Jalen Wilson scores team-high 21 points, more takeaways from KU basketball's win against NDSU

LAWRENCE — Kansas men’s basketball has put together back-to-back wins to open the 2022-23 regular season after an 82-59 victory Thursday at home against North Dakota State.

Here are four takeaways from the No. 5 Jayhawks (2-0) contest:

Jalen Wilson continues to be a high-volume shot-taker

Last season, as Kansas went on its national championship run, redshirt junior forward Jalen Wilson had just one game when he had at least 16 shots from the field. That was in the Sweet 16 of the NCAA tournament against Providence. He went 5-for-16 from the field, including a 1-for-3 mark from behind the arc, and was able to get to 16 points in part because he went 5-for-5 from the free-throw line.

So far this season, through two games, he’s finished with at least 16 shots from the field. He went 7-for-16 from the field, including a 3-for-7 mark on 3s, in addition to hitting both free throws in a 19-point performance against Omaha in the opener. He went 8-for-17, including 3-for-6 on 3s, in addition to hitting both free throws again in a 21-point performance Thursday against North Dakota State.

More:Norm Roberts on Dajuan Harris Jr.’s status, more ahead of Kansas basketball’s NDSU matchup

Jayhawks’ MJ Rice plays for first time

Freshman guard MJ Rice didn’t appear in Kansas’ exhibition contest or its season opener as he recovered from a back injury, but certainly made his presence felt quickly on the offensive end of the floor after he entered his first Jayhawks contest Thursday with about 14 minutes remaining in the first half. By game’s end, Rice has a stat line that includes 10 points, four rebounds and two assists. And he showcased time and again, although he did have four fouls, that he deserves to be in the rotation.

Rice joined Kansas as a McDonald’s All-American and 247Sports Composite four-start prospect, ranked 30th in the nation. Combine that with the fact he’s listed at 6-foot-5 and 215 pounds, and he certainly appeared as if he’d have a role in his first year with the Jayhawks. It was just a matter of how quickly he might be able to realize that potential, with head coach Bill Self indicating at one point ahead of the season the role Rice would have in Big 12 Conference play would be much different than the role Rice would have early this season.

Kansas handles North Dakota State’s two main bigs

Just how talented North Dakota State junior forward Grant Nelson and sophomore forward Andrew Morgan are was a topic of conversation ahead of this contest. As Kansas coaches previewed the matchup, they noted that this game would be focused on the interior. And yet, over the course of the game, the Jayhawks didn’t appear to have much trouble taking care of either of them on a night Kansas also had a 46-22 advantage in points in the paint.

More:Kansas men’s basketball opens season with a resounding win with Norm Roberts at the helm

Nelson nearly had a double-double at 11 points and nine rebounds, but turned the ball over five times and struggled shooting the ball from the field. Morgan didn’t rebound the ball much at all, although he was efficient from the field shooting the ball as he finished with eight points. The Jayhawks’ bigs passed this test, especially considering it’s not as if North Dakota State — which never led — saw other players go off for significant nights because of opportunities Nelson and Morgan deserve the credit for creating.

Kansas’ attention can now turn toward Duke

Now that Kansas has dispatched North Dakota State, the Jayhawks’ focus — if it wasn’t there already — can shift toward Duke. This is the game fans likely had circled on the schedule when it was unveiled and finalized. It’ll pit two blue-blood programs against each other Nov. 15 in Indianapolis at the Champions Classic.

Yes, this one will look a bit different than past Champions Classic matchups for Kansas. Self won’t be there, and neither will assistant coach Kurtis Townsend, as the team’s self-imposed suspensions for them continue through that contest and the Nov. 18 game at home against Southern Utah. But assistant coach Norm Roberts, the interim head coach during this period of time, does have the team moving along with some momentum.

Jordan Guskey covers University of Kansas Athletics at The Topeka Capital-Journal. Contact him at jmguskey@gannett.com or on Twitter at @JordanGuskey.

This article originally appeared on Topeka Capital-Journal: Jalen Wilson scores 21 points in Kansas basketball's win against NDSU