LAWRENCE, Kan. - Even though he had 20 points and eight rebounds as No. 2 Kansas romped past Holy Cross 81-57 Tuesday night in the Preseason NIT, everybody was talking about how poorly Nick Collison played.

"I'll grant you, 20 points and eight rebounds, just about anybody in the country would take that and call it a good night," said Kansas coach Roy Williams, whose record in the Preseason NIT is a perfect 13-0.

"But Nick just didn't play well."

The 6-foot-10 senior missed his first four shots before connecting early in a 24-4 run that closed the first half and put the Big 12 preseason favorites firmly in command of the team favored in the Patriot League.

"Six-of-15 (from the field)," Collison said. "I didn't shoot the ball as well as I'd like to. But I felt like I stayed aggressive."

Collison and Kirk Hinrich, seniors being counted on to make up for the loss of All-American Drew Gooden, also fueled a run in the second half as the Jayhawks won their 30th straight home opener.

Williams, who coached the Jayhawks to the tournament title in 1989, '93 and '97, had reminded his team that Holy Cross gave them a scare last year in the first round of the NCAA tournament.

"Sometimes you get into that mode, `Well, we'll show them this time,"' Williams said. "I cautioned them not to think that. Holy Cross is a good team."

Kansas will host North Carolina-Greensboro in the second round on Friday night with the winner advancing to the semifinals in New York on Nov. 27.

It was the first time the Crusaders had played in Allen Fieldhouse.

"It is the loudest crowd I have ever heard," Holy Cross' Tim Szatko said. "When the noise got real loud, we just gave in. The last 11 minutes of the first half was the difference in the game."

The Crusaders confused the Jayhawks with a zone defense and chopped eight points off a 39-21 halftime deficit with a flurry of 3-pointers early in the second half. Szatko's bomb with 16:30 left made it 44-34.

Then Keith Langford, one of two new starters for the defending Big 12 champions, drove the lane for a layup to trigger the take-charge run and make the Jayhawks 40-1 in their last 41 November games.

Wayne Simien, the 6-9 sophomore who took the place of Gooden when the Big 12 player of the year entered the NBA draft as a junior, muscled inside and completed a three-point play after Langford's bucket.

After Collison had a one-handed dunk, Simien went inside for another layup and drew Patrick Whearty's fifth foul.

He hit the free throw and the Jayhawks were clearly in charge with a 53-34 lead at the 14:10 mark.

Langford finished with 15 points, while Hinrich, a 6-3 guard and preseason All-American, and Simien each had 13.

"The defense was great," Hinrich said. "That's just a hard team to play against. They play that zone, they work their tails off. It's just a tough team to play."

Szatko had 14 points for Holy Cross and Brian Wilson had 12.

"I think we were a little intimidated by the crowd," Holy Cross coach Ralph Willard said. "They are a great team that plays on the run."

The Crusaders took an early lead as Wilson made three straight 3-pointers.

But then Simien completed a three-point play with 8:38 to go and it was all Kansas the rest of the way.