‘Puts us on his back’: Despite defeat, KU coach Bill Self sings praises of Jalen Wilson
Kansas forward Jalen Wilson scored 38 points Tuesday night in No. 2-ranked KU’s 83-82 overtime loss to No. 13 Kansas State — the third highest output by a Jayhawk in a game in the 20-year Bill Self era.
It’s quite possible the 6-foot-8 native of Denton, Texas, would have topped the 40-point mark at Bramlage Coliseum had KU coach Self not called a timeout in overtime with the shot clock running down and Wilson holding the ball well past the three-point line.
Wilson released a shot just after the ref granted the timeout. The ball dropped through the net with 40.8 seconds left in overtime ... but of course didn’t count because time had been called.
“I called timeout when Jalen makes a bomb, too. That could have made a difference between winning and losing,” Self acknowledged after the Jayhawks fell to 16-2 overall and 5-1 in the Big 12. K-State has an identical 16-2, 5-1 mark.
A three by Wilson would have given KU an 85-81 lead with 40 seconds left. Instead, Wilson missed a three in front of the KU bench on the play that was called following the timeout.
K-State on its next possession scored on a lob dunk by Keyontae Johnson (from Markquis Nowell) with 25 seconds left, giving K-State an 83-82 lead. KU had a final possession in which Dajuan Harris lost the ball into the hands of Ismael Massoud.
The clock ran out without a KU shot and the fans stormed the court. Coach Jerome Tang spoke to the fans with use of the microphone at the scorer’s table.
Wilson said it was smart of Self to call timeout prior to his flipping in a three that didn’t count.
KU had nothing going on a crucial possession.
“It was a good timeout. That shot (went) in, but that didn’t really mean anything as far as the game. We were still up. We still had the ball. We didn’t do much,” Wilson said.
Wilson hit 12 of 25 shots. He was 3-of-10 from three. He also made 11 of 12 free throws on a night KU made 24 of 34 to K-State’s 7 of 17. KU hit 6 of 29 threes to K-State’s 7 of 17.
Wilson’s 38 points were the most by a Jayhawk since Andrew Wiggins scored 41 points at West Virginia (March 8, 2014). His 38 points were also the third-most scored in the Self era (since 2003-04) behind Wiggins and Elijah Johnson’s 39 points at Iowa State on Feb. 25, 2013.
He was the first Jayhawk to score 30-plus points against Kansas State since Ben McLemore had 30 on Feb. 11, 2013 vs. the Wildcats.
“Jalen played great,” Self said. “The kid plays 45 minutes (on a night Kevin McCullar, Gradey Dick and KJ Adams all fouled out), never comes out, puts us on his back, scores 38. He had to drive every time to get fouled. He played great. That was one possession we wish we could take back,” Self added of a play in which Wilson was dunked on late in overtime.
It was the lob play that gave the Wildcats the lead for good. Johnson finished with 24 points on 7-of-17 shooting with eight rebounds.
“It was a great call (by K-State coach Jerome Tang),” Self said. “I can’t believe it was available. I’m really disappointed it was available, game point, down in a stance, ready. There was no screen. He (Johnson) just spun.
“They’ve done it before. ... It’s one of those deals I’ve seen on tape. They’ve done it.”
“That was my fault,” Wilson said of the crucial dunk sequence.
KU did battle back from a 14-point first-half deficit to grab the lead in the second half. However, this time the Jayhawks were unable to finish a victory in a close league game. Entering the night, KU had won four of five games in the conference by four points or less.
“K-State played great early. We didn’t have any answer for them,” Self said. “When it kind of settled down, we played a lot better. The first thing I’d say is we didn’t get a shot at the end of regulation and overtime and that’s on me.”
KU had the ball for a final possession in the second half with the score deadlocked at 72. Harris had the ball stolen by Nae’Qwan Tomlin, who got the ball to Johnson who missed a driving layup that could have won the game with a second left. Zuby Ejiofor trailed on the play and may have bothered Johnson on the shot.
The Jayhawks ultimately lost in overtime. It was Wilson’s first loss to K-State in seven career games. It was KU’s first loss in Bramlage in the last four contests.
Asked about his 38-point outburst, Wilson said: “I mean it feels good. When you don’t win it takes all that away. The feeling isn’t even there. We’ve won a lot of games like that (one). I don’t know if it was kind of due us playing teams close (and KU usually) ending up winning. We’ve got to find a way to win games like that.”
Wilson added: “It’s always a great environment. The fan base comes out when we come here. They used it to their advantage today. They made good plays, hit good shots. Hat’s off to them. Our conference is good.”
And the good news, Wilson continued...
“One thing great about basketball is we have another game in three days. We can’t harp on this too long,” Wilson said. “We have to play another good team (TCU on Saturday at Allen Fieldhouse). We’ll get to see (K-State) again. That’s the beauty of the Big 12.”
Update on KU basketball’s point guard
Kansas point guard Dajuan Harris, who had three points and 11 assists against four turnovers in 43 minutes, left the game briefly in the second half after a fall to the court.
Self said Harris hit his head on the court and was checked out in the locker room. He was able to return to the contest.
This story was originally published January 17, 2023 at 10:49 PM with the headline "‘Puts us on his back’: Despite defeat, KU coach Bill Self sings praises of Jalen Wilson."
