding a three-game winning streak which included the comeback win over West Virginia in the regular-season finale to become bowl eligible, Kansas State will play Arkansas in the 2016 AutoZone Liberty Bowl on January 2, at Liberty Bowl Memorial Stadium in Memphis, Tennessee. The game, which will kick off at 2:20 p.m., will be shown to a national audience on ESPN. The game can also be heard across the K-State Sports Network and on ESPN Radio.

— KSU Athletics —

Three fourth-quarter interceptions fuel Chiefs’ comeback win at Oakland

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riggertChiefsOAKLAND, Calif. (AP) — Marcus Peters and Tyvon Branch made the Oakland Coliseum feel just like home.

Peters, an Oakland native who grew up attending Raiders games, set up Kansas City’s go-ahead score with an interception and former Oakland safety Tyvon Branch put the game away with an interception return for a touchdown that gave the Chiefs their sixth straight win, 34-20 on Sunday.

“It was a whole lot more than I expected,” said Peters, who gave the ball from his interception to his mother. “It was hard, man, I can’t lie, to come out there and stay focused. My nerves were up and down.

“Early in the game my emotions were everywhere so it took for coach and the other leaders on the team to just bring me back. I made some silly mistakes early, but they reeled me in.”

Peters and Branch helped key a momentum-changing fourth quarter as Kansas City (7-5) turned three interceptions by Derek Carr into three touchdowns to remain in the AFC wild-card lead.

Alex Smith threw two TD passes to Jeremy Maclin after Carr’s first two interceptions to lead the opportunistic Chiefs to another win.

“We knew we dug ourselves in a hole in the beginning of the year, but we’re been battling back every week — just working hard and believing in each other and coming out with victories,” said linebacker Josh Mauga, whose interception started the fourth-quarter barrage.

Carr became the third Raiders quarterback since the team moved back to Oakland in 1995 to throw three fourth-quarter interceptions to send the Raiders to their fourth loss in five games and likely a 13th season without a playoff berth.

“I played a lot of football in my life, won a lot of games, lost a lot of games. But today was probably one of the hardest losses I’ve been a part of in my career,” safety Charles Woodson said. “That was a tough loss.”

The game turned odd late in the third quarter after the Raiders took a 20-14 lead on a 5-yard TD pass from Carr to Lee Smith. But Sebastian Janikowski hit the upright on the extra point, ending a streak of 225 straight makes.

The Raiders then forced a punt and were driving to make it a two-score game when Carr tried to make something out of nothing and it cost him. He tried to throw the ball away to avoid a sack, but was hit on the play and the ball went right to Mauga, who rumbled 65 yards to the 2 on the return.

“The only thing in my mind was try to get as close to the goal line or even score,” Mauga said. “I was hoping I could score, but I ran out of gas.”

Maclin then scored on a 1-yard pass from Smith. But the holder Dustin Colquitt couldn’t get the snap down and the Chiefs missed the extra point, keeping the game tied at 20.

Carr then threw another interception on the next possession after Michael Crabtree tripped and Peters returned it 58 yards to the 13. Maclin then took a short pass and ran 13 yards for the go-ahead score only to have kicker Cairo Santos miss the point after attempt.

The botched kicks proved contagious as Janikowski hit the upright again on Oakland’s ensuing possession on a 49-yard field goal try.

The Raiders got another chance, but Branch scooped up a pass that deflected off Cooper’s hands and ran it back 38 yards for the score.

“I’m pretty ticked off, especially on how some of them happened,” Carr said. “I get pretty upset. Those things will happen. It just (stinks) that it happened all back to back like that.”

The Raiders took a 14-7 lead going into the half after Woodson ripped the ball away from Kelce with the Chiefs in field goal range and returned it 38 yards to the Kansas City 36. It was Woodson’s second fumble recovery of the game and set up Michael Crabtree’s 25-yard TD catch.

