KU basketball vs. Oklahoma State recap: Jayhawks win 69-67 in Big 12 Conference opener

LAWRENCE — Kansas men’s basketball’s 2022-23 regular season continued Saturday with its Big 12 Conference opener at home against Oklahoma State.

The No. 4 Jayhawks entered off of a win at home against Harvard. The Cowboys entered off of a win at home against Texas A&M-Corpus Christi.

Did coach Bill Self’s Jayhawks squad remain undefeated at home? Did coach Mike Boynton, Jr.’s crew avenge a pair of losses against Kansas last season? The Jayhawks’ run at back-to-back Big 12 regular season titles has started.

RELATED:Bill Self addresses health of Kansas basketball’s players and more ahead of Big 12 opener

RELATED:Here’s how to watch Kansas men's basketball Big 12 opener against Oklahoma State

Here's what happened inside Allen Fieldhouse:

FINAL: Kansas 69, Oklahoma State 67

Oklahoma State tied the score up at 67-67 after another Bryce Thompson 3-pointer, but then KJ Adams Jr. got a bucket for Kansas on the other end. The Jayhawks then got multiple stops defensively. Kansas wins 69-67.

Kansas leads 65-64 against Oklahoma State with 30.5 seconds left in 2nd half

The Jayhawks are back on top. Once again this season, Kevin McCullar Jr. has hit a critical 3-pointer from the corner. Kansas leads 65-64 at an Oklahoma State timeout with less than a minute left.

Oklahoma State leads 64-62 against Kansas with 1:41 left in 2nd half

Kansas has called a timeout after Oklahoma State took the lead back. That came on a 3-pointer from the Cowboys' Bryce Thompson. Although the Jayhawks looked to be in control, Oklahoma State isn't going anywhere.

Kansas leads 60-57 against Oklahoma State with 3:54 left in 2nd half

Although this is still a close game, it seems like one that the Jayhawks are in control of. They just have to be careful on defense, and offense to an extent, with three of their starters — KJ Adams Jr., Gradey Dick and Kevin McCullar Jr. — at four fouls. Bryce Thompson is the only Oklahoma State player with four fouls.

Free throws haven't been a significant factor so far in this game. Neither team has taken more than nine over the course of it. But that could change late here, with Oklahoma State already in the bonus and Kansas approaching that.

Kansas and Oklahoma State are tied 55-55 with 6:38 left in 2nd half

Kansas took its first lead since it was up 2-0 when it went up 52-50 on a 3-pointer from Jalen Wilson. The teams have gone back and forth since, and are tied up at 55-55 with about six and a half minutes left. Some foul trouble to think about is the Jayhawks' Kevin McCullar Jr. and Cowboys' Bryce Thompson are both at four fouls.

It's also interesting that Kansas has made this comeback without much change to the disparity in points off of turnovers. Oklahoma State has 22 points off of 12 Jayhawks miscues. Kansas has five points off of 11 Cowboys miscues.

Oklahoma State leads 50-48 against Kansas with 11:55 left in 2nd half

Kansas will have a chance to tie the score coming out of this timeout. Kevin McCullar Jr. is going to the free throw line for a couple attempts. If the Jayhawks can continue to build some momentum, they may lead for the first time since they were up 2-0.

Kansas is shooting 7-for-14 from the field and 4-for-8 from behind the arc so far in the second half. Oklahoma State is shooting 2-for-10 from the field and 1-for-3 from behind the arc. Dajuan Harris Jr. hitting a couple 3s for the Jayhawks has been massive.

Oklahoma State leads 48-43 against Kansas with 14:26 left in 2nd half

The Jayhawks are on an 8-0 run, and have forced a timeout from the Cowboys. Oklahoma State hasn't scored in more than two minutes. Kansas is leading the second half 13-3 right now.

Gradey Dick is known for hitting 3s for the Jayhawks, but some of the biggest plays he's made in the second half have been on offensive rebounds. Twice, he's given Kansas an extra possession. Twice, the Jayhawks have made the most of it by hitting 3s — once Dajuan Harris Jr. and once Jalen Wilson.

Oklahoma State leads 48-38 against Kansas with 15:45 left in 2nd half

If there was any indication Kansas was going to have a chance in the second half, getting things started with Dajuan Harris Jr. hitting a 3-pointer was probably it. With 15:45 left, the deficit is down to 10 points. Allen Fieldhouse is as energized as it has been all season.

Something to watch, is Oklahoma State's Bryce Thompson is now at three fouls. He's the game's leading scorer at 17 points. He's 5-for-7 from behind the arc, for a Cowboys squad that's 10-for-19.

HALFTIME: Oklahoma State 45, Kansas 30

If there's any indication of how much things are going wrong for Kansas right now, Cam Martin saw some time on the court during the first half and it wasn't because the Jayhawks were up big. Head coach Bill Self appears to be trying just about anything to get some scoring. He's already gone six-deep into his bench.

Oklahoma State leads 32-23 against Kansas with 3:01 left in 1st half

KJ Adams Jr. has a couple free throws coming, so Kansas will have an opportunity to cut into its deficit without any time coming off the clock, but the Jayhawks are trailing by nine points with about three minutes left before halftime. Points off turnovers continue to be an issue for Kansas. While Oklahoma State has capitalized for 14 points off of nine Jayhawks miscues, Kansas has just two points off of five Cowboys miscues.

Former Jayhawks talent Bryce Thompson has continued to shoot the ball well for Oklahoma State. He already has 14 points. He's 4-for-6 from behind the arc.

Oklahoma State leads 21-13 against Kansas with 9:14 left in 1st half

Joseph Yesufu came off the bench and hit a 3-pointer to tie the score at 13-13 for Kansas, but then Oklahoma State went on an 8-0 run that's forced a timeout for the Jayhawks. The Cowboys are 4-for-9 from behind the arc so far. Kansas can't keep up.

Something to watch as well is KJ Adams Jr. already has two fouls. That means Zach Clemence will see some first half minutes. Adams has often been a reliable, if undersized, big for the Jayhawks.

Oklahoma State leads 13-10 against Kansas with 11:16 left in 1st half

Zuby Ejiofor and Bobby Pettiford Jr. were Kansas' first two substitutions off the bench, and Ejiofor has held up well for the Jayhawks. Ejiofor has four points on a couple made baskets. And he's played well on the defensive end as well.

Kansas is still trailing, though, by three points with a bit more than 11 minutes left in the first half. Bryce Thompson, a former Jayhawks player, leads Oklahoma State and all scorers with six points. Thompson has hit a pair of 3s.

Oklahoma State leads 8-4 against Kansas with 15:27 left in 1st half

It took nearly two minutes for the game to see its first points, when Jalen Wilson hit a jumper for Kansas, and from there the Jayhawks' offense hasn't gotten much better. They're trailing by four points about four and a half minutes into the game. They're turning the ball over too much.

Rectifying that could come from forcing turnovers and getting into transition, but Kansas has to make the most of those opportunities when they come. Gradey Dick already botched one fast-break opportunity with a missed layup. The Jayhawks can't afford those right now.

The game has started

Kansas won the opening tip-off, and this one is underway.

The starters

No surprises in who's available for Kansas

A Kansas walk-on continues to make his way back from injury

The teams are getting ready

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: KU basketball vs. Oklahoma State: Live score updates from Big 12 game