No. 1 Kansas jumped out of the gates early, then overcame a second-half shutout by All-America center Hunter Dickinson on Tuesday to secure a thrilling 75-72 victory over 11th-ranked Duke on Tuesday night.

The Jayhawks secured the high-profile win in Las Vegas while limiting Duke’s Cooper Flagg to 13 points and forcing the freshman phenom into four turnovers. Flagg’s supporting cast led several runs to keep the game close before the tone of the game took a dramatic turn midway through the second half.

With Kansas leading 57-55, Dickinson grabbed an offensive rebound in traffic and was beaten by Duke’s Maliq Brown. Both players fell to the ground, their bodies tangled. While he was on the ground, Dickinson kicked Brown in the head with his right foot and a brief scuffle ensued.

The officials assessed Brown a personal foul on the ground and then went to the monitor. After a lengthy review, they gave Dickinson a flagrant 2nd technical foul, a penalty that resulted in an ejection. Dickinson’s evening was over and he had to leave the Kansas bench.

Dickinson remained on the bench before officials realized he was still there at the next break. Eventually he was led off the pitch with an escort.

Kansas claims after Dickinson’s expulsion

The game was a back-and-forth battle the rest of the way before Duke had a chance for a go-ahead score in the final seconds of the game, trailing 72-71. But Kansas defenders forced Kon Knueppel into a turnover in the lane with 3.3 seconds left, and Kansas guard Rylan Griffen escaped with the ball.

At the other end, Griffen hit two free throws to extend the lead to three, and Duke failed to respond on its final possession with 3.3 seconds left. Knueppel took one last look at a 3-pointer, but it rolled off the rim as the final buzzer sounded.

It added up to another strong performance by Kansas against a top opponent, improving to 6-0. The win was the Jayhawks’ second over a top-11 opponent after they survived a second-half surge against then-No. 9 North Carolina at home on November 8th.

On Tuesday, Kansas held its composure without its best player.

Jayhawks fend off multiple Duke runs

The Jayhawks took control early and took an early 16-3 lead. They repeatedly faced Flagg with double teams, physical play and a strong one-on-one defensive performance from senior forward KJ Adams Jr.

But Duke held firm and cut the Kansas lead to 41-39 at halftime, thanks in part to a 3-pointer from junior guard Tyrese Proctor. The Blue Devils kept pace despite only getting two points from Flagg in the first half.

Duke then took the lead at 42-41 after halftime for the first time since the first minute of the game. But Kansas fought back. The Jayhawks went on a 9-0 run to regain control of the game with a 50-42 lead.

Duke responded with a 15-7 run before Dickinson’s flagrant foul changed the tenor of the game. But the Jayhawks didn’t back down.

A dunk by Flagg gave Duke a 67-65 lead with 5:53 left. But Griffen responded with a personal 6-0 run to retake the Kansas lead 71-67. Duke would tie the game at 71-71, but Kansas never trailed again, surviving two go-ahead attempts by Duke in the final four seconds of the game.

Kansas had a balanced performance on offense, led by Dajuan Harris Jr. with 14 points. Dickinson had 11 points, six rebounds, three assists and two steals at the time of his exit. Adams was a force on defense, posting eight points, two rebounds, three assists, three steals and three blocks. The Jayhawks shot 49.1% from the floor and 8 of 17 from 3 (47.1%) and made 11 of 12 free throws.

Proctor led Duke with 15 points, six rebounds, two assists and two steals. Flagg added five rebounds and three assists to his 13 points. One of his four turnovers occurred when Duke was trying to take the lead with 48 seconds left.

Duke shot 50% from the field and 42.3% from three, but that wasn’t enough to defeat a resilient Kansas team.