Game notes
Former Raiders WR Tim Brown was presented with his Hall of Fame ring at halftime. … Chiefs DL Mike DeVito left the game with a concussion. … Raiders S Nate Allen left with a knee injury.

— Associated Press —

K-State accepts invitation to play Arkansas in Liberty Bowl

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riggertKansasStateMANHATTAN, Kan. – Riding a three-game winning streak which included a comeback win over West Virginia to become bowl eligible, K-State Nation is heading to Memphis for the first time in program history as Kansas State Athletics Director John Currie announced today that the Wildcats have accepted an invitation to play Arkansas in the 2016 AutoZone Liberty Bowl on January 2.

The game, one of the most historical bowl games in all of college football that matches the Big 12 and the SEC, will be played at The Liberty Bowl Memorial Stadium at 2:20 p.m. CT, with a nationwide television audience watching on ESPN. The Wildcats’ opponent from the SEC will be announced later this afternoon.

“I am very proud of our team and coaches for their resiliency in becoming bowl eligible for the sixth-straight year,” said Currie. “With season ticket holders from 46 different states and a national fan base that features more than 250,000 friends and alumni across the country, we are excited to showcase our football program and Kansas State University in the AutoZone Liberty Bowl. I know our fans are excited to again showcase their unprecedented and tremendous support at one of our country’s most iconic destinations, while a week at one of the most tradition-rich bowl games will be a first-class experience for our football student-athletes, coaches and staff.”

The Wildcats (6-6) will be playing in their 19th bowl game in school history and 17th under Bill Snyder as the Cats are 7-9 all-time in bowls under the legendary and hall of fame head coach. Following 11 straight bowls from 1993-2003 under Snyder, the Cats have now gone bowling in each of the last six seasons and will be making the program’s first-ever appearance in the Liberty Bowl.

“On behalf of the Kansas State University family, I am very proud of Coach Snyder, our football team, coaches, staff and fans for displaying such tremendous heart and perseverance this season,” said K-State President Kirk Schulz. “We are very excited to be headed to Memphis and represent the Big 12 in the Liberty Bowl, one of the most longstanding bowls in college football.”

The Wildcats’ road to the Liberty Bowl was one of historic proportions. Sitting at 3-6 with three games remaining, K-State became just the sixth Power 5 team in the 12-game schedule era (2006) to stave off bowl elimination in at least three-straight games (2-6 or 3-6 records) to become bowl eligible. K-State also kept the Governor’s Cup trophy in Manhattan for the seventh straight season under Snyder with a 45-14 win over in-state rival Kansas.

“It is a great honor to host Kansas State University,” said Steve Ehrhart, Executive Director of the AutoZone Liberty Bowl. “In the 57-year history of the AutoZone Liberty Bowl we have never had the opportunity to host Kansas State, so we are very proud to have Hall of Fame Coach Bill Snyder and his Wildcats here in Memphis. Under the leadership of President Dr. Kirk Schulz and Athletics Director John Currie, Kansas State is one of the most respected universities in the country. We very much look forward to hosting the Wildcats and their outstanding fans.”

In addition to a Big 12-leading 25 selections to the Academic All-Big 12 team and the No. 1 football Academic Progress Rate (APR) in the Big 12, excitement in Wildcat football was also evidenced by seven sellout crowds at Bill Snyder Family Stadium this season which ran K-State’s consecutive sellout streak to 27 games.

“We are proud of the young men in our program for achieving bowl eligibility and very pleased to represent Kansas State University and the Big 12 Conference in the AutoZone Liberty Bowl,” said Snyder. “The Liberty Bowl is a first-class bowl organization with a rich history, and we appreciate Steve Ehrhart and the entire bowl staff for their efforts and support of our program.

“We have a wonderful fan base, and so many people that save up their nickels and dimes throughout the course of the year, and the only vacation they take is the one after our (regular) season is over. It doesn’t make any difference where it is; they love to go and it’s why we have such great attendance year in and year out at bowl games. They are fully invested in our program and this (becoming bowl eligible) means a great deal to them.”

