OAKLAND, Calif. Head-Royce forced 25 turnovers and turned them into 21 points as the Jayhawks beat Emerald 71-31 on Wednesday. The win improved Head-Royce to 12-5 and gave the Jayhawks their second straight victory.
Head-Royce never trailed. Loryan Boyette-Tindall opened the scoring with a 3-pointer on an assist from Jack Peay. After an Emerald basket made it 3-2, the Jayhawks scored the next eight points. Nick Taubes scored twice off turnovers and Boyette-Tindall added two baskets, the first off a turnover, to make it 11-2.
Emerald cut the lead to 14-7, and then Head-Royce pulled away with a 13-0 run. Jack Peay hit a 3-pointer, Sanjay Ernst scored off a turnover, and Boyette-Tindall and Jack Peay combined for three free throws. Boyette-Tindall then hit a 3-pointer off a turnover, and Taubes finished a pass from Tucker Peay to make it 27-7. Emerald answered with a 3-pointer, but the Jayhawks followed with an 11-0 run. Alex Jones hit a 3-pointer, Boyette-Tindall scored off a turnover, Tucker Peay scored twice and Azaan made two free throws to make it 38-10. Waylon Miller scored the last six points of the half, and Head-Royce led 48-17 at halftime.
Jones opened the second half with a 3-pointer on an assist from Ernst, finishing a 7-0 run that made it 51-17. Jack Peay scored seven of the Jayhawks' next nine points. Alex Dornbusch added two 3-pointers, and the second one made it 68-27, the largest lead of the game at 41 points. Miller closed the scoring with a basket and a free throw, and Head-Royce outscored Emerald 23-14 in the second half.
Boyette-Tindall led the Jayhawks with 14 points on 5-of-8 shooting, including 2 of 4 from 3-point range. He also had four steals, four rebounds and three assists. Miller scored 11 points off the bench, made all five of his free throws and had a team-high six rebounds. Jack Peay had 10 points and three assists and made 5 of 7 free throws. Taubes scored eight points on 4-of-4 shooting, and Tucker Peay added eight points off the bench. Jones, a junior guard, had six points, a team-high five steals and three assists, and Dornbusch scored six points.
The defense decided the game. Head-Royce had 18 steals and committed only seven turnovers, and Emerald scored no points off turnovers. The Jayhawks had assists on 17 of their 24 field goals. They shot 43.6 percent (24 of 55) from the field and made 16 of 19 free throws. Emerald shot 34.4 percent (11 of 32) and made 3 of 17 from 3-point range. Head-Royce also outrebounded Emerald 27-18, and its bench scored 29 points.
With the win, Head-Royce is 12-5 and has won two games in a row.