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SCOREBOARD

Marquette routs top-ranked Kansas in Maui semifinals

Ben Gold Marquette Ben Gold - The Canadian Press
Published

HONOLULU (AP) — Oso Ighodaro had 21 points and nine rebounds as No. 4 Marquette routed No. 1 Kansas 73-59 on Tuesday night in the Maui Invitational semifinals.

The early-season clash of top-5 teams with national title hopes ended up being one-sided. The Golden Eagles (5-0) led for all but 22 seconds and were up by 17 with about seven minutes to play.

Ighodaro shot 9 of 15 from the field and scored 14 points in the second half. Chase Ross added 12 points and six rebounds, and Kam Jones scored 10.

Kevin McCullar Jr. had 24 points and eight rebounds to pace the Jayhawks (4-1). Preseason All-America center Hunter Dickinson was held to 13 points and eight boards. He entered averaging 24.3 points and 12 rebounds per game.

Marquette outscored Kansas 46-26 in the paint and scored 20 points off 18 Jayhawks turnovers.

Marquette improved to 3-11 against top-ranked teams with its first victory since beating Villanova 74-72 at home in January 2017.

Kansas was seeking a 5-0 start for the second straight year.

Marquette held a 38-28 lead at halftime.

BIG PICTURE

Kansas has no shortage of elite talent on its roster, but with several transfers — including Dickinson, who previously played at Michigan — it will take time for coach Bill Self and his staff to mesh his many pieces. KJ Adams Jr., Dajuan Harris Jr. and McCullar each received All-Big 12 honors last season. Adams was the league’s most improved player, while Harris has been Big 12 defensive player of the year each of the past two seasons.

Marquette rolled to its biggest statement win in two-plus years under coach Shaka Smart, who on Monday pointed out the program hasn’t brought in many transfers and has instead developed its own players over the years.

UP NEXT

Kansas will look to rebound against No. 7 Tennessee in the third-place game Wednesday.

Marquette will play for the tournament championship Wednesday against No. 2 Purdue.

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AP college basketball: https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-college-basketball-poll and https://apnews.com/hub/college-basketball