No. 7 Kansas counting on Agbaji versus Texas

For all but two segments of its latest basketball victory, Kansas was "as dominant as we've been all year."

That was the postgame assessment Bill Self shared through clenched teeth.

What bothered the Kansas coach was a poor finish that nearly robbed the No. 7 Jayhawks of a 73-68 win at Baylor.

The only Jayhawk who seemed to maintain a level of assuredness was a freshman playing in just his second game, guard Ochai Agbaji. Occasional letdowns leave Self scratching his head about a 14-2 team that also sits 3-1 in the Big 12 entering a Monday home game against Texas (10-6, 2-2).

"He's been terrific. He's been great. He's going to continue to play more and more," Self said of Agbaji. "He needs to get his wind a little bit. But certainly, we're more active and athletic when he's in the game. I'm just (irritated) because you can't finish a game worse than that. And Ochai had the most poise of anybody out there down the stretch."

The decision to pull Agbaji's redshirt was facilitated by a season-ending injury to junior center Udoka Azubuike. Self sensed a need for more backcourt depth after switching mostly to a four-guard lineup that plays around 6-9 junior Dedric Lawson, the Jayhawks' top scorer and rebounder.

"We're going to need (Agbaji) to continue to play at a high level," Self said of the 6-5 recruit from Kansas City, Mo. Agbaji has averaged 23 minutes, 8.5 points and 3.5 rebounds in his two appearances.

The remainder of the Jayhawks, meanwhile, will be expected to do more to put the pedal down when seemingly in control. Six wins have been decided by six points or less, including two in overtime.

With Azubuike out, the Jayhawks lack mismatches the 7-footer created. Also, they have trouble attacking teams from 3-point range.

With 49 makes from behind the arc, senior guard Lagerald Vick has 45 percent of the team's 3-point goals after a 6-for-8 performance at Baylor.

Ballhandling, however, can make Vick a liability. He has 21 turnovers in four Big 12 games.

Texas had a string snapped Saturday that had endured since the inception of the Big 12.

A 22-game home win streak against No. 8 Texas Tech, dating to the final season of the Southwest Conference, was halted. The Longhorns must engage in a quick turnaround before facing a second straight top-10 opponent.

"The reality is, you don't get a lot of these opportunities," fourth-year coach Shaka Smart said after Texas threatened to upset Texas Tech before falling 68-62. "You want to grab hold of it."

Freshman forward Jaxson Hayes has provided a nice impact, leading the Big 12 with 74.7 percent shooting. He leads the Longhorns with 2.5 blocks per game and ranks second on the squad in scoring (10.1) and rebounding (5.1).

A pair of sophomore guards have been efficient in Big 12 play. Matt Coleman has 19 assists against three turnovers, while Jase Febres is averaging 11 points on 55.2 percent shooting.

Febres, however, committed a costly turnover inside the final minute of the Texas Tech defeat, which dropped Smart's overall Big 12 record to 25-33.

--Field Level Media