Kansas Tops Turkey in World Games Opener

The United States World University Games team watched the final seconds tick away from its 66-57 victory over Turkey as the familiar “Rock… Chalk… Jay… hawk…” chant echoed through the arena in South Korea.

Wayne Selden is bigger, stronger and more aggressive than he was in his sophomore season for the Kansas Jayhawks. In the offseason, he made it known that he was prepared to put in major work before his junior season is due to begin in November. The McDonald’s All-American has always had the potential to be a superstar at KU, but for two years, he’s underachieved.

If the Wayne Selden we’ve seen through three contests in the World University Games is the Wayne Selden Kansas is going to have for the 2015-16 season, the Jayhawks are going to be very difficult to stop.

Selden scored 19 points, Perry Ellis and Frank Mason contributed terrific games, and the Jayhawks defeated Turkey 66-57 to win their World University Games opener on Friday night. It wasn’t a flawless game by any means, but overall, KUSA put forth an encouraging performance to begin play 1-0 in Korea.

For the third time in three games, Team USA fell into a double-digit hole in the first half. Turkey roared out to an 18-7 advantage by draining four three-pointers. After Turkey’s fast start, it was all Jayhawks. A steady dose of KU’s “big three” paced the team as they closed the deficit to nine by the end of the quarter and just four by the end of the first half. Midway through the third quarter, KU took the lead and never trailed again.

Stats:

• Selden: 19 points (8/16 FG, 2/7 from three), nine rebounds, 37 minutes. All three marks led the team. He’s scored 41 points in his last two games.
• Mason: 12 points (4/9 FG, 0/4 from three), three rebounds, four assists, three turnovers, three steals in 35 minutes.
• Ellis: 17 points (8/18 FG), six rebounds. Kansas fans should definitely be happy that their best scorer took a game-high 18 shots.
• The “big three” trio combined for 48 of Kansas’ 66 points (73%). As great as those three were, there have to be some questions about the contributions from the other players. Even if Cheick Diallo, Brannen Greene, Devonte Graham and Sviatoslav Mykhailiuk are all inactive for this tournament.
• Lucas: two points and four rebounds in 15 minutes.
• Traylor: two points, one rebound, and a team-worst four turnovers in 17 minutes.
• Moore: 9 points (3/9 FG, 2/5 from three) in 30 minutes.
• KU players not named Selden, Mason, or Ellis: 7/26 (27%) from the floor. Not ideal.
• Field goal percentage: KU 27/69 (39%), Turkey 18/51 (35%).
• Half of Turkey’s 18 made baskets were three-pointers. 29 of its 51 shots were from long distance.
• Assists: KU 9 on 27 made shots, Turkey 9 on 18 made shots.
• Turnovers: KU 16, Turkey 20.
• KU made just five of 20 threes. It continues to be a question mark going forward.
• Free throws: Ugly on both sides. KU 7/13 (54%), Turkey 12/21 (57%).

Here’s what I want to know from the fans: were you as into this World Games matchup as you get during regular season games? Was your heart pounding in the final minutes? Were you pacing like you do every March? Or did it give you a chance to sit back and enjoy Kansas basketball without panicking about any ranking, standing or record? Let us know in the comments or @RockChalkBlog on Twitter.

Up next for Team USA: Sunday morning at 6:30 CDT against Brazil. The Jayhawks have four more contests before the quarterfinals are held on Friday.