Published 12:00 am Wednesday, November 13, 2013
CHICAGO — Andrew Wiggins soared toward the hoop as Jabari Parker made one more attempt to stop his fellow freshman star.
No such luck. Wiggins owned the end of Parker’s impressive homecoming.
Wiggins scored 16 of his 22 points in the second half, outplaying Parker down the stretch and helping No. 5 Kansas knock off fourth-ranked Duke 94-83 on Tuesday night.
Parker, a former prep star at nearby Simeon High School, had 27 points, nine rebounds and three steals in a spectacular return to his hometown. But it was Wiggins who made the biggest plays in the final minutes of a taut thriller between two storied programs.
Wiggins drained a stepback jumper to give the Jayhawks an 85-81 lead with 1:33 to go, and then had a fast-break dunk while being fouled by a trailing Parker. Wiggins held his arms out and yelled after the big dunk, delighting the raucous crowd at the United Center.
Ellis finished with 24 points and Wayne Selden had 15 for the Jayhawks (2-0), who went 27 for 35 at the foul line, compared to 16 of 28 for the Blue Devils. Wiggins also had 10 rebounds despite battling foul trouble for much of the game.
Kansas scored 17 of the final 23 points after Rasheed Sulaimon made a jumper for Duke that tied it at 77 with 3:50 left.
Amile Jefferson had 17 points for Duke (1-1), which dropped to 7-3 in the all-time series against Kansas. Rodney Hood scored 11 points.