K-State has faced Arkansas five times with the Wildcats holding a 3-2 record in the series, while the last meeting came in the 2012 AT&T Cotton Bowl.

The Razorbacks (7-5) finished the season with a 5-2 record in conference play and enters the bowl game with four wins in their last five games.

— KSU Athletics —

Nebraska to meet UCLA in Foster Farms Bowl

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riggertNebraskaThe University of Nebraska has been selected to participate in the 14th Foster Farms Bowl at Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara, Calif. The Huskers will take on the UCLA Bruins of the Pac-12 Conference on Saturday, Dec. 26 with kickoff at 6:15 p.m. PT.

The Foster Farms Bowl will be televised by ESPN and is played at the home of the San Francisco 49ers. In its second season of operation, Levi’s Stadium is regarded as one of the world’s finest athletic venues and will play host to Super Bowl 50 on Feb. 7, 2016.

“We are excited about the opportunity to complete our season in the Foster Farms Bowl,” Nebraska Head Coach Mike Riley said. “This has been a great group to coach throughout the season, and we look forward to another game with this team and being able to compete against a strong UCLA team in the bowl game. The bowl practices and additional game will allow us to continue to build as a program.

“I know our players, coaches and fans will enjoy the trip to the Bay Area. We look forward to an outstanding week of activities and an excellent football game.”

Riley guided his 2007 Oregon State team to the Foster Farms Bowl, then known as the Emerald Bowl, with the Beavers defeating Maryland, 21-14. Overall, Riley owns a 6-2 record in bowl games and his 75 percent winning percentage ranks among the top 10 in college football history among coaches with at least eight bowl appearances.

The trip to the Bay Area will be the Huskers’ first-ever appearance in the Foster Farms Bowl, and Nebraska’s seventh all-time bowl trip to California. The Foster Farms Bowl is Nebraska’s 52nd all-time bowl appearance, the third-most of any school in the country. Nebraska has appeared in a bowl game in 45 of the past 47 seasons.

“We are pleased that our student-athletes, coaches and staff will be participating in Nebraska’s first-ever trip to the Bay Area for a bowl game,” University of Nebraska Athletics Director Shawn Eichorst said. “The Foster Farms Bowl is one of the Big Ten’s great bowl partners and it will provide a wonderful opportunity for our student-athletes to compete in one of the finest new stadiums in the world.”

Tickets for the Foster Farms Bowl go on sale to the public at Huskers.com beginning at 7 p.m. on Sunday evening. Beginning Monday morning, tickets can also be purchased by calling the Nebraska Athletic Ticket Office at 1-800-8-BIG RED or in person at the ticket office in the Stadium Drive Parking Garage. Fans can purchase tickets by using VISA, MasterCard or Discover.

Foster Farms Bowl tickets range in price from $44 to $154, and Nebraska will receive an allotment of 7,000 tickets to the game.

Nebraska and UCLA have a storied history of outstanding matchups on the gridiron. The Foster Farms Bowl will be the 13th all-time meeting between the universities and the first in the postseason. The schools have six wins apiece in the series, meeting most recently in 2012 and 2013 in a home-and-home series.

UCLA will come into the Foster Farms Bowl with an 8-4 record, including 5-4 in the Pac-12, and the Bruins are receiving votes in both the Associated Press and USA Today Coaches polls. The Bruins climbed as high as No. 7 in the AP poll earlier this season, and defeated four teams that were ranked at game time.

Coach Jim Mora is completing his fourth season leading the UCLA program and owns a 37-15 record with the Bruins, including two 10-win seasons.

— NU Athletics —

Kansas women fall at home to St. John’s

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riggertKULAWRENCE, Kan. – Kansas women’s basketball lost its first home game of the 2015-16 season to St. John’s on Sunday, Dec. 6, inside Allen Fieldhouse. The Red Storm shot 57 percent from the field to claim the, 86-71 victory.

