LAWRENCE, Kan. _ Kansas won't be sharing its historic 14th straight Big 12 championship with any of its fellow conference members in 2017-18.
The sixth-ranked Jayhawks (24-6, 13-4), who clinched at least a tie for the title by beating Texas Tech on Saturday in Lubbock, Texas, wrapped up the undisputed crown by topping Texas 80-70 on Monday night _ Senior Night for Devonte Graham, Svi Mykhailiuk and Clay Young _ at Allen Fieldhouse.
Graham scored 10 points, dished out 11 assists and grabbed four rebounds. Mykhailiuk went for 17 points and three rebounds, and walk-on Young had one assist in 4 minutes while making his first career start, all helping the Jayhawks to their 35th straight victory in a season home finale, which includes 34 Senior Nights.
KU did not have a senior on the roster in 2007.
Udoka Azubuike, who is just a sophomore, exploded for 20 points with eight rebounds and five blocks _ he went 10 of 11 from the field and 0-4 from the free-throw line _ while freshman Marcus Garrett added 11 points and four rebounds with three assists and three steals for the Jayhawks.
Malik Newman contributed nine points for KU, which won its ninth straight game and 14th in the last 15 tries versus the Longhorns (17-13, 7-10), who were playing without Mo Bamba (toe injury), Eric Davis (being held out of action in wake of a Yahoo sports story regarding possible NCAA violations) and Andrew Jones, who is fighting leukemia.
The Jayhawks _ whose 14th straight conference title surpasses UCLA (which won 13 from 1967 to 1979) on the all-time list for consecutive conference crowns _ wore T-shirts honoring Jones during warmups.
Texas was led by Kerwin Roach, who scored 18 points. Dylan Osetkowski, who fouled out by bowling Mykhailiuk with 7:28 left, had 13 points and five boards. Jacob Young contributed 14 points.
KU led by 13 points at halftime, then saw the lead shrink to six at 51-45 at 15:11, but the Longhorns crept no closer. Kansas scored five straight points on a bucket by Garrett and a 3 from Newman to make it 56-45 at 13:55. KU led by as many as 15 (69-54) at 7:47.
KU's seniors and their parents were introduced to the crowd before the game. It was noted by the public address announcer that Inna and Iurri Mykhailiuk made the 5,500-mile trip from Ukraine to attend the contest.
"I have a lot of memories here. It's one of the best programs in the nation. I'm blessed to go to school here," Svi Mykhailiuk said in a pregame video played for the fans.
He and Graham came out strong after the emotional ceremony, helping KU storm to a 45-32 lead at the break. Shooting guard Mykhailiuk scored 14 points in the half on 6-of-9 shooting. He went 2 of 4 from 3 while playing 18 minutes. Point guard Graham had seven assists and three rebounds to go with his eight points, while center Azubuike had eight points and three rebounds with two blocks.
"It has taken me all over the world," Graham said of KU basketball in the pregame video. "It's changed my life for the better. It means so much to me, being able to play at a place like this."
Meanwhile, Lansing High graduate Young played the first 4 minutes in making his first career start.
He had an assist off a pinpoint pass to his roommate Azubuike to give KU a 4-3 lead. Young left with the score tied at 8 at 16:01.
"I've learned so much and experienced so much in my time here," Young said. "Not only does Kansas basketball mean so much to me, but the university means so much to me."
Texas sliced into KU's early 14-point lead, narrowing the gap to 29-23 at 5:41. KU closed the half 16-9 to grab the 13-point lead after 20 minutes Mykhailiuk had five points, Lagerald Vick scored four and Silvio De Sousa added a bucket and free throw in the half-ending run. Roach had 14 points for Texas during the half.
Kansas finished its 2017-18 home season with a total of three losses in Allen. The last time KU lost three home games was 1998-99.
KU will conclude the regular season at Oklahoma State on Saturday. Tipoff is 3:15 p.m. at Gallagher-Iba Arena.
