Mayo targeted by fans after KU basketball loss

Kansas men’s basketball player Zeke Mayo said he was the target of hateful social media posts following the Jayhawks’ 78-73 home loss to No. 10 Texas Tech on Saturday.

Mayo scored just five points on 1-of-7 shooting in the game, one of several the senior guard has struggled in in recent weeks.

Afterward, he took to social media to apologize for his performance, writing: “I 100% deserve all the criticism in the world. My performance was beyond pitiful today, and has been for a while now. I work my ass off everyday to be great, but I can’t be perfect all the time. I’m sorry to our fans and my teammates, I will continue to get better.”

As part of the post, Mayo then attached four screengrabs that appeared to be sent to him via direct message on Instagram after the game. Among them were threats of violence, racist comments and wishes for him to die.

Jayhawks senior guard Dajuan Harris Jr. expressed support for his teammate on social media, writing: “It ain’t nothing to explain brotha I got yo back.”

Kansas athletic director Travis Goff did the same.

“These aren’t Jayhawks. They’re not ours,” Goff wrote. “Driven by gambling and hate. They’ve never competed a day in their life.

“To Zeke and all our guys — the Jayhawk family loves you and will always ride with you through thick and thin.”

Mayo entered the matchup averaging 14.3 points.

The Jayhawks dropped to 19-10 overall and 10-8 in the Big 12 with the loss. It was their third home defeat of the season, their most since 2017-18, and it’s the second straight campaign they’ve lost at least eight games in the conference.

Hours after the loss, coach Bill Self released a statement through Kansas’ social media accounts, saying in part that he was proud of the Jayhawks’ effort while noting that “any criticism about the team should be directed at me. I’m the head coach.”