KJ Adams Jr. stats last night: How did the Kansas forward perform against Cincinnati?

Junior forward KJ Adams Jr. endured a tough night as the shorthanded No. 16 Kansas Jayhawks lost 75-52 to the Cincinnati Bearcuts in a round II Big-12 Tournament matchup on Wednesday.

In 34 minutes, Adams registered 22 points, four rebounds, two assists and one block, shooting 9-14 but avoiding the 3-point line altogether. It marked only the second time that he scored 20+ points in his collegiate career, having also scored 22 points in a 2022-23 regular-season game against the Oklahoma Sooners.

After a disappointing freshman year, Adams was named the Big 12 Most Improved Player for the 2022-23 season, averaging 10.6 points, 4.3 rebounds and 1.9 assists per game.

This season, he's averaging a slightly better 12.1 points, 4.5 rebounds, 3.1 assists and 1.2 steals per game, with an improved shooting of 59.9%.

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Where did it go wrong for Kansas?

Kansas' woes started earlier in the week when coach Bill Self said that Hunter Dickinson and Kevin McCullar Jr. won't play the Big-12 Tournament.

Dickinson is nursing a dislocated right shoulder injury sustained during Saturday's 76-46 loss to No. 1 Houston.

"The bad news is he's not going to play this week ... so he'll be available to us with the NCAA Tournament," Self said.

"And not only available, but he should be fine. I mean, he'll be conditioning and doing non-contact basketball stuff by Thursday or Friday."

Kevin McCullar's bone bruise on his knee has been nagging the guard for a few weeks. Self added that McCullar will also be sidelined ahead of March Madness.

"Kevin will not play this week. ... But that's a positive too because everyone thinks that the time off will obviously help him, so he will play in the NCAA Tournament as well."

"Our goal for Kevin is very similar to Hunter in that non-contact stuff and then by Monday be practicing and doing that so that's what we're hopeful for."

Without their offensive and rebounding powerhouses, Kansas struggled. Cincinnati capitalized on that, scoring baskets from the first buzzer and had a 15-point lead with 1:02 minutes on the clock in the first half.

Trailing 35-28 ta half-time, Kansas tried to catch up and made it 40-38 eight minutes into the second half, but it was not enough to beat the Bearcats.

With Cincinnati progressing to the next round, the Jayhawks will next prepare for the Big Dance. They have lost their No. 1 seed and will look at a No. 4 or No. 5 seed on Selection Sunday.