16 March 2023
DES MOINES, Iowa — The Kansas Jayhawks got the job done in the First Round of the NCAA Tournament.
No. 1-seed Kansas beat 16-seed Howard 96-68 on Thursday and will face the winner of 9-seed Illinois and 8-seed Arkansas.
The Jayhawks were led by assistant coach Norm Roberts who is coaching in place of Bill Self. Self missed the Big 12 Tournament for a heart procedure and continues to recover.
The Bison gave KU all they could handle in the first half with a barrage of steals and threes that gave them a few leads but none bigger than three points. Kansas pulled away late in the first half and kept its foot on the gas through the rest of the game.
Every Kansas starter scored in the double digits, led by Jalen Wilson, who had 20 points and seven rebounds, while Gradey Dick had 19 points and 11 rebounds.
This is KU’s 16th-straight year advancing to the round of 32.