Duke vs. Kansas: Score and Reaction from Champions Classic 2016

The Kansas Jayhawks earned their first win of the 2016-17 season with a 77-75 victory over the Duke Blue Devils on Tuesday at Madison Square Garden in New York, and Frank Mason III played the hero.

Duke went on a 7-0 run in the final two minutes to tie the game at 75 after it appeared Kansas had done enough to earn the win, but Mason responded by drilling a step-back jumper in the waning seconds. The Blue Devils' half-court heave was off, and the No. 7 Jayhawks celebrated a win over the No. 1 team in the nation.

The ACC Digital Network shared video of the game-winning shot:

ESPN Stats & Info noted Duke has a history of losing such matchups:

The clash was part of the Champions Classic and gave Kansas an early opportunity to bounce back from its season-opening loss to Indiana. That is exactly what it did, though the Blue Devils played without key pieces in Harry Giles, Marques Bolden and Jayson Tatum.

Bryan Fischer of College Football Talk seemingly had those injuries in mind when he reacted to the finish:

Playing with a leg up or not, the Jayhawks outscored the Blue Devils 48-41 in the second half, and Mason came through with a clutch shot in the biggest moment.

Philadelphia 76ers center Joel Embiid, a former Kansas standout, was pleased with the result:

Duke head coach Mike Krzyzewski used just six players in his rotation because of the injuries, and Luke Kennard led the way with 22 points and five assists. The Blue Devils got 12 points each from Grayson Allen and Amile Jefferson and 11 apiece from Frank Jackson and Matt Jones, though Allen struggled shooting the ball, going 4-of-15 from the field and 1-of-7 from three-point range.

Mason scored a team-high 21 points, freshman Josh Jackson finished with 15 and Devonte' Graham added 13.

The Jayhawks won despite massive disadvantages at the free-throw line and from deep. Duke shot 21-of-30 (70 percent) from the charity stripe, while Kansas was just 9-of-19 (47.4 percent). The Blue Devils also hit eight of their 19 three-point attempts (42.1 percent), while the Jayhawks were a measly 2-of-17 from downtown (11.8 percent).

Kansas did outrebound Duke 38-29.

The Blue Devils controlled the early going, and Kennard made it 15-6 with two free throws less than six minutes into the game. The Jayhawks tied things at 16 with a Sviatoslav Mykhailiuk jumper and again at 29 with a Mason jumper.

Graham had made a three to knot it at 27 one possession after Jones hit a triple for Duke, and the back-and-forth was a welcome change after Kentucky had steamrolled Michigan State 69-48 in the first game of the doubleheader.

The Blue Devils finished the first half with a 5-0 run to take a 34-29 advantage, but they had other concerns, as Allen had gone down with an apparent injury, per Nicole Auerbach of USA Today:

The junior returned to the game in the second half, but that didn't stop Kansas from taking the lead.

Josh Jackson knocked down a left-handed runner in the lane that capped a 14-5 run to start the half and pushed the Jayhawks' edge to 43-39, and C.J. Moore of Bleacher Report reacted to the head-turning play:

Josh Jackson then drilled a three-pointer, and Udoka Azubuike sandwiched a layup and a dunk around a Jackson jumper to extend the lead to 52-43 with 11:36 to play.

It appeared as if Kansas was in full control, but Jackson picked up his fourth foul with more than nine minutes remaining. Carlton Bragg and Landen Lucas also had four fouls apiece, and Duke had plenty of time to come back.

The Jayhawks guards picked up the slack, however, as the team tweeted:

Kansas head coach Bill Self took a chance and put Josh Jackson back into the game, and he picked up his fifth and final foul with his team up 10 and 5:08 left.

Moore disagreed with the call:

The Blue Devils made a run with Josh Jackson out of the game. Down 68-59 with less than four minutes to go, Allen drained a three-pointer, and Frank Jackson converted a four-point play to cut the deficit to 70-66 with 3:04 remaining.

The Jayhawks answered with a basket by Bragg and later an and-1 by Mason to make it 75-68. The guard slashed into the lane, drew Jefferson's fifth foul and finished the runner.

Luke Winn of Sports Illustrated commented on the play:

But Duke came right back with a Kennard jumper, and after Mykhailiuk missed a layup following an offensive rebound, Allen netted one on the other end to make it 75-72.

Mason then missed a pair of shots, the first of which Chase Jeter blocked, and Kansas left open Frank Jackson, who hit a three to tie the game at 75 with 20 seconds left.

That's when Mason sank his cold-blooded shot from the top of the key.

What's Next?

Duke doesn't play a true road game until Dec. 10 against UNLV, though it faces notable teams such as Michigan State and Florida before that matchup with the Rebels.

Kansas' first true road game is Dec. 22, at UNLV as well. The Jayhawks face Stanford and Nebraska, among others, before that.

Postgame Reaction

Jesse Newell of the Kansas City Star shared Mason's comments about his shot:

According to Matt Galloway of the Topeka Capital-Journal, Graham said the last play went exactly as called, while Self said, "It was quite a play we called—just get out of his way and go shoot it."

Stephen Wiseman of the Herald-Sun noted Jefferson called the early part of the second half an "out of body experience"—and not in a favorable way.

Krzyzewski praised the Jayhawks, per Wiseman: "They play defense hard. Those two are terrific guards."

When asked about his injury, Allen said, "I finished the game, so I'm fine," per Wiseman.

That news was more important for Duke than the outcome of Tuesday's game.