Coleman-Lands scores 20, No. 6 KU beats George Mason 76-67

Updated Jan. 1, 2022 7:04 p.m. ET

Associated Press

LAWRENCE, Kan. (AP) — Jalen Coleman-Lands came off the bench to hit five 3-pointers and score 20 points, reserve Mitch Lightfoot added 14 points, and sixth-ranked Kansas held off George Mason 76-67 on Saturday in a late addition to the schedule.

The game was put together earlier this week when Kansas had its Big 12 opener against TCU postponed due to a COVID-19 outbreak. George Mason was willing to play anywhere after it had four straight games canceled or postponed.

The Patriots were up for the challenge, too. Kansas led 66-61 with 3 minutes left when Christian Braun rattled in a 3-pointer to extend the lead. George Mason came up empty on its next two possessions, and Ochai Agbaji converted a three-point play with 1:48 to go to put the game out of reach.

Braun finished with 14 points and Agbaji had 11 for the Jayhawks (11-1), who never led by more than 12 before holding off the upstarts from the Atlantic 10 to win their 25th consecutive nonconference home game.

D'Shawn Schwartz had 15 points and 12 rebounds, and Davonte Gaines also scored 15 for George Mason (7-6). Leading scorer Josh Oduro added 12 points and DeVon Cooper and Xavier Johnson had 11 apiece.

Even though the matchup was added late, and it was accompanied by a swirling snowstorm and single-digit temperatures, Kansas officials said they managed to sell out Allen Fieldhouse for the 325th straight time dating to the 2001-02 season.

Still, there were plenty of empty seats at the Phog as George Mason stood toe-to-toe with the sluggish Jayhawks in the first half.

Part of that had to do with Kansas playing without starting point guard Remy Martin, who has a minor knee injury. That forced coach Bill Self into using some unorthodox lineups, including extra playing time for Coleman-Lands, a transfer from Iowa State, and Drake transplant Joseph Yesefu.

Coleman-Lands made the most of his time with three first-half 3s that helped Kansas pull ahead 48-37 at the break.

He kept going in the second half. Coleman-Lands added another closely guarded 3 from the wing to push the lead to 63-53 with 8:39 to play, and forcing former Missouri star and current Patriots coach Kim English to call timeout.

The game remained close all the way to the final minute.

MISSING REMY

Martin, the Jayhawks' transfer from Arizona State, injured his knee earlier in the week against Nevada. Martin is averaging 10.7 points while shooting 41.2% from beyond the 3-point arc.

ENGLISH LESSON

English went 2-5 against Kansas during his playing career at Missouri. But the electric guard was 0 for 4 in Allen Fieldhouse, and he was on the team that lost an overtime heartbreaker in 2012 in their last Border War game as Big 12 rivals.

THE TAKEAWAY

George Mason wasn't intimidated by playing on the road in a bigger environment. The Patriots won at No. 20 Maryland in November and at Georgia in December, and they played Washington close at the Crossover Classic.

Kansas was nearly flawless in a blowout of Nevada on Wednesday. That wasn't the case against George Mason. The Jayhawks only had nine turnovers but struggled all night to get into offensive rhythm or guard the 3-point arc on defense.

UP NEXT

George Mason is finally supposed to play its A-10 opener against Rhode Island on Wednesday night. The Jayhawks hope to open Big 12 play at Oklahoma State on Tuesday night.

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