Kansas couldn’t slow down Aliyyah Handford of St. John’s, who put up a career-best 33 points on 16-of 25 shooting Sunday afternoon. Despite three different Jayhawks recording double-figure scoring, the Red Storm got out to an early lead and never looked back.

Kansas (4-3) had three double-figure scoring performances from its starters, with junior forward Caelynn Manning-Allen, sophomore guard Lauren Aldridge, and freshman guard Kylee Kopatich. Manning-Allen paired a career-high 15 points on 5-of-7 shooting with five rebounds and two blocks. Aldridge posted 13 points, including a perfect 4-of-4 from the free throw line, while Kopatich collected 10 points and a team-high seven rebounds.

St. John’s (6-1) was led by Handford’s 33 points, but Danaejah Grant also posted impressive numbers with 26 points on 10-of-17 shooting. Grant made two of the Red Storm’s three long-range baskets and all four of her free throw attempts. Jade Walker recorded the other double-digit scoring effort for St. John’s with 10 points, combined with a game-high eight rebounds.

Kansas converted on its first four shots, capped off with a three from Kopatich. After missing its first shot attempt, the Red Storm responded with six-straight made field goals. The Jayhawks’ 4-0 advantage less than a minute into the game was the largest lead for either team heading into the first media timeout, as both squads began the game shooting exceptional well at 75 percent.

Out of the media break, St. John’s took off on an 11-0 run, sparked by its stifling defense, which swung the momentum back in favor of the visitors. Kansas did not score again until its final possession with less than 20 seconds left in the quarter, a layup from freshman guard Jayde Christopher, which cut St. John’s lead to seven points. During the stretch, the Jayhawks only attempted three shots while the Red Storm forced four turnovers.

Redshirt junior guard Timeka O’Neal grabbed the first four points of the second quarter with a three-ball and a free throw to bring the deficit to just four points. The Red Storm answered with four unanswered points, to re-establish the seven-point lead. Christopher ended the run with Kansas’ fifth three of the afternoon, but the basket did little to slow down St. John’s attack, which went on an 8-0 run in less than two minutes of game time to push its lead to double digits, 36-24. The two teams traded points for the remainder of the half, but St. John’s superior shooting pushed the lead to 46-31 heading to the break.

The Red Storm concluded the half making nine of its last 12 shots, while the Jayhawks converted only three of their final 12 attempts. St. John’s made a living inside, scoring 32 of its 46 points in the paint. The Jayhawks’ 11 first half turnovers resulted in 16 points for the Red Storm, while Kansas did not score any points off of turnovers in the opening 20 minutes.

The hot-shooting Red Storm continued into the second half. St. John’s made six of its first nine shots, including its first long-range basket as its lead extended to 20 points at the 5:38 mark of the third quarter. St. John’s maintained its lead until Kansas began to chip away late in the quarter. An 8-0 run was capped off at the 2:20 mark with a three-point play from Manning-Allen cut the deficit to 13 points.

After not scoring in the first half, Manning-Allen recorded 11 third quarter points to help the Jayhawks fight their way back into Sunday’s contest. With ten minutes of game time remaining, St. John’s led 69-55

St. John’s cooled off to start the fourth quarter, making only one of its first five shots. However, the Jayhawks shot the same 20 percent over their first five attempts, and the Red Storm led 73-58 at the final media timeout. Kansas refused to quit, as Manning-Allen continued to fight underneath the basket and get to the line. Two made free throws from the starting forward late in the game set a new career-high with 15 points.

Handford and the Red Storm would not let Manning-Allen’s career performance put a considerable dent in their lead. Kansas finished the game on 4-of-5 shooting, but St. John’s converted on its final four attempts. At the final buzzer, St. John’s won by a score of 86-71 to hand the Jayhawks their first home loss of the 2015-16 season.

— KU Athletics —

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