OAKLAND, Calif. Granada controlled the boards and never trailed in a 65-54 win over Head-Royce on Tuesday. The loss dropped the Jayhawks to 6-4 and was their third in a row. Granada outrebounded Head-Royce 39-25 and turned 13 offensive rebounds into 11 second-chance points.
The only tie came at 2-2, when Jack Peay scored on an assist from Bryce Clepper. Granada took a 5-4 lead and then ran off eight straight points to go up 13-4. Head-Royce answered. Jonah Greenberg and Nick Taubes each scored, Clepper made two free throws, and Peay hit a 3-pointer off a Clepper assist to cut the deficit to 14-13.
Granada pulled away again with a 6-0 run, built on a second-chance basket and four free throws, to lead 23-15. The Jayhawks got back within 27-24 when Peay scored on a second-chance basket and Micah Nyamuzuwe followed with a 3-pointer off a turnover. Granada answered with back-to-back 3-pointers, part of another 6-0 run, and took a 41-28 lead into halftime.
Head-Royce outscored Granada 26-24 in the second half but never got closer than eight. Peay opened the half with a basket off a turnover, but Granada pushed its lead to a game-high 16 at 50-34. The Jayhawks then made their best push. Clepper made two free throws, Taubes hit a 3-pointer off a turnover, Clepper added a 3-pointer and Mikael Akpala scored off a turnover to make it 54-44. Greenberg scored on consecutive possessions to cut it to 56-48. Two free throws by Peay and a basket and two free throws by Taubes kept the gap at eight, 62-54, before Granada closed the scoring with a 3-pointer.
Peay and Clepper led Head-Royce with 13 points each. Peay, a sophomore, shot 5-for-11 from the field and grabbed a team-high seven rebounds. Clepper, a senior, went 6-for-9 at the free-throw line and added three assists and three steals. Taubes scored nine points off the bench and had three steals and three offensive rebounds. Greenberg made 3 of 4 shots for six points, and Nyamuzuwe finished with five points, three assists and three steals.
The Jayhawks defense created chances. Head-Royce forced 16 turnovers, made 13 steals and outscored Granada 14-8 in points off turnovers. The bench added 19 points. The offense could not keep pace, though. Head-Royce shot 20-for-58 (34.5 percent) from the field and 4-for-26 from 3-point range, while Granada shot 27-for-55 (49.1 percent) and had 16 assists. The Jayhawks scored just two second-chance points.
Head-Royce is now 6-4 on the season.