Kansas 71 - Georgia Tech 66

Comments and Observations

The officiating made this a painful game to watch.  Hard fouls were being allowed, while touch fouls got whistled.  It felt as though KU was clearly the better team most of the game, but when Self decided to slow things down on offense (presumably to run out the clock), that's when things got ugly.  Taking the air out of the ball, so to speak, also takes the pep out of players' steps.  All sense of urgency was gone and replaced with a "hang on for a little while longer" attitude.  I hope Self abandons this, but it's been like this many times before, so I'm guessing it will happen again.  Despite three consecutive misses late in the game, KU shot 68% from the line to hang on.  People may have cursed Russell Robinson for missing both his free throws when he could have iced the game, but he was the biggest reason KU even had a big lead to cushion itself with near the end.

Offensive and Defensive Performance

Using the outcome of the game and the adjusted offensive and defensive efficiencies for each team, performance indicates (in PTS per 100 Possessions) how each team would have fared against an average team.  That is, KU's offensive performance is how many points per 100 possessions KU would have scored against an average defense.  This provides a standard performance we can compare across teams.

Four Factor Analysis

(Actual statistics moved to Game Projections table below)

Player Performance Analysis

(Brief due to time constraints)

Morrow and Clinch put on a show for GT.  Clinch was the leading scorer and prolific shooter, but Morrow had the more efficient game.  Causey's efficiency is high because he made most of his shots in limited playing time, but the boxscore can't capture how costly his last turnover was when GT was going for the tie with under 10 seconds left.  The Kansas ratings were a bit more balanced but with deservedly lower ratings, since GT did outperform KU this game.  Robinson had an unexpected offensive explosion, although he missed three consecutive free throws very late that could have iced the game.  Rush and Kaun both shot well and each had numerous blocks.  Kaun even made 5-of-6 free throws!  It was a tough game for team stars, Jackson and Chalmers.  Neither got established all that well, and both fouled out.  Arthur got in foul trouble, and Collins shot poorly and turned it over.  Rodrick Stewart actually had the most efficient game, making both his FG's and grabbing 3 REB in just 13 MIN.