AUSTIN, Texas — Surviving a big time scare from a struggling Texas Longhorns team, the fourth-ranked Kansas Jayhawks prevailed, grinding out a 64-59 win on Saturday afternoon at the Frank Erwin Special Events Center.
Kansas (16-1, 4-0 Big 12) took a 6-3 lead on a 3-pointer by Ben McLemore, but they wouldn’t get the lead back until the second half. A 3 by Sheldon McClellan gave Texas a 28-21 lead with 2:04 to play in the first half. The Jayhawks scored five points in the last minute to narrow the gap to 28-26 at halftime.
After posting their lowest first half point total of the season, the Jayhawks finally took the lead back on a 3 by McLemore early in the second half. The Longhorns responded with a 12-point run, taking a 42-31 lead on a jumper by Jonathan Holmes with 15:22 to play.
Texas (8-9, 0-4 Big 12) led 53-47 with 5:58 to play, but the Hawks answered with a 9-0 run to take a 56-53 lead. A high-flying alley-oop from Jeff Withey to McLemore gave Kansas a 62-57 lead with 1:14 to play. McLemore finished with 16 points and six rebounds.
KU shot 39% from the field, and 27% from 3. Texas shot 45% from the field, and 49% from 3. KU outrebounded Texas 35-26.
Kansas heads to Manhattan on Tuesday night to play the 16th-ranked Kansas State Wildcats.
