Kansas had a number of issues last season — the biggest of which was a lack of depth that proved too much to overcome once Kevin McCullar Jr. was sidelined with an injury. There are many ways to illustrate as much, perhaps none better than by highlighting the fact that nobody who started fewer than 19 games for the Jayhawks averaged more than 5.2 points. In other words, KU got basically nothing from its bench, almost always, which is why Bill Self, coming off of his worst finish ever in the Big 12, made a point to get into the transfer portal and ensure his program would have at least eight starter-level players on the roster entering the season.
The approach is already paying off.
On Friday, Zeke Mayo, a transfer from South Dakota State and the reigning Summit League Player of the Year, came off of KU’s bench and scored 21 points in a 92-89 win over North Carolina inside Allen Fieldhouse. AJ Storr, a transfer from Wisconsin who was the Badgers’ leading scorer last season, added 13 points in a reserve role. Flory Bidunga, a five-star freshman, chipped-in with eight points and eight rebounds off the bench.
In the game, Kansas scored 92 points — 42 of which came from the bench. It’s the second straight game in which the 2-0 Jayhawks have gotten at least 42 points from their bench.
“KJ [Adams] played way too many minutes — but, other than that, nobody played 30, which is kind of a welcomed-deal for us considering how we had to play [starters] 35 [or] 37 last year,” Self said
None of this is to suggest Kansas is perfect. Against North Carolina, the Jayhawks blew a 20-point lead and were actually down in the final four minutes before rallying late to escape. There’s still a ways to go. But what we’ve already seen in this first week of the season is the byproduct of a Hall of Fame coach recognizing a major problem and then using the resources available to him to address it directly. Not all Hall of Fame coaches are so adaptable. KU fans should be excited about what’s to come.
Simply put, the Jayhawks didn’t have enough good players last season — but now they have more than most. And that’s among the reasons they remain No. 1 in Saturday morning’s updated CBS Sports Top 25 And 1 daily college basketball rankings. Needless to say, I hope, North Carolina remains No. 4 in the Top 25 And 1, if only because it would make no sense to punish anybody for playing a one-possession game in a true road contest against a higher-ranked opponent.
