LAWRENCE, Kan. (AP) — Fifth-ranked Kansas will be without center Udoka Azubuike for the remainder of the season after an MRI exam Sunday revealed the 7-footer tore ligaments in his right hand during practice.

Jayhawks coach Bill Self said in a statement that X-rays taken after Friday’s practice did not show the severity of the injury. The MRI exam revealed the tendon tear, which is similar to a torn tendon Azubuike had in his opposite hand in December 2016 that sidelined him the remainder of his freshman season.

“The surgery date will be set early this week,” Self said. “The doctors expect a complete recovery and Udoka will be able to resume full basketball activities at some point this summer.”

The injury is a significant blow to the Jayhawks’ interior depth, not to mention their national title aspirations. The nation’s preseason No. 1 already has been playing without sophomore forward Silvio De Sousa, whose eligibility remains in question after his name surfaced in the FBI probe into apparel company adidas.

Self said recently that there has been no change in De Sousa’s status.

The Jayhawks (12-2, 1-1) lost 77-60 to Iowa State on Saturday in their first game without their bruising center from Nigeria. But that was a byproduct of 24 turnovers and some patchy work on defense rather than any issues in the paint, where Kansas had a dominant plus-15 advantage on the boards.

“We’ve been living on the razor’s edge a lot,” Self said. “Granted, we don’t have a lot of where we can go to guarantee us having a great possession. We really don’t have good ball-handlers right now.”

Azubuike had been rounding into the sure thing before his injury.

After missing time earlier this season with a sprained ankle, he had been on a tear the past couple of games. He had 23 points and nine boards in a blowout of Eastern Michigan, then had eight points and nine more rebounds in a comfortable win over No. 23 Oklahoma to begin defense of the Jayhawks’ Big 12 title.

The only other true center on the Kansas roster is relatively raw freshman David McCormack, which means Self could be forced to use smaller lineups again. He prefers to run with two big men but has leaned on four-guard lineups the past couple of seasons because of the configuration of his roster.

The starting lineup Self used Saturday featured Dedric Lawson in the post, with Marcus Garrett joining starters Lagerald Vick, Quentin Grimes and Devon Dotson in a four-guard backcourt.

Whether that sticks when Kansas returns to the floor against TCU on Wednesday night remains to be seen.

“We’ve got a lot of stuff we’ve got to hammer out,” Self said, “and hopefully we can do it relatively soon. …. There’s no question, eventually you’re going to play like you practice. So certainly, we’ve got to be better in practice, I think, and that will probably translate to better performances in the games.”

— Associated Press —

AMES, Iowa (AP) — Iowa State served notice that it’s a Big 12 contender again after an ugly rebuild last season.

Marial Shayok scored 24 points, and the streaking Cyclones routed No. 5 Kansas 77-60 on Saturday for their most lopsided victory over the Jayhawks in 46 years.

Freshman Tyrese Haliburton made four 3-pointers and scored 14 points for Iowa State (12-2, 2-0), which opened Big 12 play with back-to-back wins for the first time since 2015. It was the Cyclones’ fifth consecutive victory overall.

Kansas (12-2, 1-1) committed a season-high 24 turnovers in its worst loss to Iowa State since an 89-65 blowout in Lawrence in 1973.

“They’re the standard in our league and the team we’re all trying to catch,” Cyclones coach Steve Prohm said. “It’s a great win. I loved the way they competed.”

Despite getting outrebounded 41-26, Iowa State — now one shy of matching its win total from a dismal 13-18 campaign a year ago — made surprisingly easy work of Kansas in part by shooting 9 of 13 on 3s in the second half.

“We were awful. But they were good,” Kansas coach Bill Self said. “They manhandled us.”

The Cyclones opened their first double-digit lead when Haliburton made a corner 3-pointer with 9:59 to go. Lagerald Vick answered with a hasty 3-point try that bounced off the bottom of the backboard, and Lindell Wigginton connected from long range to make it 60-47 and force Self to burn his third timeout in 11 minutes.

Shayok’s 3 with just under seven minutes to go made it 65-49, and the rout was on.

“We came out playing careless,” said Kansas star Dedric Lawson, who had 13 points and 12 rebounds, but committed six turnovers. “I played terrible. … I didn’t get guys open shots. A lot of this falls back on me.”

Quentin Grimes scored 19 points for Kansas, including 14 straight for the Jayhawks in one stretch.

Kansas played without big man Udoka Azubuike, who was hit on the right wrist during Friday’s practice. Self said about an hour before tip-off that X-rays on Azubuike’s wrist were negative, but he was in too much pain to play.

Azubuike, who is averaging 13.4 points and 6.8 rebounds a game, is scheduled for an MRI on Sunday. Azubuike needed surgery to repair torn ligaments in his left wrist in 2017.

“It could be a one-game deal or it could be a season-ending deal. But there’s no indication that it’ll be the latter,” Self said.

THE BIG PICTURE

Kansas: Losing at Hilton Coliseum isn’t anything to be embarrassed about; the Cyclones are 5-2 against top-10 teams at home under Prohm, and Iowa State was actually a one-point favorite. But the Jayhawks were an absolute mess for stretches on offense — and they wasted a plus-15 effort on the boards without Azubuike. “We were just trying to play a little bit too fast,” Grimes said.

Iowa State: The Cyclones finally showed how much potential they have when they’re healthy. There’s little doubt that the rest of the Big 12 took notice of this result, because Iowa State has enough talent to do some serious damage in the league this winter.

THE NUMBERS

Kansas had just 12 assists on 24 baskets. Iowa State also had 13 steals, with Vick (seven) leading the way in turnovers. …Haliburton has begun his Big 12 career by shooting 8 of 11 from beyond the arc. … The Jayhawks opened play with a staggering 20-4 edge on the glass. But they still trailed by four at halftime, a sign of things to come. …Wigginton, coming off the bench for the third straight game, was just 2-of-11 shooting.

POLL IMPLICATIONS

Kansas, which has wins over Michigan State and Tennessee to its credit, likely won’t fall too far. The Jayhawks almost certainly will be joined in Monday’s poll by the Cyclones.

UP NEXT

Kansas hosts TCU on Wednesday.

Iowa State plays at Baylor on Tuesday.

— Associated Press —