Need irony? Here’s one: Kansas University men’s basketball forward David Padgett had a debut as big as his 6-foot-11 frame — by doing the little things.

Padgett, after going scoreless in the first half, finished with a double-double — 13 points and 10 rebounds — to help KU to a 90-76 victory over Tennessee-Chattanooga Friday at Allen Fieldhouse.

After seeing the stat sheet following the game, Padgett apparently ignored his point total, but seemed content with his 10 boards and five blocked shots.

“I didn’t know I had that many rebounds,” Padgett said. “I’m trying to do the little things. If I can do that, I think we’ll be successful.”

Scoring, Padgett said, is the job of juniors Wayne Simien and Keith Langford. To an extent, he’s right — Langford led all Jayhawks with 24 points, and Simien added 21.

But in the second half, nobody scored more than Padgett, who tied Simien with 13 points after the break.

“In the second half we turned up our D pretty good and got some easy transition baskets,” Padgett said. “Once we got ahead, they couldn’t really zone us anymore.”

Added coach Bill Self: “David can get touches in transition better than most 6-11 guys can.”

Jayhawks tie up Mocs First-half swoon dooms Tennessee-Chattanooga Padgett shines in debut KU’s Simien shrugs off fall Get the stats: KU-UTC box score Photo gallery: KU vs. UTC Hear Bill: KU-UTC postgame comments Get the stats: KU-UTC box score 6Sports video: KU-UTC highlights

Many of Padgett’s points weren’t seriously contested as a result. It led to a debut that had all of his teammates buzzing.

“We probably wouldn’t have won the game without his effort,” Langford said. “As the season goes on, he’s going to have to be a big part in us winning. Teams are going to have to key on him, because he’s getting better every day.”

Padgett, who Self said has solidified his spot in the starting lineup, now gets an even bigger test Tuesday with No. 3 Michigan State, a team that features a more potent inside presence. The Spartans’ 6-11 center, Paul Davis, scored 21 points in their victory Friday over Bucknell.

“Hopefully tonight boosted David’s confidence,” Simien said, “and maybe he’ll be able to do that every night.”

Freshman J.R. Giddens was a little more bold in assessing Padgett’s upcoming season.

“Every game,” he said. “You can expect that every game.”