No. 3 Kansas knocked off No. 7 West Virginia, 79-65 in the Jayhawks' Big 12 home opener on Tuesday at Allen Fieldhouse. Kansas hit a season-high 16 three-pointers, nearly setting a Bill Self-era record in the process.  

The victory moves KU to 8-1 (2-0 Big 12) and keeps it near the top of the AP rankings. The Jayhawks haven't suffered a defeat since a season-opening loss to No. 1 Gonzaga. 

Kansas is in the midst of the most difficult stretch of its season with three straight games against top 15 teams, having already knocked off No. 14 Texas Tech on the road last time out. Bill Self and Co. will play host to No. 10 Texas next as they look to separate themselves from the rest of the Big 12. 

It's only the second loss of the year for the Mountaineers 7-2 (1-1), who also owe their previous defeat to Gonzaga. 

Notable Performers

Christian Braun, G, Kansas Jayhawks: 22 points, 7 assists, 6 three-pointers

David McCormack, F, Kansas Jayhawks: 10 points, 11 rebounds, 3 assists

Sean McNeil, G, West Virginia Mountaineers: 24 points, 2 rebounds 6 three-pointers

Miles McBride, G, West Virginia Mountaineers: 19 points, 5 rebounds, 2 assists

KU Offense Heating Up

It's typically a good night for Kansas when the offense flirts with school records. It's an even better night when the same offense does something that spectacular from three-point range under Bill Self.  

The Kansas head coach used to refer to three-pointers as "fool's gold." He's got to be feeling pretty rich tonight regardless. Rarely have his teams shot the ball from deep like it did on Tuesday, nailing 16-of-37 attempts. 

Most notably, every KU starter sank multiple three's with the exception of forward Dave McCormack, who didn't attempt any. Marcus Garrett went a perfect three-for-three, Jalen Wilson added four and Ochai Agbaji dropped another three himself on 10 attempts. 

More than half of KU's 63 field goal attempts came from behind the arc. Over 43 percent of them went in.

Even with his game limited to the post, McCormack provided arguably his biggest performance of the year. The junior big man has notably struggled early on this season. He recovered with his first double-double against a power five opponent and added two emphatic blocks for good measure. 

This is the version of Kansas that can play as well as any team in the country. 

What happens when KU isn't as lethal from deep range, however, will likely determine the fate of its season.

Sean McNeil Shows Up

Until the Jayhawks overpowered the Mountaineers in the second half, the night belonged to sophomore Sean McNeil—a junior guard from Union, Kentucky who averaged 10 points per game heading into Tuesday. 

That number is due to tick up a good amount now. 

McNeil nearly kept West Virginia alive by himself in the first half with some unconscious shooting of his own. 

Inside the famed building, McNeil went seven-for-seven from the field with six three-pointers for a season-high 20 points—in just 20 minutes. The guard would cool off in the second half, going 1-for-5. 

What he did in the first frame will go down as one of the most torturous halves of basketball for KU fans in Allen Fieldhouse in quite some time. That was especially true as the clock expired on the first 20 minutes. McNeil tossed up a desperation heave from the center-court logo and banked it in at the buzzer for a halftime lead. 

With forwards Oscar Tshiebwe (three points, five rebounds) and Derek Culver (eight points, eight rebounds) struggling to find their rhythm all game, McNeil's emergence as a legitimate backcourt threat only expands West Virginia's potential to make a deep run come March.  

Even in a conference loss, head coach Bob Huggins can feel good about one of his unsung players breaking out. That's more than enough to build on for a rematch against the Jayhawks in Morgantown in early February. 

What's Next

Kansas will remain home for the holidays with No. 10 Texas set to visit Lawrence on Jan. 2 for another ranked matchup at noon ET on ESPN2. The Mountaineers return to play a bit sooner with a home game against Buffalo on Dec. 29 at 2 p.m. ET on ESPN+.