Appreciative Kansas basketball fans leapt to their feet with 49 seconds left in the Jayhawks’ 64-49 victory over Kansas State on Monday night at Allen Fieldhouse.
They reserved a special, lengthy standing ovation for junior forward Mitch Lightfoot, who exited the game for good with nine points, five rebounds, three blocked shots, two assists and one charge taken on defense in 31 productive minutes.
“Man, to grow up a Kansas fan … I’m not going to lie I got goosebumps a little bit,” Lightfoot said, referring to his reaction to the fans’ applause. “It’s so cool to be a piece of something so much bigger than me,” added the 6-foot-8 Lightfoot, who was born in Kansas City and moved to Arizona when he was 6.