NEW YORK (AP) — Dedric Lawson had a double-double with 26 points and 12 rebounds to lead No. 2 Kansas to a 77-68 win over Marquette in the second semifinal of the NIT Season Tip-Off on Wednesday night.

Marquette (3-1) led by as many as 12 in the first half before taking a 47-38 lead into the break. Then came the Jayhawks 22-0 run.

Marquette went 0-of-10 from the field to start second half as Kansas (4-0) retook the lead in commanding fashion. The Golden Eagles finally scored a basket nine minutes into the second half on Joey Hauser’s 3-pointer to make it 60-50. His brother, Sam Hauser, led the Golden Eagles with 20 points while Markus Howard had 18 points.

The Jayhawks got 16 points from Legerald Vick while Devon Dotson chipped in with 10 points, four assists and three steals.

Kansas will face No. 5 Tennessee in the final on Friday night, while Marquette will play Louisville in the consolation game.

— Associated Press —

IRVING, Texas – Kansas senior Lagerald Vick posted back-to-back 30-point efforts as he has been named the Big 12 Player of the Week in a vote by a media panel which covers the league, the conference announced Monday. This is the second-straight week Kansas has taken home the Big 12 Player of the Week accolade as redshirt junior forward Dedric Lawson was last week’s honoree.

Vick opened the week scoring a then-career-high 32 points in Kansas 84-68 win against Vermont on Nov. 12. In the game, the Memphis, Tennessee, guard broke the Big 12 and Kansas record for most 3-point field goals made without a miss by going 8-for-8 from beyond the arc. Vick’s 8-for-8 effort was two shy of the NCAA record and his eight treys tied for the second most made in Kansas history.

In Kansas, 89-76 win against Louisiana on Nov. 16, Vick scored 33 points, surpassing his career high set earlier in the week. Once again Vick was sharp shooting from 3-point range, making 7-of-12 from beyond the arc. KU’s lone senior just missed a double-double against the Ragin’ Cajuns as he pulled down nine rebounds in the win.

For the week, Vick averaged 32.5 points and shot 23-for-32 (71.8 percent) from the field, 15-for-20 (75.0 percent) from 3-point range and averaged 6.0 rebounds. Vick’s 15 3-pointers in the two contests set a Kansas record for most 3-pointers made in consecutive games.

No. 2 Kansas (3-0) will take on Marquette (3-1) on Wednesday, Nov. 21, in the NIT Season Tip-Off at Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York. The contest will start at 6 p.m.

— KU Athletics —

LAWRENCE, Kan. – For the fourth time in 10 weeks Kansas freshman running back Pooka Williams Jr., was honored by the Big 12 Conference with its weekly football awards as he was tabbed Newcomer of the Week by the league office on Monday.

Williams shined in Kansas’ game at No. 6/6 Oklahoma as he produced 312 all-purpose yards for the Jayhawks. Williams set a new Kansas single-game freshman rushing record with 252 yards and two touchdowns on 15 carries. His 16.8 yards per carry was the third-best output in a single game in Big 12 history. Williams picked up 42 yards on kickoff returns and 18 receiving yards, in addition to his 252 yards rushing. He also tossed his first touchdown pass, connecting on a nine-yard score with wide receiver Jeremiah Booker.

With his 252 yards on the ground against the Sooners, Williams became KU’s first player to produce a 1,000 yard rushing season since James Sims in 2013. He currently has 1,022 yards rushing, which also ranks second in the Big 12 in 2018. Williams leads the conference in all-purpose yards at 154.50, which ranks fifth in the FBS.

Williams and the Jayhawks are set to host Texas for Senior Day on Friday, Nov. 23. The game will kick off at 11 a.m.

— KU Athletics —

University of Kansas Athletics

LAWRENCE, Kan. – Les Miles, a national championship-winning former coach at Louisiana State and Oklahoma State, has been named the new head football coach at the University of Kansas, Kansas Athletics Director Jeff Long announced Sunday.

With Miles’ hiring, Kansas becomes the only university in the country that can boast a current men’s basketball coach with an NCAA Division I Championship and a football coach with an FBS Championship.

Miles will receive a five-year contract that will pay him $2,775,000 annually, with additional retention bonuses due in Nov. 2020 and Nov. 2022.

