Johnny Furphy has been on top of his game since entering the starting lineup, proving so by scoring 23 points and grabbing 11 rebounds in Kansas’ 74-69 victory over Cincinnati on Monday night.

Not only was Furphy’s night special from a statistical perspective, he also played in Allen Fieldhouse in front of his parents who came from Australia for the first time.

“This is their first home game,” Furphy said. “I was happy they could experience that because I’ve been telling them about the fieldhouse and how it’s been, but yeah I’m happy they got to see a win.”

Furphy had sent numerous videos home and told many stories, but he knew that his parents had to see it in person.

“I told them it doesn't really capture the energy and the the the noise so I'm happy to go to experience it”

Furphy has scored 14.5 points per game in his four appearances as a starter in Big 12 Conference play. In the first start, he scored just seven, meaning that he is averaging 17 points per game, something that head coach Bill Self is pleased with.

“He’s settled into the role,” Self said. “He’s gotten us off to a good start all three games… He played great. Offensively he’s terrific. He’s great in transition and can really run.”

While it seems the Jayhawks have found the solution to their problem of who would help the core four out in the scoring department, Furphy is doing well on the glass too. His 11 rebounds were a career-high, and it is the second game in a row in which he has led the team on the boards.

“Two games in a row he’s been our best rebounder,” Self said. “That’s a bad sign for our other guys… He was great, he was the best player in the game”

Self may not want Furphy to be the team’s leading rebounder, but when he does well on the boards it is hard for Self to be upset. His coaching toward Furphy has emphasized the need for him to be aggressive, which the freshman has taken to heart.

“He just wants me to show aggression you know, defensively, offensively,” Furphy said.

“He knows that I can go get a rebound, so he’s given me the license to get on the offensive glass as often as possible.

Some of the game’s biggest plays came from offensive rebounds from Furphy, as two of his three on that end resulted in Kansas threes.

However, the biggest play Furphy made on the night was a three-pointer to beat the shot clock with 2:02 to go and to extend the lead to 10.

“I saw Dajuan drive it in and everyone collapsed so I knew he was going to have a bit of space,” Furphy said. “It was a hell of a pass. I was happy to knock it down.”

If there is one caveat to the way Furphy’s played since entering the starting lineup, it has been that he has not played nearly as well in the second half compared to the first half. In his 23 point performance, he scored 10 in the first half and 13 in the second.

Comparing that to the game against West Virginia, where he scored nine of his 13 points in the first half, it was a well balanced scoring night throughout the game. Self is not looking too far into the comparison however as he says that the sample size is too small.

Overall, Self loves what he has gotten from Furphy, and is not afraid to say that it is more production than he originally expected.

“I think he’s a good player, we’ve known that all along,” Self said. “He took some time away from the team over Christmas and that probably put him in a situation where he wasn't quite starting as soon as what he would have if he'd been here the whole time because he missed some stuff, but I'll be honest with you I didn't expect average 17 and 8.3 rebounds okay. I didn't expect you to average 17 and eight his (last) three starts but we're a different team.”