No. 2 Kansas beats West Virginia for 18th win in a row

Travis Releford and Jeff Withey both scored 15 points and the No. 2 Jayhawks nearly relinquished a double-digit lead before beating the Mountaineers, 61-56, on Monday to extend the nation’s longest winning streak to 18 games.

Kansas (19-1 overall, 7-0 Big 12) shot 54 percent from the field in the first-ever meeting between the schools. The Jayhawks have held their past six opponents under 60 points.

Ben McLemore added 13 points for Kansas, which is in the middle of a stretch of six out of nine games on the road.

Aaric Murray had 17 points and Juwan Staten added 14 for West Virginia (9-11, 2-5), which fell to 0-4 against ranked opponents this season.