“Since the beginning of our search, we focused on identifying and recruiting an experienced head coach with a strong track record of success on and off the field,” Long said.  “Les Miles is exactly what we need for our program right now.  His national reputation as a great recruiter and as a coach who student-athletes love playing for will enable us to break the cycle and return a winning tradition to the Kansas Jayhawks.  We are thrilled to have Les and his family as Jayhawks.”

Miles brings to Lawrence 142 victories, a BCS national championship and two SEC titles in 15-plus seasons as a head coach, the most career wins of anyone who has coached football at Kansas in the modern era.

Most recently, Miles served as the head coach at LSU (2005-16), where his teams averaged 10 wins per year in his 11 full seasons.  He led LSU to bowl games in each of those 11 seasons (winning seven), and won 42 games against Top-25 teams and 16 over Top-10 teams.  Miles’ teams won 10 or more games seven times, reached the SEC title game three times (winning twice) and led LSU to five Top-10 and three Top-5 finishes.

“I am humbled by the opportunity to lead the KU football program and I am grateful to Chancellor Girod and Jeff Long for the opportunity,” said Miles.  “We will bring Jayhawk Football back and we will do it with outstanding coaches, tremendous student-athletes of character and ability and an unrelenting drive for excellence.  My family and I cannot wait to be a part of the KU family!”

During his tenure at LSU, Miles coached an SEC-leading 69 NFL draft picks, 13 of them first-round selections. He coached 22 first-team All-Americans and 11 players who won national awards. He is the second-winningest coach in LSU history in overall wins (112) and SEC regular-season wins (63).

In the classroom, more than 240 players earned degrees under Miles and during his tenure, LSU Football’s graduation rate ranked as high as No. 2 in the SEC multiple times.  As part of LSU’s Project Graduation established in 2010, more than 30 players who had left school without a degree returned to earn their college diploma before Miles left in 2016.  Nearly 190 LSU players were named to the SEC Academic Honor Roll during Miles’ time there.

“I want to thank Jeff Long for his outstanding work and leadership of our Athletics’ program. I also want to thank the student-athletes in our football program for the mature way in which they have handled this challenging circumstance. I have no doubt that Coach Miles will have an immediate impact on our football program, and on our university,” Chancellor Girod said.  “Together as Jayhawks, we will rebuild our football program the right way, winning championships and continuing to graduate young men of character.  Today is an exciting day for the KU Family.”

Miles went to LSU after a four-year tenure as head coach at Oklahoma State. The OSU program he took over in 2001 had registered only one winning season since 1988. The Cowboys went 4-7 his first year, then had three-straight winning seasons (8-5, 9-4, 7-5). He led OSU to three-straight bowl games, a first for the program since 1983-85.

Miles’ four-year winning percentage of 57 percent is the best career winning percentage for an OSU coach since 1949. OSU was the only team in the nation to beat Oklahoma twice during Miles’ four-year tenure there.

Prior to OSU, Miles spent three years as tight-ends coach with the Dallas Cowboys (one divisional title, two playoff appearances).  He went to Dallas after serving as offensive coordinator at OSU for three seasons (8-3, Alamo Bowl berth in 1997).

Miles served two stints (total of 10 seasons) as an assistant coach at Michigan, several of them under legendary head coach Bo Schembechler. During Miles’ second tenure there, from 1987-94, Michigan won 71 games, made eight-straight bowl appearances, including four Rose Bowls, and finished no lower than No. 21 in the final Associate Press national rankings.

Between tenures at Michigan, Miles spent four seasons as an assistant coach at the University of Colorado.

Miles graduated from Michigan in 1976 with a degree in economics. He was a two-year football letterman, playing on two Big Ten championship teams.  He earned all-state honors in football at Elyria High School in Ohio, where he also earned letters in baseball and wrestling.

Miles’ wife, Kathy, was a point guard at Central Michigan University and later an assistant basketball coach at Michigan. They have two daughters, Kathryn (nickname “Smacker”), a former swimmer at Texas and currently a TV sports personality who hosts Les’ podcast), and Macy, a youth softball pitching standout. They also have two sons, Manny, a quarterback at North Carolina, and Ben, who won a high-school football state title in 2015 and is currently a fullback at Texas A&M.

