LAWRENCE, Kan. -- Kansas spent most of the first half Monday night chasing Iowa State all over the court, unable to keep up with the Cyclones' crisp ball movement and their resulting open shots.
Jayhawks Coach Bill Self made a subtle tweak that changed everything.
Kansas began switching five on defense, and the stops fueled a 14-0 second-half charge that gave Self's team the lead. And unlike last weekend at West Virginia, the ninth-ranked Jayhawks made it stick down the stretch, holding on for an 80-76 victory over the No. 24 Cyclones.
"We buckled down," the Jayhawks' Devon Dotson said. "We really wanted to get that win."
Dedric Lawson led the way for Kansas (16-3, 5-2 Big 12) with 29 points and 15 rebounds. Marcus Garrett added 16 points, Lagerald Vick had 14 and Dotson finished with 10, including the clinching free throws with 5.9 seconds left that effectively put the game away.
"They move the ball so well," Garrett said, "and it went from corner to corner and we couldn't guard it. Then we made the switch and we were able to contain."
Iowa State (14-5, 4-3) still got within 72-71 on a driving layup by Marial Shayok with 1:44 to go, but Garrett followed a swap of empty possessions with a layup. Michael Jacobson hit a free throw for the Cyclones, but Lawson's three from the top of the key made it 77-72 with 22.3 seconds left.
Shayok added the last of his team-high 26 points for Iowa State, and after Dotson made the second of two free throws, Tyrese Haliburton made two of his own to get within 78-76 with 7.5 seconds left.
Dotson was immediately fouled on the inbound and this time he made both of his free throws.
NO. 6 MICHIGAN STATE 69, NO. 13 MARYLAND 55
EAST LANSING, Mich. -- Cassius Winston and Kenny Goins scored 14 points each to help No. 6 Michigan State beat No. 13 Maryland with balanced offense and stifling defense.
The Spartans (17-2, 8-0 Big Ten) have won 12 consecutive this season to take sole possession of first in the conference. They have won 20 consecutive Big Ten regular season games dating to last year.
The Terrapins (16-4, 7-2) had a shot to move into first place in the conference, but couldn't extend their seven-game winning streak.
Maryland's leading scorer, Anthony Cowan, was held to a season-low seven points.
The Terrapins connected on just 34 percent of their shots against the Spartans after shooting 58 percent of in their previous game, a 14-point victory at Ohio State.
No. 11 NORTH CAROLINA 103, No. 10 VIRGINIA TECH 82
CHAPEL HILL, N.C. -- Freshman Coby White scored 27 points and North Carolina knocked down a season-high 16 three-pointers to beat Virginia Tech.
Fellow rookie Nassir Little added a season-high 23 points for the Tar Heels (15-4, 5-1 Atlantic Coast Conference), who struggled out of the gate to fall behind by nine.
But it wasn't long before just about everything started falling from behind the arc, an avalanche that sparked a game-turning 20-0 run that pushed UNC to a 45-31 lead by halftime.
UNC made 15 of its last 22 3-pointers, finished the game shooting 54 percent and led by as many as 27 points.
Ahmed Hill scored 20 points for the Hokies (15-3, 4-2), who made 6 of 7 three-pointers in a fast start only to end the half by going nearly six minutes without a basket.
Sports on 01/22/2019