Kansas tops Oklahoma, 109-106, in triple OT classic (+video)

On Monday night inside Allen Fieldhouse, the No. 1 Kansas Jayhawks and the No. 2 Oklahoma Sooners played the 40th-ever college basketball game between the two top-ranked teams in the country. This alone would have made for quite a night. This, of course, was not all there was.

This was a classic, an exercise in survival, the sort of basketball game that hangs in that undefined layer of instant history. This was Kansas guard Frank Mason, swiping an inbounds pass from the paws of Oklahoma's Buddy Hield with 12 seconds left, cementing a 109-106 victory in triple overtime.

Hield, a senior guard from Sunrise Christian Academy, would finish with 46 points on 13-of-23 shooting, burnishing his credentials as a national player of the year candidate. His eighth three-pointer of the night came on a guarded fadeaway, a shot that rolled around the rim for a nearly a full second before dropping home. But it was Mason who took the ball from him in the final moments, hitting two free throws as Kansas escaped a desperation three-point attempt at the buzzer.

Kansas' reign atop college basketball will last another week — at least. Just 10 hours or so after the Jayhawks ascended to the top of the polls for the first time since February 2011, they improved to 13-1 overall and 2-0 in the Big 12 Conference.

Kansas forward and Wichita native Perry Ellis put up 27 points and 13 rebounds, leading four Jayhawks in double figures.

“That’s probably the best regular-season game I’ve ever been a part of,” Kansas coach Bill Self said. “Even better than Missouri.”

As their legs grew tired, the Jayhawks' free-throw shooting began to fail them. Mason missed a free throw that would have tied the game at 106-106 with 36.9 seconds left. Oklahoma took possession and came up empty on the other end, leading to a fast-break opportunity and a 107-106 lead after Kansas' Devonte' Graham converted two free throws.

That set up the final moments.

Kansas junior Wayne Selden had a clean look in the final seconds of overtime. With 2 seconds on the clock, Selden came around a screen on an in-bounds play and spotted up for three from the wing. The shot drew iron, and the game barreled on into the night.

Oklahoma had a golden opportunity to win in the final seconds of regulation, when Kansas big man Landen Lucas was whistled for an over-the-back call that led to a one-and-one on the other end. But Oklahoma’s Khadeem Lattin missed the front end, and the Jayhawks survived into overtime.

"I don’t know that I’ve been in one better (game),” Oklahoma coach Lon Kruger said. “Other than the result, of course."

The Jayhawks trailed by as many as 10 points in the second half. But Graham converted a three-point play in transition that gave Kansas a 73-72 lead with just more than 3 minutes left. The basket sparked a wave of noise inside Allen Fieldhouse. But Oklahoma answered with a three-pointer with 1:35 left. On the sideline, Self called a timeout, setting up the final stretch.

It was, in one sense, a game of runs. The Jayhawks led by 11 points in the first half. The Sooner took a double-digit lead in the second.

Selden finally broke through midway through the second half, finishing a two-handed dunk in transition and draining a deep three-pointer that sliced the Oklahoma lead to 61-56 with 11:33 to play. Moments later, the Jayhawks pulled within 63-60 on a jumper from Mason. But the Oklahoma offense kept charging.

Sooners guard Jordan Woodard swished another three-pointer from the corner, and big man Ryan Spangler beat Kansas down the floor on a run-out, finishing a dunk that pushed the Oklahoma lead back to 68-60. Self looked at the official and burned another timeout. The Jayhawks were staggering with 7:54 on the clock.

In moments, the Kansas defense had no solution for Hield, the former Wichita prep product who entered the night averaging 24.7 points per game. Hield eclipsed his average early in the second half and terrorized Kansas with an assortment of step-backs, dribble-drives and deep threes. If Hield wasn’t Kevin Durant lighting up the Jayhawks inside this old barn, perhaps he was Mizzou’s Anthony Peeler, a shooting guard going off in Lawrence.

The Jayhawks, though, weren’t done. Mason punctuated an 8-0 run with a spinning assist to Selden in transition, tying the game at 68-68 with 5:36 to play. This time, it was Kruger who was calling a timeout, re-setting his side as Allen Fieldhouse pulsated.

This was Monday night. Just two months into this college basketball season, a confluence of forces had set up, the 40th all-time matchup between No. 1 and No. 2. Just three days into the Big 12 schedule, the conference played host to a national showcase.

But here it was on Monday, the Jayhawks ascending to No. 1 in the AP poll for the first time since February 2011, the Sooners marching to No. 2 after a 12-0 start.

If you prefer the USA Today coaches poll, of course, you would find Oklahoma at No. 1 and Kansas at No. 2 . The order was flipped, with each team moving up a spot after Michigan State’s loss last Tuesday.

Kansas sought to take advantage of the raucous environment early. With the KU lead at 11-10, Ellis scored nine of his team’s next 13 points as the Jayhawks stretched the lead to 24-16.

The Jayhawks kept coming. Mason brushed off some early shakiness and finished a bucket while drawing a foul. Brannen Greene drilled two three-pointers — including a gutsy jumper in transition — as the Jayhawks hit five of their first seven from deep.

Kansas built a 37-26 lead in the final minutes of the half, and when Mason drilled another three-pointer with 1:40 left, the Jayhawks led 40-32. KU had a balanced and lethal attack, but the Sooners had Hield, who finished with 22 points in the opening 20 minutes and sparked a wild run in the final 93 seconds of the first half. The Sooners made three straight three-pointers, erasing the deficit, then took advantage of a Self technical after a controversial foul call on Mason.

As Hield attempted a step-back move near the wing in the final minute, Mason appeared to strip the ball clean with his left hand. The whistle blew in front of the Kansas bench, and Self stepped onto the court and ripped into official Kelly Self, drawing a technical. Hield converted three of four free throws, and the Sooners carried a 44-40 lead into the locker room.

The technical fouls continued early in the second half. As Oklahoma added to its halftime lead, official John Higgins hit Selden and Woodard with a double-technical.

This story was originally published January 4, 2016 at 11:24 PM with the headline "Kansas tops Oklahoma, 109-106, in triple OT classic (+video)."