NORMAN, Okla. (AP) — Kyler Murray lifted Oklahoma — and boosted his Heisman Trophy campaign — with a big finish.

The sixth-ranked Sooners used every bit of offense from Murray to overshadow a huge game from Kansas freshman running back Pooka Williams Jr. in Oklahoma’s 55-40 victory Saturday night

Murray accounted for two of his five touchdowns in the fourth quarter.

“He’s a special player,” Kansas coach David Beaty said. “That Heisman needs to go to him.”

Oklahoma (10-1, 7-1 Big 12, No. 6 CFP) moved closer to a spot in the conference championship game in Murray’s likely final home game. The Sooners earn a trip to the Big 12 title game for the second straight year by beating West Virginia on the road on Black Friday or if Kansas beats Texas.

That came just days after Oklahoma began a campaign for the baseball first-round draft pick centered around a classic image of Bo Jackson in shoulder pads while holding a baseball bat.

“I don’t know whose idea it was, but I felt good about it,” Murray said. “It was fun. It was a once-in-a-lifetime deal.”

But Murray was nearly outperformed by Williams.

Williams rushed for a career-high 252 yards and two touchdowns and threw for a score for Kansas (3-8, 1-7). The Jayhawks have lost seven of the past eight games.

Murray sealed the game with a breakaway 75-yard touchdown run with 13:44 remaining, sparking a 20-point fourth quarter. He added another touchdown in the quarter and finished with 272 yards passing and two touchdowns. He rushed for 99 yards and three touchdowns.

It was the second time Murray had appeared to establish control for the Sooners.

Oklahoma led 21-17 early in the third quarter when Murray broke free for an 11-yard touchdown run. Backup running back Kennedy Brooks, filling in for injured Trey Sermon, followed with a 13-yard score to cap a night he rushed for 171 yards and two touchdowns.

“He did a great job,” Murray said. “I’m sure he’ll continue to run well.”

But Oklahoma’s defense continued to struggle. The Sooners allowed 524 total offensive yards, and Kansas found a way to remain in the game.

“Defensively, we didn’t tackle at all, really the whole night” Oklahoma coach Lincoln Riley said. “That’s the whole story.”

Oklahoma took a 48-24 lead with 12:05 remaining when Kyle Thompson blocked a punt and Curtis Bolton scooped and scored and appeared to be in control.

But Williams answered with a 42-yard touchdown run and Kansas converted the two-point conversion.

Murray responded with an 11-yard touchdown pass to Grant Calcaterra. Kansas would answer with a 25-yard touchdown run by Khalil Herbert on the play following a 25-yard run by Williams.

“I still feel like we can be what we need to be,” Riley said. “Obviously, we didn’t take the step this week that we needed to take. We felt like we had defended the run well all year. We put a lot of emphasis on our pass coverage, which we thought was better.

“We sprung some new leaks.”

Oklahoma still has Murray. At the moment, that’s enough.

DEFENSIVE VIBE

Even with struggles, Riley still believes the Sooners can perform when it counts on defense.

But they still allowed 40 points to a Kansas team that had combined for just 39 points in the previous five meetings combined between the two teams.

“This isn’t the NFL,” Riley said. “We’re not going to sign some guys off waivers.

“These moments, especially this one we’re getting ready to go into, we can’t sit here and feel sorry for ourselves.”

THE TAKEAWAY

Kansas: With David Beaty nearing his final week as coach, the Jayhawks have something to build from offensively. Outside of Williams’ night, Peyton Bender completed 16 of 23 passes for 145 yards and the Jayhawks rushed for 348 yards.

Oklahoma: The Sooners’ embattled defense did itself no favors. It entered the game allowing 416 yards per game, a total Kansas eclipsed in the fourth quarter.

UP NEXT

Kansas: The Jayhawks host No. 13 Texas next week in their season finale.

Oklahoma: The Sooners have never lost to West Virginia since the Mountaineers joined the Big 12 in 2012.

— Associated Press —

LAWRENCE, Kan. (AP) — Lagerald Vick had declared for the NBA draft and Kansas had moved on without him, recruiting a trio of backcourt players to take his place and planning for the upcoming season.

