The Davidson Wildcats had an upset brewing in Kansas City on Saturday night. Peyton Aldridge led the way with 22 points, and a few minutes into the second half, Davidson held a 5 point lead over Kansas and was looking like it had a chance. Davidson’s been through an absolutely brutal non-conference schedule as it’s now faced Clemson, North Carolina, and Kansas. The Wildcats played similarly against the Tar Heels a week ago; they went toe-to-toe with one of the best teams in the nation but ultimately got overwhelmed.
Davidson ended up losing to Kansas 89-71 in a semi-away game, but the score is a bit misleading considering the Wildcats held the lead at halftime. Peyton Aldridge’s 5 three pointers helped keep his team right with the Jayhawks for a decent portion of the game. Jack Gibbs and Nathan Ekwu both scored in double digits with 12 and 10 respectively. Davidson was turned over 13 times compared to just 6 times for Kansas. The Jayhawks did not hit a three pointer in the first half but ended up making 6 towards the end of regulation.
Kansas used its studs to run away from Davidson in the second half. Josh Jackson and Frank Mason both led the way for the Jayhawks with 18 apiece. Sviatoslav Mykhailiuk and Devonte’ Graham added 12 and 10 as well. Kansas showed exactly why it’s the #3 team in the nation when it seemed Davidson actually had a chance to pull this one out. The Jayhawks responded with poise, attacked the hoop, got shots to fall, and forced Davidson to be uncomfortable on both ends of the floor. Davidson has been wringer having to face UNC and Kansas recently, but a tough non-conference schedule like that helps prepare a team for conference play. Davidson moves to 5-4 and will have home games against Jacksonville and Hartford before starting conference play.
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