Kansas basketball picked up a win in one of the marquee matchups of the non-conference schedule this college basketball season. Bill Self and the No. 1-ranked Jayhawks held off a furious rally from No. 9 North Carolina to get a 92-89 win in front of a raucous crowd at Allen Fieldhouse.
With this win, Self got even closer to making Kansas basketball history, as he tied legendary coach Phog Allen for the most wins in Kansas history with 590.
That is a major accomplishment for many reasons. Becoming the winningest head coach at one of college basketball's blue blood schools is no small feat, and it would be well deserved for one of the pillars of the sport this century. Passing Allen, whose name graces the great Allen Fieldhouse, would be monumental for Self.
Self's 590th win didn't come easily, as North Carolina rebounded from a 20-point deficit to make the game close down the stretch. The Tar Heels even took a three-point lead late in this one, but Kansas made enough plays to get the win. A layup by Hunter Dickinson broke a 89-89 tie in the final minute, and after Dickinson split a pair of free throws, an Elliot Cadeau 3-pointer fell short at the buzzer to secure the victory for Kansas.
Self's first chance to break Allen's wins record will come on Tuesday at the State Farm Champions Classic when the Jayhawks take on Michigan State in Atlanta.
Kansas backs up big offseason, No. 1 ranking vs. North Carolina
There was a lot of hype surrounding Kansas coming into this season after a huge offseason for Bill Self and the Jayhawks. Kansas got three key starters from last year's team back in center Hunter Dickinson, point guard Dajuan Harris Jr. and forward KJ Adams Jr., but they also were one of the big winners in the transfer portal.
The Jayhawks brought in reigning Summit Conference Player of the Year Zeke Mayo from South Dakota State, a top 3-and-D wing in Alabama's Rylan Griffen and a microwave scorer in Wisconsin's AJ Storr.
The star-studded offseason moves by Self and his staff earned Kansas the No. 1 ranking coming into this season, and it backed that up on Friday night. Facing a spirited comeback from one experienced North Carolina squad led by star point guard RJ Davis, Kansas showed resilience and got contributions from the top of the roster all the way to the bottom.
Mayo led the team with 21 points off the bench and Storr added 13 after not starting the game. Dickinson notched a double-double with 20 points and 10 rebounds, including the go-ahead bucket at the very end. Harris, while never a big scorer, was crucial to keeping the offense on schedule and under control and was phenomenal on the defensive end, as usual. Harris held Davis to one of his worst games at North Carolina, as the star point guard finished just 3-for-15 and 1-for-7 from 3-point range.
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