Then Vick changed his mind and returned for his senior year.

Good thing for the Jayhawks.

Vick hit seven 3-pointers and had a career-high 33 points Friday night, following up his 32-point outburst against Vermont earlier in the week, and second-ranked Kansas needed just about every bit of his hot shooting to finally turn away Louisiana-Lafayette in an 89-76 victory.

“I guess they’re glad he stayed,” Ragin’ Cajuns coach Bob Marlin said.

Vick also had nine rebounds for the Jayhawks (3-0), while big men Dedric Lawson and Udoka Azubuike came alive down the stretch. Lawson had 19 points in a strong bounce-back from his scoreless dud against the Catamounts, and Azubuike finished with 17 points, eight boards and four blocks.

“We’re just going to keep feeding the hot hand until it runs out,” said Lawson, who made a shot from his backside early in the game. “(Vick) and Udoka, they’ve both been playing well.”

Justin Miller scored all 22 of his points in the first half to lead four players in double figures for Louisiana-Lafayette (1-2), which has only beaten one top-five team in school history. JaKeenan Gant added 18 points, Malik Marquetti scored 14 and Cedric Russell finished with 10.

“They said it happened five times — I’m not sure if it was five but it felt like 10 — where we had transition numbers and missed it and they shot a 3 at the other end and made it,” Kansas coach Bill Self said. “If it happened five times, that’s a 25-point difference in a span of 10 seconds of what it might have been. We have to eliminate that.”

Indeed, Miller and the Ragin’ Cajuns had the Jayhawks on the ropes most of the way.

Taking advantage of Kansas’ slow start, Louisiana-Lafayette ripped off an early 15-2 run that was capped by a five-point trip down the floor. Gant knocked down a 3-pointer, Self lit into an official to earn a technical foul, and Marcus Stroman hit both the free throws to give the reigning regular-season Sun Belt champs a 32-20 lead with about 10 minutes left in the first half.

The Jayhawks finally woke up with a 10-0 run of their own. Then, after Miller hit his fourth 3 of the half, Kansas went on another brief run to take a 44-41 lead into the break.

It was a two-man show at that point: Miller had scored all his points while Vick had 18.

Miller cooled down in the second half but the Ragin’ Cajuns refused to go away, even when foul trouble set in. The Jayhawks were clinging to a 65-64 lead with 8:40 to go when they started to pound the ball inside, taking advantage of their size for the first time all game.

Lawson and Azubuike combined to score 16 straight before Vick, who was 8 for 8 from beyond the arc against the Catamounts, poured in his final 3-pointer to give himself a new career high.

“Just having a whole lot of energy,” Vick said. “My teammates are finding me for open shots and really just going out there and having fun. Just leaving it all out there.”

PROFESSIONAL FANS

Kansas City Chiefs linebackers Anthony Hitchens, Reggie Ragland and Ben Niemann were in the crowd ahead of their showdown with the Rams on Monday night in Los Angeles. Sporting Kansas City captain Matt Besler also was in attendance before heading to Portland for the MLS Western Conference finals Sunday.

LES-LESS PHOG

There was a buzz all afternoon that Kansas was close to hiring Les Miles to replace fired football coach David Beaty, but no announcement came and the former Oklahoma State and LSU coach was not at Allen Fieldhouse. The Jayhawks visit Oklahoma in their penultimate game of the season Saturday.

BIG PICTURE

Louisiana-Lafayette: After back-to-back games against top-10 teams, the Ragin’ Cajuns should be favored in most of their games the rest of the way. The Cayman Islands Classic is up next.

Kansas: There was plenty of laboring in back-to-back home wins over mid-majors. Perhaps a trip to New York for the NIT Season Tip-Off will help the Jayhawks find the intensity they had when they nearly led wire-to-wire in beating Michigan State to open the season.

UP NEXT

Louisiana-Lafayette plays Colorado State on Monday in Estero, Florida.

Kansas plays No. 24 Marquette on Wednesday night in New York.

— Associated Press —

LAWRENCE, Kan. – Combo guards Issac “Mackey” McBride and Christian Braun have each signed a National Letter of Intent to play men’s basketball at the University of Kansas, KU head coach Bill Self announced Wednesday, the first day of the signing period.

