Kansas vs. Austin Peay: Score and Twitter Reaction from March Madness 2016

The Kansas Jayhawks did not become the first No. 1 seed to lose against a No. 16 seed in the NCAA men's basketball tournament, as the Big 12 champions dominated the Austin Peay Governors, 105-79, to cruise into the round of 32. 

Austin Peay, which entered Thursday's game with an 18-17 record, was able to keep the game close for nearly 10 minutes in the first half. The Governors were down 12-10 at the 12-minute mark, but Kansas opened the game up with a 36-18 run heading into the break.

Zach Harper of CBS Sports humorously noted how important it was for Kansas to stay ahead of Austin Peay in the early going:

This was a game in which the Jayhawks were going through the motions, especially after building a 20-point halftime lead. As the NCAA's March Madness Twitter account noted during the run, Kansas looked like a "well-oiled machine":

There was some sloppy play by Kansas early in the second half, with Wayne Selden Jr. and Devonte' Graham getting into foul trouble, but there was never any doubt about the outcome of this matchup. 

Perry Ellis had a strong performance in the win, breaking the 20-point mark for the fifth straight game. The senior is playing in his final NCAA tournament, which brought out some humorists such as Not Jerry Tipton:

Ellis' 21 points marked his best output in an NCAA tournament game, breezing by the 17 he scored in last year's loss against Wichita State. Landen Lucas chipped in with 16 points and eight rebounds for the Jayhawks.

Looking at the bigger picture for Kansas, there are two competing storylines. 

On one hand, being the tournament's No. 1 overall seed has been good lately, per SportsCenter:

On the other hand, Kansas head coach Bill Self is aware of the history when President Barack Obama has picked his team to win the national title, per Fox Sports' Reid Forgrave:

President Obama previously picked the Jayhawks in 2010 and 2011. The 2010 team lost in the second round to Northern Iowa, while the 2011 squad was a victim of Virginia Commonwealth's Cinderella run in the Elite Eight.

Speaking to ESPN's Andy Katz about taking the Jayhawks despite being burned twice before, Obama said feels he is due: "Bill Self owes me. I'm putting Kansas in here. Coach, I'm just teasing. I'm not putting pressure on you. But I think the Jayhawks in a squeaker get past UNC.''

It's never easy to make grand proclamations after a blowout, but Dave Shook of the Kansas Jayhawk Radio Network liked what he saw from Sviatoslav Mykhailiuk off the bench:

Mykhailiuk had the best game of his career, dropping 23 points after averaging 5.2 per game during the regular season.

While Mykhailiuk's production came out of nowhere, Mike Schmitz of The Vertical had high praise for Kansas' sophomore:

Though the team does not have much to show for its NCAA tournament experience, Austin Peay's run to the Big Dance did provide some highlights. The Governors won six straight games in the regular season and Ohio Valley tournament to earn their first tournament berth since 2008. 

On the court, sophomore Josh Robinson scored a game-high 24 points. Senior center Chris Horton added a double-double with 14 points and 10 rebounds in his final game for the Governors. 

This was as close to a perfect start as Kansas could have asked for in the NCAA tournament. Self was able to get his entire rotation into the mix with no one exerting a lot of unnecessary energy to set up a showdown with Connecticut in the round of 32.

The Huskies tend to do unusual things as lower seeds in March, but the Jayhawks were the best team in college basketball all year for a reason.

Post-Game Reaction

Self said after Kansas' win that he wasn't entirely pleased with his team's performance, via ESPN.com: "We played pretty well in stretches. Didn't guard as well as we needed to guard to have a chance to advance past Saturday. So we've got to tighten that up. I do like how our bench played."

The Jayhawks got 45 of their 105 points off the bench and nine players scored at least two points, so there's plenty for Self to work with heading into Saturday. 

Mykhailiuk, who was so crucial off the bench, earned praise from his teammate Jamari Taylor in the same ESPN.com report: "It's like that all the time in practice. He didn't surprise me because I see it all the time from him. He's just got to stay confident like this."

Kansas is dangerous enough with the roster it primarily used during the season. Mykhailiuk's evolution could be the missing piece needed to bring a title to Lawrence, Kansas on April 4. 

Check out Bleacher Report's live updating bracket to track your picks along the road to the Final Four.