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Andrew Wiggins, Wayne Selden spur No. 18 Kansas to win over No. 25 Kansas State

Kansas State v Kansas

during the game at Allen Fieldhouse on January 11, 2014 in Lawrence, Kansas.

Jamie Squire

If you want to get an idea of just how badly No. 18 Kansas beat down in-state rival No. 25 Kansas State, think about it like this: there wasn’t another matchup between two ranked teams anywhere in the country today, this game was on ESPN and it finished before the NFL Playoff games began, yet how much did you actually hear about this game?

How many of you watched any of the second half?

How many of you actually knew that the Jayhawks won 86-60?

This was a statement win for Kansas, one that looks all the more impressive given some of the other results in Big 12 play this season. Kansas State had already beaten Oklahoma State and Oklahoma -- coming off of a home loss to Kansas -- beat an Iowa State team that was coming off of a 20 point win over Baylor.

Put it all together, and Kansas is the only undefeated team left in the conference. No matter how you slice it, the Jayhawks are still the favorite to win their 10th straight league title.

Three stat-lines to make note of for the Jayhawks: Wayne Selden followed up hit 24 points at Oklahoma with 2o against Kansas State. Andrew Wiggins finished with 22 points on 7-for-13 shooting. Selden and Wiggins combined to shoot 8-for-11 from three. Perhaps most importantly, Naadir Tharpe finished with nine assists and no turnovers.

As far as Kansas State is concerned, I wouldn’t be too worried. This was a wake-up call for the Wildcats. They ran into a Jayhawk buzzsaw on a night that they didn’t play very well, which tends to happen when a team with three freshmen in key roles makes their first visit to Phog Allen Fieldhouse. When that happens, you lose by 26.

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