KU’s Dickinson goes off for 27 points, 21 rebounds on a night McCullar makes history
Kansas senior center Hunter Dickinson scored a game-high 27 points and grabbed a Champions Classic single-game record — and career-high — 21 rebounds as No. 1-ranked Kansas beat No. 17 Kentucky 89-84 in a Tuesday night men’s basketball showdown at the United Center.
Meanwhile, senior point guard Dajuan Harris tallied a career-high 23 points, including eight in a row down the stretch — pivotal points that helped KU (3-0) erase a four-point Wildcats lead.
Those two performances almost overshadowed a historic performance by senior Jayhawks guard Kevin McCullar. He had 12 points, 10 assists and 10 rebounds in 37 minutes for just the third official triple-double in KU history, and second in Champions Classic history.
Jeff Withey had 16 points, 12 rebounds and 12 blocks against San Jose State on Nov. 26, 2012 at Allen Fieldhouse. Cole Aldrich had 20 rebounds, 13 points and 10 blocks against Dayton in the NCAA Tournament on March 22, 2009.
KU greats Wilt Chamberlain and B.H. Born are believed to have recorded triple-doubles before blocks were an officially kept stat.
It’s hard to imagine a KU group of three having a better combined performance in a big game.
“That shows you how special our team is, when somebody gets 20 and 20 and then another player has a triple-double. It’s amazing,” KU junior forward KJ Adams said after scoring 16 points on 8-of-11 shooting with four rebounds in 27 minutes.
“Then when you have another point guard shoot like Juan did (5-of-6 from 3-point range), I think we have the most special team there is out there. We played like it today against a great team,” Adams said.
Oh yes, also in the hero department … freshman Jamari McDowell, who played the last 3:46 and only the last 3:46, hit a pair of free throws with 5.4 seconds left to give KU a two-possession lead. He also guarded Kentucky’s Antonio Reeves down the stretch.
Reeves, a UK senior from Chicago, had 24 points on 7-of-25 shooting (3-of-17 beyond the arc).
Dickinson produced big numbers on a night when he was booed every time he touched the ball during the first half. It seems fans of Kentucky (2-1) were still upset the 7-footer chose KU over UK in recruiting. And Michigan State fans, on hand for the Spartans’ earlier loss here to Duke, probably recalled Dickinson’s career-high 33-point effort vs. MSU on March 2, 2023.
He was jut six points off his career high in that department on Tuesday.
“I don’t think I’ve ever had a 20/20 before,” Dickinson said accurately after the game. “I think we have the best team in the nation, the best three in the nation (in Harris, Adams and McCullar). They helped me a lot. This is an unselfish team more than willing to give me the ball. They help me out a lot.
“When I came here,” the Michigan transfer added, “coach (Bill Self) said I’d get the ball a lot. I think I did today. He also said, ‘You’ll play with great players and have a chance to win a national championship.’ Clearly we’ve got a real good team. He’s been truthful so far.”
KU coach Self heard the boos directed at Dickinson, who hit 8 of 12 shots, including one 3-pointer, and 10 free throws in 11 tries.
“He’s a good player, man,” Self said. “He rebounded the ball better. He is a terrific passer. He is not a villain, but what he does is takes pressure off everybody else by having everybody else focused on him. That’s a big bonus.”
Self added: “Let’s call it like it is … he catches some crap sometimes with good reason. many times with not a good reason. He catches some crap. He doesn’t run from it, ever. Guys like that give teams confidence. Our guys want to win. If a guy pumps confidence in your locker room, it’s a win.”
As far as Harris helping complete KU’s comeback from a 14-point deficit, the guard from Columbia, Missouri, said: “That was big-boy basketball. It’s a dogfight every time we play Kentucky. I think they wanted me to beat them. They left me open and I had to step up and make the shot.”
A modest McCullar — the only other triple-double in Champions Classic history was Denzel Valentine’s against KU in 2016 (29 points, 12 rebounds, 12 assists — had this to say about his effort: “I try to be versatile, touch every stat in the stat sheet. Trying to do winning plays that don’t show up in the stat sheet. When you are playing with guys like this it makes the game a lot easier.’
KU (3-0) will next meet Chaminade at 8 p.m. Central Time on Monday in Hawaii.
This story was originally published November 15, 2023 at 12:22 AM with the headline "KU’s Dickinson goes off for 27 points, 21 rebounds on a night McCullar makes history."
