LAWRENCE, Kan. (AP) – Colorado coach Tad Boyle was introduced to cheers from the crowd on Saturday.
That was the highlight of the former Kansas player’s return to Allen Fieldhouse.
The ninth-ranked Jayhawks showed no mercy for Boyle or their former conference foes, rolling to a 90-54 victory that extended their winning streak against Colorado to 29 games in their venerable on-campus home.
“It’s not like our guys wanted to roll over and die,” said Boyle, who played at Kansas from 1981-85. “Kansas came out and just took our heart, and we didn’t do anything about it.”
Kansas started the game on an 18-3 run, and Colorado was never closer than 13 the rest of the way.
Colorado, which bolted for the Pac-12 two years ago, was no match for the high-flying dunks and quick-tempo offense of the Jayhawks, who came out with intense pressure from the start. The result was 20 points off the fast break and 26 points off Colorado’s 18 turnovers.
“Our game plan was to clog the paint up and take away transition baskets and make them beat us with 3s, because we felt that’s the way you have to beat Kansas. We didn’t do a very good job of it,” Boyle said. “We didn’t execute our game plan any way, shape or form.”
Josh Scott finished with 19 points to lead the Buffaloes (7-2), who have lost two of three after rattling off six straight wins to start the year. Askia Booker added 15 points, but leading scorer Spencer Dinwiddie was held to four points on 1-for-4 shooting. Xavier Johnson missed all four of his field-goal attempts before fouling out.
“It’s not like they were hitting contested 3s. They were dunking on us and absolutely humiliating us,” Dinwiddie said. “There really is nothing else to say.”
Ben McLemore scored 24 points, Kevin Young added 16 points and eight rebounds, and Elijah Johnson finished with 11 points for the Jayhawks (7-1), who have won six straight. Travis Releford added 10 points.
Kansas has won 19 straight and 46 of 47 against Colorado, dating to the 1991 season. The Buffaloes haven’t won at Allen Fieldhouse since the 1982-83. Jayhawks coach Bill Self improved to 18-0 against them.
“That’s the first time we’ve played a game in our building where we didn’t let our opponent get comfortable in the game from the outset,” Self said. “That’s what we’re supposed to do every game.”
The Jayhawks led 43-22 at halftime after turning Colorado over 12 times and coughing up a possession just twice in the first 20 minutes. The result was a lopsided 22-2 advantage in points-off-turnovers, and a big lead despite missing its final 10 3-point attempts of the half.
McLemore nearly outscored the Buffaloes by himself, pouring in 17 points.
The freshman guard, who sat out last season as a partial NCAA qualifier, did his best work slashing through the lane and getting to the foul line. But he also picked Colorado’s pocket on a couple of occasions, once tipping the ball over a defender’s head and tracking it down for an easy dunk and an 18-3 lead in the opening minutes.
“I give my teammates a lot of credit,” McLemore said. “We just go out there and have fun.”
The only stretch that Kansas wasn’t running at optimal efficiency came midway through the first half, when it missed seven straight field goals, and Colorado closed within 29-18. As if on cue, the Jayhawks scored the next nine points to force Boyle to call a frantic timeout.
Dinwiddie, who had scored at least 20 in three straight games, played only 12 minutes in the first half. He picked up two fouls in the first 5 minutes, and at one point went to the locker room favoring his left leg.
The Jayhawks came out of the locker room and produced an 11-2 run.
The spurt included a nifty feed from Young to Jeff Withey under the basket and a block by Withey on Colorado’s Andre Roberson that led to a run-out and a dunk by Releford.
The crowd roared down the stretch as some of the Jayhawks reserves got into the game.
“We’re not as bad as we played today,” Boyle said. “That’s what’s disappointing.”
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