AUSTIN, Texas — Kansas gave Texas a lesson not only in what it takes to get to No. 1, but how to stay there.
It started with a big early run and a rally-killing finish as the top-ranked Jayhawks beat No. 14 Texas 80-68 on Monday night, easily handling a team that a few weeks ago was supposed to challenge them for the Big 12 title.
“Going into the season, we were ranked one and they were two,” said Marcus Morris, who overcame dislocating his right ring finger in the first half to lead Kansas with 18 points. “We circled this game on our calendars. We were ready from Day One to play this game.”
It showed as Kansas (23-1, 9-0) outmuscled and outhustled Texas (19-5, 5-4) in just about every way.
Kansas, No. 1 for the second straight week after three weeks out of the top spot, outrebounded a physical Texas lineup 45-34, held the Longhorns to 37 percent shooting and scored 27 points off 17 turnovers.
And when Texas finally staged a late rally, Kansas slammed the door behind senior point guard Sherron Collins, who had 15 points, five assists, four steals and made several key plays down the stretch.
When the final seconds finally ticked off, Collins punctuated the win by slamming the ball down hard with a yell, bouncing it high in the air.
“We were terrible on offense for long periods of time, and we helped them,” Texas coach Rick Barnes said. “You go back, 27 points off turnovers. That’s been the biggest killer in us.”
