Kansas beats Canada 91-83 in exhibition game

In the moments after the third quarter buzzer, an audible cheer began to filter through the Sprint Center crowd on Tuesday night. Kansas senior Jamari Traylor had just drained a clock-beating jumper, giving an assist to guard Frank Mason in the process, and the Jayhawks had notched a six-point lead over Team Canada.

Nothing about this sequence made much sense — well, at least on a June night in Kansas City — but the cheer that followed during the media timeout was just as incongruous.

“USA! USA!”

This was the Jayhawks’ first taste of exhibition basketball as they prepare to represent the United States at the World University Games in early July. By night’s end, Mason had put on a summer show, finishing with 28 points, six rebounds and five assists as Kansas outlasted Team Canada 91-83 in front of an estimated crowd of close to 8,000 Kansas fans.

“Frank,” Kansas coach Bill Self said, “he ran the show. It’s probably as good as Frank has played since he’s been at Kansas.”

Mason poured in 24 points in the second half and 16 in a decisive fourth-quarter performance, hitting eight of 10 shots after the intermission. (Yes, quarters, in accordance with FIBA rules.)

“I thought he was fantastic,” Canada coach Barnaby Craddock said of Mason. “It was a challenge for us. We struggled to guard him.”

Senior forward Perry Ellis added 17 points and eight rebounds in his first game action since the Jayhawks’ season-ending loss to Wichita State in the NCAA Tournament. KU will now have five more days — and one more exhibition game against Canada — before it departs for South Korea on Sunday, which means there is time to work out some kinks.

Kansas unveiled a USA roster that didn’t include Svi Mykhailiuk (Ukraine), Cheick Diallo (Mali) or Devonte’ Graham and Brannen Greene (injuries). But did feature reinforcements in the form of SMU guard Nic Moore (nine points) and Florida Gulf Coast’s Julian DeBose (two points). Freshman forward Carlton Bragg had four points in his unofficial KU debut, while freshman wing Lagerald Vick had four points in 15 minutes.

“We’re playing without probably four of our top eight or nine,” Self said. “You don’t have Devonte’, Greene or Svi, so you don’t have your shooting team. And Cheick obviously is a different maker who will have a great chance to start at the pivot for us.”

Team Canada had spent the previous four days working out in Lawrence. On Tuesday, the Canadians arrived at the Sprint Center with a roster filled with standouts from the Canadian equivalent of the NCAA — and the matchup was tight throughout.

“I was really hoping I could play everybody about 20 minutes, but they were actually better than what I thought they would be,” Self said. “When their roster showed up, and I didn’t see (Melvin) Ejim on it or (Brady) Heslip or some other Canadian kids, I’m thinking, ‘Who are these guys?’ But they’re the best players from their respective universities.”

The Jayhawks appeared to seize control midway through the third quarter. Bragg drained a short jumper that gave Kansas a 52-51 lead. And moments later, Mason poured in five straight points — including a three-point play in transition — as the Jayhawks pushed the lead to 57-51.

But Canada fought back, retaking the lead once more before Mason’s final push. For much of the night, it felt like an exhibition. In the final minutes, as Sprint Center came to life, it felt something like a midseason battle.

For a three-minute stretch in first quarter, Kansas’ lineup consisted of Moore, DeBose, Bragg, Vick and Traylor. No, it was not a vintage KU five, but Self promised to balance playing time during this week’s two exhibitions — and the ensuing trip to South Korea.

On Tuesday, that meant walk-on guards Tyler Self and Evan Manning coming off the bench for minutes in the second quarter. The Jayhawks trailed 25-21 after one quarter — according to FIBA rules, Kansas will play games with four 10-minute quarters in Korea — and Canada stretched it lead to 35-25 midway through the second quarter.

The Jayhawks, though, responded with a 16-8 run, cutting Canada’s lead to 43-41 at halftime. Ellis, who led all scorers with 10 points in the first half, finished an alley-oop that pulled the Jayhawks to within 38-35, and Vick finished at the rim at the halftime buzzer as the partisan Kansas crowd sprung to its feet.

In three days, Kansas’ version of Team USA and the Canadian national team will reconvene at the Sprint Center for the second of two exhibition games. Two days after that, the Jayhawks will board a commercial flight and depart for Gwangju, South Korea, before opening the tournament against Turkey at 10 p.m. July 3.

In all, the Jayhawks will play eight games during the tournament — five during pool play and three guaranteed games during a medal or consolation round. Self has offered his stated goal: Win the tournament. But he likely won’t deviate from his stated plan: Focus on development, split up the minutes, shuffle the starting lineup each game.

For one night, it ended with a victory.

“I just want the kids to go over [to Korea] and have fun,” Self said. “See what happens and compete.”

This story was originally published June 23, 2015 at 9:22 PM with the headline "Kansas beats Canada 91-83 in exhibition game."