For the first time in school history, the DePaul Blue Demons knocked off the Kansas Jayhawks.  It was the school's first victory over a fifth ranked team since 1999.  After trailing by 14, DePaul came back to defeat Kansas 64-57 on Saturday in front of almost 17,000 at the Allstate Arena.

A lackluster first half, marked by poor shooting on both sides, found DePaul chasing  9 points entering the second . 

Kansas shot 50 percent from the floor in the first half (10-20) while DePaul shot only 6-23 (7 of those 23 were three point attempts and 4 of the 7 attempts came from sophomore forward Wilson Chandler). 

DePaul's first half offensive attack was weak.  The stifling Jayhawk defense saw the Demons forcing up shots to beat the shot clock often.  They seemed incapable of establishing any sort of inside presence, instead simply passing the ball around the perimeter until the clock started to wind down. 

Wilson Chandler was especially disappointing in the first half.  Chandler was 1 of 7 from the floor and 1-4 from three point range.  DePaul struggles when Chandler fails to command the ball or create inside scoring opportunities.  He failed to go to the foul line in the first. 

DePaul went cold to end the first and didn't score in the final seven minutes of play.  They were lucky to be down 26-17.

In the second half though, DePaul was a different team offensively and finished the game having shot 40 percent from the floor (still low, but up significantly from 26 percent in the first half). 

Finally working the ball inside gave DePaul 26 attempts from the free throw line compared to only 2 free throws in the first half.  DePaul moved the ball quicker and more effectively creating better, higher percentage shots.

Senior guard, Sammy Mejia took over in the second contributing 18 of his 23 points.  Mejia was on fire in the final twenty minutes and was responsible for eight straight during a 14-0 DePaul run.  Mejia added a game high 8 rebounds as well as 2 steals.

What seemed to be a predominantly Jayhawk crowd early on was suddenly on its feet for the final minutes of the game and squarely behind the underdogs.  With just under four minutes remaining, and following a KU timeout,  Mejia showed veteran leadership as he signaled for the crowd to stand up and support the hometown team.

With about 40 seconds left in the game and a 5 point lead, DePaul showcased excellent keep away.  With crisp, quick passing, they managed to shave nearly 20 seconds off of the clock as Kansas tried desperately to foul someone/anyone to stop the clock. 

Following free throw attempts from junior guard, Draelon Burns and Wilson Chandler DePaul emerged victorious 64-57.  The loss followed only one day after Kansas resigned former Illini coach Bill Self to a five year extension.  Kansas opened the season losing to unranked Oral Roberts.  Sophomore guard, Mario Chalmers contributed 15 points for the Jayhawks in the losing effort.

The win for DePaul came, fittingly, on a day when they celebrated the legacy of former coach, Ray Meyer during pregame and halftime ceremonies.  Meyer died at the age of 92 in March.  He coached the Blue Demons for 42 years.