No. 1 KU basketball survives Duke after Hunter Dickinson ejection. Here are 3 takeaways

Kansas forward KJ Adams rose up and effortlessly canned the jumper, his fourth of the night.

Yes, you read that correctly.

The often-scrutinized Adams delivered time and time again for the shorthanded Jayhawks on Tuesday night in Las Vegas. He contributed offensively and with an important defensive performance against Cooper Flagg and the No. 11 Duke Blue Devils.

He wasn’t the only one.

No. 1 KU (6-0) did just enough to defeat Duke 75-72 in the 2024 Las Vegas Showdown. Dajuan Harris scored a team-high 14 points, and Zeke Mayo added 12 points.

It was a team effort, particularly late for the Jayhawks, after center Hunter Dickinson was ejected on a flagrant foul midway through the second half.

After the ejection, transfer guard Rylan Griffen answered the call. Then Griffen and Adams came together in the final moments to secure the victory.

The ending was chaotic.

Kansas outlasts Duke in wild finish

Trailing by one, 73-72, Duke had the chance to win the game with 14 seconds left. But KU’s Griffen recovered the ball from Duke’s Kon Knueppel after he seemed to freeze in the air due to Adams and Flory Bidunga’s tandem defense.

Then, down three with three seconds left, Duke had the ball at midcourt: Knueppel missed a potential tying 3 off the backboard as time expired.

Long before the game got to that point, the Jayhawks led 41-39 at half after shooting 50% from the field. At one point in the first frame, the Jayhawks led by as many as 13.

Dickinson’s ejection came with the Jayhawks up two in the second half. He was ejected after appearing to kick Duke’s Maliq Brown in the head during a dead ball, for which the referees assessed a flagrant-two technical.

KU’s starting lineup for this marquee showdown was Dajuan Harris, AJ Storr, Mayo, Adams and Dickinson. Storr replaced Griffen in the starting lineup for the contest.

Up next: The Jayhawks play Furman on Saturday to continue the Las Vegas Showdown at Allen Fieldhouse.

Until then, here are three takeaways from Tuesday night’s game...

KJ Adams stepped up

In the midst of an up-and-down season, forward KJ Adams delivered his best game yet.

He flipped the momentum toward the Jayhawks’ side early in the second half. His defense on Cooper Flagg was phenomenal, preventing the freshman from getting good positioning and easy looks. It felt like wherever Flagg went, Adams stuck with him.

On top of that, Adams had two jaw-dropping blocks on nearly back-to-back plays.

And he did something else he’s never done: hit four different jump shots.

Adams’ jumper is a complete work in progress and often a last resort for the Kansas offense. For that, Duke’s defense did an excellent job of making sure the ball ended up in Adams’ hands ... only he made them pay.

Adams finished with eight points, three assists, three blocks and three steals.

KU basketball slows down Cooper Flagg

The Kansas Jayhawks put on a defensive masterclass on how to stop star freshman and future NBA lottery pick Cooper Flagg.

Flagg had two points on two shots in the first half. He also had two turnovers.

The Jayhawks threw a lot of different looks at Flagg, first by putting Adams on him. Adams’ strength seemed to bother Flagg, as he did a great job of staying in front of the freshman.

Still, Adams picked up two fouls. Kansas alternated between Adams and Griffen and threw double teams at the freshman.

It worked like a charm. Flagg couldn’t create much separation to get shots off, which led to a passive first half. He played better in the second half, but it wasn’t enough.

Flagg finished with 13 points on 5-for-9 shooting from the field, adding three assists and five rebounds. He also had four turnovers. He entered the day averaging close to 18 points and nine rebounds per game.

KU’s balanced scoring

The Jayhawks did an excellent job of spreading the scoring load between several players.

It led to a balanced offensive effort against a Duke defense that ranked No. 1 in adjusted defensive efficiency heading into Tuesday night. Adjusted defensive efficiency is KenPom’s measure of points allowed per 100 possessions, adjusted for opponent.

Kansas had four double-digit scorers (Dickinson, Harris, Mayo and Storr).

Adams just missed the cut with eight points. Every point mattered in the end for the Jayhawks, who shot 49.1% from the field, 47.1% from 3 and 91.7% at the line.