No. 8 Kansas roars past Mizzou, 102-65

Oklahoma guard Umoja Gibson (2) drives around Arkansas guard JD Notae (1) in the first half of an NCAA college basketball game Saturday, Dec. 11, 2021, in Tulsa, Okla. (AP Photo/Sue Ogrocki)
Oklahoma guard Umoja Gibson (2) drives around Arkansas guard JD Notae (1) in the first half of an NCAA college basketball game Saturday, Dec. 11, 2021, in Tulsa, Okla. (AP Photo/Sue Ogrocki)

The Associated Press

LAWRENCE, Kan. -- It took nearly a decade for Kansas and Missouri to renew the Border War.

It took about 10 minutes for the Jayhawks to turn it into a border rout.

Ochai Agbaji scored 21 points, Christian Braun and Dajuan Harris had 13 apiece, and the eighth-ranked Jayhawks rolled to a 102-65 win over the Tigers on Saturday in the first meeting of the longtime Big 12 rivals as nonconference opponents.

David McCormack added 11 points and Remy Martin 10 for the Jayhawks (8-1), who have won eight of the past nine games in a series that began in 1907 but hadn't been played since the Tigers departed the Big 12 after the 2012 season.

"Did it feel different walking out there? Absolutely," Kansas coach Bill Self said. "There's something about Mizzou and a few others on our schedule, only those guys can bring the type of energy that existed today."

Javon Pickett led sloppy, poor-shooting Missouri (5-5) with 19 points. DaJuan Gordon had 11 and leading scorer Kobe Brown, hounded all afternoon by the Jayhawks' man-to-man defense, finished with five points and six rebounds.

"I used to watch this game on TV but never really understood it," Pickett said. "I knew it was a big game, but it was just another game to me when I was younger. It was a great atmosphere, though. Super loud."

Hundreds of students representing groups of up to 20 each began camping out nearly a week in advance of the game, all angling for the best seat for the renewal of a rivalry that traces its bitter start to the pre-Civil War days.

But while the era of pro-slavery Missouri raiders quarreling with anti-slavery "Jayhawkers" from Kansas is relegated to the history books, the animosity harbored by fans of the Tigers and Jayhawks is still very real -- even though the two programs had not played in nearly a decade, since Missouri decided to chase football riches to the SEC.

Its move left the Big 12 on such unsteady footing that Self simply refused to schedule the Tigers anymore.

His stance softened over time, though, and the schools played a 2017 exhibition to raise money for hurricane relief. They later agreed to a six-game series that was delayed a year by the pandemic. But it wasn't until Saturday, with the winter sun shining through the clerestory windows of Allen Fieldhouse, that they finally took to the floor together.

Dozens of former players showed up to watch, lending the game a feeling of nostalgia.

"There is an unspoken level of pride. They've played in these games, watched other teams play in these games," Agbaji said. "We didn't say much to them but we just gave each other that kind of look, like, 'Go take care of business.'"

CREIGHTON 83, NO. 24 BYU 71

SIOUX FALLS, S.D. -- Ryan Hawkins scored 19 of his season-high 25 points in the first half and Creighton beat BYU.

Creighton (9-2) built its lead to as many as 20 before the break, helped by Hawkins' four 3-pointers.

Hawkins finished 10 for 18 from the field, including 4 for 8 on 3s, and had eight rebounds for the Bluejays.

Alex Barcello scored 28 points for BYU (8-2), shooting 5 of 7 on 3-pointers. Gideon George played 20 minutes off the bench and led the Cougars with 11 rebounds.

NO. 21 OHIO STATE 73, NO. 22 WISCONSIN 55

COLUMBUS, Ohio -- E.J. Liddell scored 28 points and No. 21 Ohio State shot 50% to defeat Wisconsin.

The Buckeyes (8-2) outscored the Badgers by 13 points in the second half, running away with the game after leading by five points at halftime.

Johnny Davis led Wisconsin (8-2) with 24 points and Brad Davison added 13.

NO. 13 TENNESSEE 76, UNC GREENSBORO 36

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. -- Josiah-Jordan James and Brandon Huntley-Hatfield scored 12 points each to lead Tennessee over UNC Greensboro.

James made his first start since suffering an injury to a finger on his left hand in the third game of the season.

Santiago Vescovi scored 10 to help the Volunteers (7-2) flush the memory of Tuesday's loss to Texas Tech.

De'Monte Buckingham scored 10 points to top the Spartans (7-3).

NO. 15 CONNECTICUT 74, ST. BONAVENTURE 64

NEWARK, N.J. -- R.J. Cole scored 15 points and Connecticut surged midway through the second half to beat St. Bonaventure.

Akok Akok added 12 points and Jordan Hawkins had 11 for UConn (9-2).

St. Bonaventure (8-2) took a 39-36 lead on Jalen Adaway's two free throws before the Huskies scored 13 straight points to take control.

The Bonnies cut the deficit to five on two occasions, including on Osun Osunniyi's layup to make it 64-59 with just under two minutes to play.

NO. 18 AUBURN 99, NEBRASKA 68

ATLANTA -- Playing minus suspended coach Bruce Pearl, Auburn made 16 steals and routed Nebraska.

Pearl began his two-game suspension imposed by the NCAA on Friday. Auburn was placed on probation for four years for unethical conduct involving former associate head coach Chuck Person. Pearl was penalized for failing to monitor his assistant and adequately promote compliance.

Assistant coach Wes Flanigan served as acting coach.

Center Walker Kessler and guard Zep Jasper each had five steals and Auburn scored 30 points off 20 turnovers. Jabari Smith had 21 points to lead the Tigers (8-1).

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