Kansas Jayhawks scrimmage at Late Night in Phog: Takeaways include KJ Adams’ passing
The University of Kansas basketball program held its 39th annual Late Night in the Phog event Friday night at Allen Fieldhouse.
The fan-friendly extravaganza tipped off basketball season for the KU men’s and women’s teams. Each squad held a scrimmage, in which players both familiar and new to KU showed off their moves.
Kansas star transfer Hunter Dickinson was impressed by the turnout of fans.
“I don’t think I’ve ever seen a building so packed for a dang Late Night,” he said. “(It was) incredible that so many people were so interested in this thing — introduction of the team, basically.”
The women’s Blue team won 31-27, while the men’s Crimson side prevailed 24-19. More about each scrimmage follows.
Five-star freshman S’Mya Nichols impresses
S’Mya Nichols, the freshman guard from Overland Park, received a shoutout from KU women’s basketball coach Brandon Schneider before the game.
He noted that Nichols was the program’s highest-rated recruit in 20 years. And she showed why during Friday evening’s 10-minute scrimmage.
As the point guard for the Blue team, Nichols was in total control of the offense. She pushed the pace when necessary, took advantage of lackadaisical transition defense and scored at will.
Sure, the effort level from the Red team could’ve been higher, but it was good to see Nichols at ease already. She’ll likely be a key contributor for a squad that’s hungry to build off last season’s WNIT championship.
Defensive intensity ran high in men’s scrimmage
It took more than five minutes of playing time for the two men’s teams to combine for more than 10 points.
One big reason for that: The defensive intensity from both squads was impressive.
Guys got back quickly in transition and contested nearly every shot, things you don’t necessarily see during scrimmages. But players on both squads missed multiple shots around the rim.
Still, KU coach Bill Self wasn’t exactly pleased with his team’s play.
“That was awful,” he said. “That was as bad a play as we’ve ever had for a Late Night. ... We looked bad, and I promise you we will look a lot better than that.”
KJ Adams showcases his passing prowess
One of the biggest questions heading into Late Night involved the role of men’s forward KJ Adams on offense.
On Friday, he showed that he can play whatever role KU needs him to play.
The Jayhawks used him as a secondary creator at times. He wowed the crowd by finding freshman guard Johnny Furphy inside for a thunderous dunk.
Before that, he created a wide-open three-pointer for Kevin McCullar (who missed it).
There isn’t a ton to take away from a scrimmage like this, but if the Jayhawks can utilize Adams’ ample skill-set their offense could be even more prolific than expected.
Dickinson praised Adams’ play alongside him.
“I think he just really makes it easy for me,” Dickinson said. “He makes my job a lot easier with his energy and effort. His passion for the game of basketball — he plays so hard out there ...
“He’s so unselfish, so it just makes it easy for me. That’s somebody you really want to play with, somebody you really want on your team, like a Draymond Green-type who is going to do everything that a lot of people don’t want to do.”
