Kevin McCullar makes history with second straight triple-double

Entering Kansas' win over Kentucky in the Champions Classic, there had only been two official triple-doubles in Kansas history. After wins over Kentucky and Chaminade, Kevin McCullar doubled that total, recording two of his own.

With the triple-doubles, McCullar becomes the first Jayhawk to record two total, let alone two in a row.

"Well, I don't think they did triple-doubles back when Wilt played so that probably would be more than two," head coach Bill Self said. "But yeah, Kevin, I didn't think offensively he wasn't great against Kentucky and came away with a triple double, and then today wasn't great offensively and came away with 22, 11 and 10."

McCullar knows that a triple-double, especially one involving assists, takes the whole team. But he was thankful for everything that his teammates did on the way toward his historic mark.

"It's a blessing," McCullar said. "Super fun out there today. Credit to my teammates, you know, helping me out, getting assist and boxing out and different things like that. So it's a collective unit effort."

It came down to the last second as McCullar grabbed the last rebound of the game against Kentucky. Against Chaminade, he collected three assists in his final minutes on the floor to seal his spot in the record books. Both times, triple-doubles were not at the center of attention for him.

"There both kind of surprises," McCullar said. "I'm just out there playing, trying to win, trying to make winning plays for the basketball team."

Hunter Dickinson, who scored two of those last three assists for McCullar and had a double-double with 31 points and 11 rebounds, had high praise for his teammate.

"I mean, coach calls him the best all-around player in college basketball, and I think he's just going out there and proving it night in and night out," Dickinson said. "He can score, he can rebound, he can pass, he can defend. I mean, you know Coach is, right. I don't know if there's a better player all around that does a little bit of everything than Kevin McCullar."

After a year in which McCullar shined as a defender, it is clear that other parts of his game were polished this offseason. Self has noticed and wants McCullar to get some credit for the versatility he has shown this season.

"He's playing at a really high level, and to me, he's as good an all around basketball player as there is in the country," Self said . "When you include what he does when we're on the defensive end, I think he can really play."