Davidson Knocks Off No. 12 Kansas

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Postgame presser with juniors JP Kuhlman and Nik Cochran - courtesy of KU athletics
Postgame presser with Bob McKillop - courtesy of KU athletics
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KANSAS CITY, Mo. – Nik Cochran scored 19 of his 21 points in the second half to lead Davidson to an 80-74 men's basketball victory over No. 12 Kansas (AP Poll) Monday night in the Sprint Center.

It was the Wildcats' first win over a ranked opponent since defeating No. 6 Wisconsin in the 2008 NCAA Tournament and the fourth victory over a ranked team in head coach Bob McKillop's tenure.

JP Kuhlman finished with 15 points, five rebounds and four assists for Davidson (7-3), and De'Mon Brooks scored 13 points. Jake Cohen netted 12 points.

Thomas Robinson led the Jayhawks (7-3) with 21 points and 18 rebounds, while Tyshawn Taylor tallied 15 points and seven assists. Elijah Johnson posted 15 points and six assists.

With Davidson leading by three with 1:33 left in the contest, Cochran drilled a 25-foot 3-pointer with the shot clock winding down to put the Wildcats ahead, 71-65.

Taylor missed a triple try on Kansas' trip down the floor and the Jayhawks were forced to foul with 1:16 to play. Cochran and Kuhlman went 9-for-10 from the charity stripe for the rest of the game to seal the win.

The score was tied 55-55 with 6:33 remaining, when Kuhlman sparked a 7-1 mini run with a jumper and then nailed a triple from the corner. Cohen capped the stretch with a layup off a feed from Tom Droney to put Davidson up six points.

Robinson got a conventional 3-point play for the Jayhawks, but Cohen answered with another layup, this time off a Kuhlman assist, making the score 64-59 with 3:40 left. Travis Releford got a tip-in on Kansas' trip down the floor, and Davidson called a timeout to set up a play. Cochran was fouled on a backdoor cut and calmly sank both free throws, pushing the margin back to five.

Taylor hit a jumper for the Jayhawks, and after each team had an empty offensive possession, Droney was fouled and sank two free throws. Taylor knocked down two free throws on the other end to make the margin 68-65 with 2:07 remaining and set up Cochran's late-game heroics.

Brooks scored seven points as Davidson jumped out to a 9-3 lead early in the game. The margin grew to as many as 11 on a Chris Czerapowicz triple with 7:08 left in the half.

Trailing 26-15, Kansas scored 13 consecutive points and took its first and only lead of the game on a Conner Teahan 3-pointer with 3:40 to play. But Kuhlman helped Davidson right the ship with three straight baskets, and the 'Cats led 33-32 at halftime. Davidson, which finished the game with 12 turnovers, committed all 12 in the first half.

The Wildcats finishes their three-game road trip at UMass Dec. 22. Tipoff is slated for 7 p.m.

Game Notes: The 'Cats only trailed for a total of 14 seconds in the contest… It was only Davidson's second meeting against Kansas; the first came in the 2008 NCAA Tournament, a 59-57 Jayhawk victory in the Elite Eight… Davidson halted a nine-game losing skid against ranked opponents… Davidson matched a season high with 11 3-pointers.

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Nik Cochran

JP Kuhlman

De'Mon Brooks

Jake Cohen

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