A 6-foot-1, 180-pound guard from Little Rock, Arkansas, McBride has rewritten the record book at Baptist Preparatory School. In guiding Baptist Prep to three straight state championships, McBride set the school’s single-season scoring record with 707 points his sophomore year in 2016-17. As a junior, he broke his own mark by scoring 883 points in 2017-18, which included a school-record 46-point game. In that, McBride averaged 24.5 points, 4.0 rebounds, 2.5 assists and 1.6 steals per game in 2017-18.

“Issac, who we all call Mackey, can play point but he’s a combo guard who can score,” Self said. “When you watch him, you are so impressed with his range, quickness and explosiveness and his ability to elevate on his shot. We see him as a guy that can come in and obviously give us depth on perimeter shooting. He is a guy that can just score the ball. We haven’t had too many here like that, a natural scorer. He’s a combo guard that can jump up and make a shot wherever he is on the court.”

McBride is a two-time all-state selection and was the most valuable player of the last two state tournaments his sophomore and junior seasons. A four-star recruit who is ranked 109 by Rivals.com, McBride is the highest ranked player in the state of Arkansas. He plays AAU basketball for the Arkansas Hawks.

“We saw him play in Las Vegas this summer with his AAU team. It was the first time we had ever seen him play,” Self said. “He played against a team with two top-five players in their respective class and he dominated the game. We watched him a few more times at that event and offered him right after that event, after seeing him play about five times.”

Originally from Burlington, Kansas, Braun (6-foot-6, 180 pounds) moved to Overland Park, Kansas, his freshman year high school and has won back-to-back 6A state championships his sophomore and junior seasons at Blue Valley Northwest High School. A four-star prospect who is ranked No. 112 by Rivals.com, last year Braun averaged 14.2 points, 5.1 rebounds and 3.1 assists as a junior at Blue Valley Northwest. Braun plays for MoKan on the AAU circuit.

“Christian is a player that we have followed watching him play through his AAU team, MoKan, but also through his highly successful career at Blue Valley Northwest,” Self said. “We have been aware of him for a long time but this summer is when he really intrigued us. He’s a player that has great size and great range. He’s an athlete that can make plays above the rim and with his versatility, we feel like he’s a perfect fit for what we are trying to do.”

Braun comes from a basketball family. His father, Donald, was a walk-on at Kansas and his mother, Lisa, was a three-time All-Big Eight Conference honoree at Missouri where she played from 1987-91. His uncle, Mike Sandbothe, was a standout at Missouri from 1986-89, as was his aunt Lori from 1988-90. Additionally, his older brother, Parker, is a currently a freshman forward at MU.

“Christian comes from an athletic family,” Self said. “His father was a walk-on player here. His mother was a terrific player at Missouri and his uncle Mike Sandbothe is a guy all KU fans remember from back in the late 1980s. We’re excited to have him here and certainly he’ll be a guy that will make us better in multiple ways due to his versatility.”

“It will certainly be a transition for both of these guys stepping into the college game, but we anticipate them both to be guys that can contribute immediately,” Self added.

Kansas Men’s Basketball Signees (11.14.18)
Christian Braun – G, 6-6, 180, Burlington, Kan. (Blue Valley Northwest HS)
Issac McBride – G, 6-1, 180, Little Rock, Ark. (Baptist Preparatory School)

— KU Athletics —

LAWRENCE, Kan. (AP) — Lagerald Vick was 8 of 8 from beyond the 3-point arc and scored a career-high 32 points, Udoka Azubuike added 23 points and 10 rebounds, and second-ranked Kansas slogged its way to an 84-68 victory over Vermont on Monday night.

The Jayhawks (2-0) were jumped by Duke for the top spot in the AP poll earlier in the day, even though they beat then-No. 10 Michigan State in the Champions Classic last week. And for most of their game against the Catamounts (1-1), they did little to prove the voters wrong.

Kansas led just 40-36 at halftime before two big runs allowed coach Bill Self to breathe easy.

Anthony Lamb had 24 points, Ernie Duncan added 17 and Stef Smith scored 13 for the Catamounts, who have lost nine straight to ranked teams dating to a win over Boston College in 2006.

