Kansas basketball and East Tennessee State are set to meet tomorrow night at 7:00 PM in Allen Fieldhouse. Here’s everything you need to know about the Jayhawks and Buccaneers.
Kansas basketball got a solid win last week against Monmouth 112-57. Tomorrow, the Jayhawks will try to follow-up that performance against ETSU.
The Buccaneers are off to a good start so far this season. They’re 3-0, with their most recent win coming against Winthrop 61-58.
ETSU players Bo Hodges, Jeromy Rodriguez, and Daivien Williamson were all selected to the 2019-20 Preseason All-Southern Conference Team, and the Buccaneers were also projected to win the Southern Conference in the SoCon coaches poll.
ETSU probably won’t be a pushover like Monmouth was; however, Kansas basketball should still be able to take care of the Buccaneers without much of a problem.
Here are five things to know about East Tennessee State:
1. ETSU struggles with free throws
ETSU has had a major problem this season from the charity stripe. According to ESPN, the Buccaneers are shooting a putrid 60% from the free throw line. The motto fo Kansas basketball should be “no easy buckets,” since they don’t have to worry about ETSU killing them with free throws.
2. ETSU head coach Steve Forbes has experience in the Sunflower State
Buccaneers head coach Steve Forbes has coached for a couple of different teams in Kansas.
Back in 1993, he was an assistant coach for Barton Community College in Great Bend, Kansas and was later promoted to the head coach in 1995, a position he held until 1998. He had success with the Cougars, recording a 68-28 record during his time as head coach.
Forbes returned to Kansas again in 2013, this time with Wichita State. He would be with the Shockers for their most successful season in school history in 2013.
3. The Buccaneers commit a lot of turnovers
According to kenpom.com, ETSU commits a turnover on about 20% of their possessions. That’s a factor that would have any head coach upset, but it’s one that Kansas basketball can take advantage of this Tuesday night.
4. Lucas N’Guessan will be the first seven-footer Azubuike faces
So far this season, seven-foot senior Udoka Azubuike hasn’t had to face another seven-footer, until now.
ETSU’s Lucas N’Guessan is a seven-foot 230-pound center from the Netherlands, but Azubuike should be able to handle him. N’Guessan has a 5.7 points and 4.3 rebounds per game average over his career. Still, the experience will be good for Doke and the other centers when they face other talented big men this season.
5. ETSU shoots the ball well
So far, the Buccaneers are shooting about 42% from behind the three-point line and 60% from inside the line. Both of those numbers rank inside the top 30 according to kenpom.com.
This will be a good test for the Jayhawks, as they’ll have to respect ETSU’s ability to shoot the ball. Last season, Kansas basketball seemed to really struggle to defend against the three, but since the three-point line was moved back, it’ll be interesting to see if the Jayhawks improve.
Kansas basketball should beat East Tennessee State handily, but the Jayhawks still have to respect the Buccaneers, since It’d be embarrassing for Kansas to do what Kentucky did and lose at home to a mid-major.
As long as Kansas basketball comes out strong and starts like they did last week against Monmouth, the Jayhawks should get the win without a problem.