On Tuesday night, No. 1 Kansas (3-0) defeated Michigan State, 2-1), 77-69, in the first game of the Champions Classic.

While Hunter Dickinson led the way with 28 points, 12 rebounds, and three steals, there’s no denying that Zeke Mayo and Dajuan Harris, Jr., made big plays in helping Bill Self become the all-time wins leader (591) at Kansas.

Mayo, the 6-foot-4, 180-pound guard from Lawrence, Kan., scored six points, pulled down 10 rebounds, dished out seven assists, and was credited with one steal in 33 minutes of action.

Against Michigan State, Mayo was just 2-of-8 from the field, 0-of-3 from behind the arc, and 2-of-2 from the free-throw line.

Mayo, who converted two big free-throws late in the game to extend KU’s lead over MSU to eight points, 74-66, talked about his performance after the game.

“I peaked up at the scoreboard a few times and saw my assists and my rebounds were pretty high, especially in that first half,” said Mayo when asked about his near triple-double on Tuesday night. “I think I ended with four and four or five and five. So, going into that second half obviously wasn't shooting the ball well.

“So, I just had to find ways to impact the game in other ways,” he added.

Mayo, without question, found several ways to impact the game against Michigan State. Aside from his rebounds and assists, his basket in the paint with 1:45 left in the game, much like his two made free-throws late in the game, extended KU’s lead over MSU to eight points.

It was a struggle offensively for Mayo, but instead of forcing the issue or pressing, he found other ways to make game-winning plays when Kansas needed it the most.

“Yeah, most definitely,” said Mayo when asked about his play late in the game. “I'm going to stay aggressive regardless of if I'm making or missing shots.

“I saw an open lane and then I expected the big man to kind of jump on that left side of the rim, so I went up and under and finished the layup,” he added.

In all, just three players, Hunter Dickinson (28), Dajuan Harris, Jr. (11), and Rylan Griffen (10) scored in double-figures for Kansas.

However, KJ Adams, Jr. (7), Zeke Mayo (6), AJ Storr (6), Flory Bidunga (6), and David Coit (3) scored for the Jayhawks.

As a team, Kansas shot 28-of-69 (40.6%) from the field, 5-of-17 (29.4%) from behind the arc, and 16-of-22 (72.7%) from the free-throw line.

Harris, one of KU’s double-figure scorers, also pulled down three rebounds, dished out six assists, and didn't commit a single turnover.

“You’ve got to grind games out like this, especially against teams like Michigan State,” said Harris. “They play super hard and play super fast. That was a game you had to grind down and play together in, really play through the big fella (Hunter Dickinson). He brought us home the W.

“Coach (Self) drew up some big plays for us, too,” he added. “All the credit goes to Coach and our big fella here too."

After opening up the season with an impressive win over Howard, 87-57, Kansas survived No. 9 (ranking at the time), North Carolina, 92-89, after leading by 20 points, and Michigan State, 77-69, after leading by double figures late in the first half.

It hasn't always been pretty early on in the season, but as Dickinson said late on Tuesday night, the only number that matters is KU’s 3-0 record.

“When you're looking at it, it's impossible to be better than 3-0 right now for us,” said Dickinson. “Can't be better than 3-0. We beat a top-ten team in the country. We beat a Michigan State team that probably will end up in the top 25. Obviously, they're not there right now, but they're a really good team.

“Playing a Coach Izzo team, he's going to have them prepared for the No. 1 team in the country,” he added. “We knew coming in we weren't going to be able to blow them out. They play really hard. They execute their stuff. He's a Hall of Fame coach, too. He's going to get his guys ready. It was a great win for us on a neutral site. Like I said earlier, you can't be better than 3-0 right now.”