The Catamounts looked as if that streak might end when they went on an early 18-4 run, hitting a series of quick 3-pointers while double-teaming Azubuike on defense whenever he got the ball.

The Jayhawks’ 7-footer still muscled his way to 12 first-half points.

But while the Catamounts sent waves of bodies at Azubuike inside, and made fellow Kansas forward Dedric Lawson a non-factor, they didn’t account for Vick on the perimeter.

After struggling mightily in the Jayhawks’ season-opening win over the Spartans, Vick poured in four first-half 3s and piled up 16 points. Most of them came while the Jayhawks struggled to run offense through their two freshman guards, Devon Dotson and Quentin Grimes.

Eventually, the Jayhawks’ depth and talent wore down Vermont.

It was 44-40 before Azubuike added another of his rim-rattling dunks and then scored on a putback. Vick followed a jumper with his sixth 3-pointer and added his seventh a couple of minutes later as the Jayhawks’ lead swelled to 61-45 midway through the second half.

Vermont went on one last run to get its deficit under 10, but Azubuike added two more baskets and Vick curled in his eighth 3-pointer. That matched Mario Chalmers for the most in the Self era at Kansas and left Vick trailing only Terry Brown, who hit 11 in a game in 1991.

Vick finished 12 of 14 from the field in helping Kansas win its 46th straight home opener.

BIG PICTURE

Vermont: The favorites to win America East did nothing to diminish their outlook, standing toe-to-toe with the reigning Big 12 champs for nearly 30 minutes. In a league where they should match up better physically, keep an eye on Vermont to roll toward another NCAA Tournament appearance.

Kansas: Lawson followed his excellent debut against the Spartans, when he had 20 points and 14 boards, with a dud at the Phog. The transfer from Memphis and the Big 12’s preseason player of the year was held scoreless on 0-for-6 shooting.

UP NEXT

Vermont plays its home opener against Northern Vermont-Lyndon on Wednesday night.

Kansas plays Louisiana on Friday night before heading to New York for the NIT semifinals.

— Associated Press —

IRVING, Texas – The Kansas duo of Dedric Lawson and Quentin Grimes swept the first Big 12 weekly honors of the 2018-19 season, the conference office announced Monday. Lawson is the Big 12 Player of the Week, while Grimes is the Big 12 Newcomer of the Week in a vote by a media panel which covers the conference.

In No. 1 Kansas’ 92-87 win against No. 10 Michigan State in the State Farm Champions Classic, Nov. 6, Lawson recorded a double-double with 20 points and 14 rebounds. The 6-foot-9, Memphis, Tennessee, forward also led KU with six assists in the win. The double-double was Lawson’s 37th career as he had 36 in two years while at Memphis before transferring to Kansas following the 2016-17 season. Lawson became just the fifth Jayhawk since the 1988-89 season to record a double-double in his KU debut and the first since current sophomore Marcus Garrett had 10 points and 10 rebounds versus Tennessee State last year. The Preseason Big 12 Newcomer of the Year, Lawson is on most every preseason national player of the year watch lists for 2018-19.

In his collegiate debut, Grimes led all scorers with 21 points in the win versus Michigan State, which was played at Bankers Life Fieldhouse in Indianapolis. The Woodlands, Texas, guard was 7-for-14 from the field, including 6-for-10 from 3-point range and had four assists. The 6-foot-5 Grimes’ six 3-pointers were the most in a KU debut as the 3-point shot was instituted for the 1986-87 season. Grimes is the Preseason Big 12 Freshman of the Year and has been listed on the Naismith Trophy and Wooden Award preseason watch lists for 2018-19.

Historically, Kansas has won the more Big 12 weekly honors than any other school with 120 in the 22-year history of the conference. Lawson is the Kansas’ Big 12 Player of the Week for the 72nd time, while Grimes is KU’s Big 12 Newcomer/Rookie of the Week for the 48th time. Iowa State and Texas are tied for second on the combined most named for Big 12 weekly honors at 95.

No. 2 Kansas (1-0) will host Vermont (1-0) in a campus round game of the NIT Season Tip Off, Monday, Nov. 12, at 8 p.m.

— KU Athletics —