The Jayhawks were shorthanded heading into the matchup after forward KJ Adams injured his shoulder during their last game against Iowa State. Adams’ absence left a significant gap in the rotation, forcing head coach Bill Self to call on several players to step up in bigger roles.

Kansas basketball head coach Bill Self shared the latest on KJ Adams following the Jayhawks’ hard-fought 84-74 victory over rival Kansas State on Saturday.

LAWRENCE, Kan. — Hunter Dickinson had 25 points and Zeke Mayo scored 24 to lead No. 9 Kansas over Kansas State 84-74 on Saturday. Kansas (13-4, 4-2 Big 12) built a big lead to start the game and then kept K-State at arm's length. The Wildcats (7-10, 1-5) never got closer than six points.

K-State coach Jerome Tang called a 30-second timeout after a Bidunga hook shot gave KU a 7-0 lead and another timeout when KU went up 14-0 following a Zeke Mayo 3. Mayo went 4-of-7 from 3 and scored 24 points. He was 6-of-8 from the line.

Kansas State showed fight and resilience against a top 10 ranked Kansas team before a sold-out crowd at Allen Fieldhouse, but the Wildcats could not quite

Zeke Mayo -- a native of Lawrence, Kan., playing in his first "Sunflower Showdown" -- had 14 of his 24 points in the first half as No. 9 Kansas built a big lead and then held on to defeat in-state rival Kansas State 84-74.

The Kansas Jayhawks suffered their biggest loss in their last outing, a Top-10 conference matchup in Ames against #2 Iowa State. Today, they get to come home to kick off this year's edition of the Sunflower Showdown against the Kansas State Wildcats, who have struggled this season.

The Jayhawks led by as many as 16 on Saturday, never trailing in an 84-74 win over the Wildcats. From the time it was 20-4 until the final buzzer, the No. 9 Jayhawks played cool, calm and collected, answering each K-State run with timely buckets.

Matt Ulmer, head volleyball coach at Oregon since 2017, has been named the Kansas Jayhawks’ successor to Ray Bechard, KU athletic director Travis Goff announced Friday. Ulmer signed a six-year contract through the 2030 season. Bechard retired last month after 27 seasons at Kansas.

K-State comes into Saturday’s noon clash at Allen Fieldhouse with a record of 7-9 (1-4 in the Big 12); KU is 12-4 (3-2).