On Sunday evening in Orlando, Florida, two Big 12 teams clashed in what quickly became a blowout.
UCF hosted Kansas in a revenge game after upsetting them in the previous season. Kansas took the loss to West Virginia personally and took their frustrations out on the Knights. Bill Self’s group advanced to 1-1 in Big 12 play with a commanding 99-48 win over UCF.
With that, here are three takeaways from the contest.
Dickinson Dominates
The best player on the court in the matchup was senior center Hunter Dickinson. The former Michigan Wolverine posted 27 points and 10 boards, which helped the Jayhawks cruise to an easy win. Dickinson finished his day by going 12-17 from the floor and, at one point in the first half, singlehandedly outpaced UCF.
UCF Needs Some Change
Anytime someone loses by 51 points at home, it may be time to look in the mirror. The Knights were blown out by Kansas from the 10-minute mark of the first half on and could not find many positives.
Johnny Dawkins’ squad went 14-68 from the field, good for 20.6% percent. They also connected on just 23.3% from the three-point line (7-30). The lone bright spot for UCF came in the form of junior guard Keyshawn Hall, who finished his day with 12 points and six boards.
While any team in the Big 12 Conference can win on any given night, UCF has the fortune of taking on three straight unranked teams vs. Colorado, Arizona, and Arizona State.
Bounce Back
Kansas got back into the driver’s seat in a big way with their win over UCF. The 51-point win got Bill Self’s group into the win column in conference play after losing their home opener to West Virginia.
The Jayhawks debuted a new starting five vs. UCF, which helped the team start faster. The group rolled out a starting five that included Dajuan Harris, Zeke Mayo, Shakeel Moore, KJ Adams, and Hunter Dickinson.
Looking ahead, Kansas hosts Arizona State in Lawrence before heading on the road to Fifth-Third Arena to clash with No. 16 Cincinnati.
