No. 5 Kansas routs Omaha, Big 12 next
LAWRENCE, KAN. » Ochai Agbaji scored 18 points and fifth-ranked Kansas beat Omaha 95-50 on Friday night in the Jayhawks’ final tune-up before beginning Big 12 play.
Mitch Lightfoot had a career-best 14 points, David McCormack had 11 points and 11 rebounds, and Tyon Grant- Foster added 13 points to help the Jayhawks (6-1) cruised to their 12th consecutive win at Allen Fieldhouse.
They largely cruised from the opening minute, unlike their last time out, when coach Bill Self’s crew needed Creighton’s best player to miss a free throw in the final seconds to avoid going to overtime with the No. 8 Bluejays. NO. 3 IOWA 105, IOWA STATE 77 » Luka Garza surged in the second half and finished the game with 34 points in just 17 minutes, lifting No. 3 Iowa over Iowa State.
Garza missed nearly 11 minutes in the first half after picking up his second foul, but he responded with 25 points in the second half. He was 13 of 14 from the field — including 10 of 10 after halftime — and knocked down four straight 3-pointers.
NO. 8 CREIGHTON 98, NEBRASKA 74 » Marcus Zegarowski scored 22 points, Denzel Mahoney had 20 and Creighton used a big run in the second half to pull away and beat Nebraska.
The Bluejays (4- 1) weren’t sharp early but went on a powerful dunkand 3-pointer-filled 30-7 surge to bounce back from their one-point loss at No. 5 Kansas on Tuesday.
Creighton has won eight of nine against the Cornhuskers (3-3) and leads the series 28-26. The Bluejays have won 13 straight regularseason home games against their in-state rival since losing in Omaha in 1995.
NO. 9 VILLANOVA 76, GEORGETOWN 63 » Collin Gillespie and Caleb Daniels each hit five 3-pointers and scored 18 points to lead Villanova past Georgetown in the Big East opener for both teams.
The Wildcats (5-1) trailed by 18 early in the first half at Georgetown’s empty oncampus gym — a surprising deficit considering Villanova was a 11 ½-point road favorite.
NO. 11 WEST VIRGINIA 62, NORTH TEXAS 50 » Sean McNeil scored 15 points and West Virginia rallied in the second half to beat North Texas.