It’s not every day that a high-profile college athlete like Andrew Wiggins visits the O’Connell Center.
With the kind of hype he gets from the national media comes especially hostile treatment from opposing fans, and Tuesday night was no exception. Florida supporters let the Kansas guard hear it throughout the contest and even during warm-ups.
They teased Wiggins, a native of Ontario, Canada, and the favorite to be selected No. 1 overall in the 2014 NBA Draft, with chants of “U-S-A! U-S-A!” and “overrated.” One member of the Rowdy Reptiles even wore a baby carrier featuring a doll with Wiggins’ face taped onto it.
But while his team lost, Wiggins tuned out the noise in the O’Dome and proved why he’s one of the nation’s elite players.
During the No. 13 Jayhawks’ 67-61 loss to the No. 19 Gators, the freshman phenom finished with a career-high 26 points and 11 rebounds for his first double-double in a Kansas uniform.
While he committed four turnovers, Wiggins – a 33.3 percent three-point shooter entering Tuesday's game – sunk 4 of his 9 three-point attempts in 37 minutes of action. He also recorded two blocks.
Wiggins went 7-of-15 shooting from the floor and 8 of 8 from the charity stripe, but Kansas coach Bill Self was more impressed with what the 6-foot-8 guard did outside of scoring.
“He scored points, but he got 11 rebounds and we’ve been on his butt about doing that,” Self said. “I was glad that he was more aggressive and competed more.”
When Florida utilized a 1-3-1 zone early in the contest, Wiggins struggled to score and get touches on the offensive end. For a stretch of 5:04 during Florida’s 21-0 run, Wiggins went without a field-goal attempt.
“We went through it in practice and everything,” Wiggins said of Florida’s zone defense. “But their length in the 1-3-1 gave us problems at times.”
Self said Florida’s zone limited Wiggins’ opportunities in the first half.
“I actually thought he did some good things in the first half. I don’t think he got any touches,” Self said. “I don’t think our guards do anything to help him right now."
Wiggins finished the first half with a team-best eight points on 3-of-7 shooting and a 0-of-3 clip from downtown, but in the second half, he blossomed.
The Gators began to play more man-to-men sets on defense, and Wiggins found his comfort zone. He sunk four three-pointers in the second half, with the final three coming in the game’s closing 2:23.
His fourth three-pointer of the game – a deep look from the right wing over UF guard Michael Frazier II – had cut Florida’s lead to 60-55 with 55.8 seconds remaining, but the Gators responded by making 7 of 10 free-throw attempts to seal the win.
Wiggins was the only Jayhawk to score in double figures. Although his team failed to make a comeback Tuesday night and suffered its third loss in four games, Wiggins showcased his ruthless mentality on the court in the game's final minutes.
Said Wiggins: “Even though we lost – a tough loss – it just shows that we’re not going to back down.”
Follow Landon Watnick on Twitter @LandonWatnick.
Kansas guard Andrew Wiggins (22) attempts a layup during No. 19 Florida's 67-61 win against No. 13 Kansas on Tuesday night in the O'Connell Center.
