Ichabods fall to Jayhawks

Bryan Grabauskas

The Washburn Ichabods traveled to Lawrence, Kansas, to take on the Jayhawks in an exhibition game 7 p.m. Nov. 1 in Allen Fieldhouse.

The Ichabods started quick with a three-point shot to start the game. The Jayhawks answered with their own score from behind the arc. The Ichabods were then afflicted by a number of fouls and the Jayhawks were able to pull ahead by playing solid defense.

The Ichabods started to struggle in the paint against the massive Jayhawk centers, Landon Lucas and Udoka Azubuike, unable to prevent inside scoring leading to the Ichabods trailing 18-6.

Around the ten minute mark in the first half, Washburn started to fight their way back with scores by Clayton Holmberg and Tyas Martin. Kansas University responded with a Frank Mason jumper and a dominant Carlton Bragg dunk to pull further ahead to a score of 26-16. Drew Pyle’s own three for the Ichabods ended a streak of Jayhawk threes.

A costly turnover by Randall Smith turned what could have been only a 10 point deficit into a 50-34 lead for the Jayhawks going into halftime. The Ichabods could have been much closer in score or even have a lead if their fast-paced, aggressive play was turned into points, but they failed to finish plays, resulting in only 12 shots made out of 36 attempts, a 33.3 percent shooting percentage.

The Jayhawks took advantage of their shots, making 61.1 percent of their shots. Isaac Clark with 7 points for the Ichabods and Frank Mason with 11 points for the Jayhawks were the leading scorers in the first half.

Washburn started off fast in the second half, scoring first yet again. By the 15 minute mark, the lead had been cut to ten at 55-45. Back-to-back scoring between the two teams, led by Josh Jackson for Kansas and Cameron Wiggins for Washburn, kept the score at about ten apart for a majority of the second half.

A blocked Clark layup off of a missed Frank Mason free throw led to a foul streak that Mason would not waste, extending the lead to 18 points at 81-63 through multiple free throws.

Despite several flaws for the Jayhawks, 62.9 percent free throw shooting and 24 turnovers, Washburn could not overcome their own problems, including 38.4 percent shooting, 20 turnovers and 27 fouls. The Kansas Jayhawks were victorious over the Washburn Ichabods 92-74.