LAS VEGAS – Kansas star center Hunter Dickinson was sent off in the second half of the No. 1 Jayhawks’ 75-72 win over No. 11 Duke on Tuesday night after kicking Maliq Brown in the face while the two were on the floor lay.

With 10:26 left, Dickinson missed a short jump hook over Brown. Both players fell to the court and fought for the rebound, with Dickinson drawing a foul on Brown. While they were on the ground, Dickinson stepped out and touched Brown’s face.

After a lengthy monitor review, Dickinson was assessed a flagrant foul 2 and sent off. He initially stayed in the bench area with his teammates before being escorted to the locker room.

“I thought it was a good decision,” Kansas coach Bill Self said. “I thought the blatant Level 2 might have been a bit harsh. I thought it was definitely a glaring 1. … I didn’t think it warranted a level 2 at the moment, but I think it needed to be called.”

“The explanation was that it was intentional and his head fell to the ground, which is probably true,” Self later added. “But I didn’t think that would be enough to justify it. But the bottom line is that it is, and it’s probably going to be the best thing that’s happened to us because it’s going to teach him a good lesson and it’s going to give some other kids some confidence.

Duke coach Jon Scheyer said he only saw the incident on screen but was OK with the call.

“I didn’t see it other than I saw on the screen that he kicked him in the face,” Scheyer said. “So I think that justifies the blatant B. But again, I didn’t look good or anything, but it was really an easy thing for me.”

At the time of Dickinson’s ejection, Kansas led 57-55. The two teams battled back and forth for the remainder of the game, with Duke briefly taking a two-point lead on a Cooper Flagg dunk with 5:53 left. Kansas responded with a 3-pointer from Rylan Griffen on its next possession, and Griffen had a three-point play a few minutes later to extend the lead to four.

Duke had several chances to tie or take the lead in the final minute of regulation, but Flagg and Kon Knueppel both turned over and Knueppel’s 3-pointer at the buzzer missed.

Dickinson, who came into the game averaging 17.8 points and 10.4 rebounds, had 11 points, 6 rebounds and 3 assists before leaving. He was productive but struggled to finish at the rim against Brown and Khaman Maluach.

With Dickinson out, backup center Flory Bidunga played the remainder of the game. The freshman finished the game with 6 points and 8 rebounds in 16 minutes and grabbed a couple of key offensive rebounds late in the game as well as a steal in the final minute.

“I think he played really well,” said senior forward KJ Adams Jr. “Obviously it’s a shame that an All-American (in) Hunter had to go out, but it makes me happy that Flo had the chance “To show the world what he can do, and it’s amazing what he’s done out there, especially as a rookie coming into that big environment, a huge game, and he did really well.”

Information from The Associated Press was used in this report.