Kansas basketball faces a unique road challenge against Oklahoma State
Kansas basketball won an impressive victory yesterday against Tennessee. Now, they’ll return to Big 12 play by hitting the road and taking on the Oklahoma State Cowboys.
The Jayhawks got a solid victory 74-68 over the Tennessee Volunteers yesterday in the annual Big 12/SEC Challenge. Kansas basketball is on a nice four-game win streak, and they’ll try to continue their success this Monday on the road against the Oklahoma State Cowboys.
OSU broke a six-game losing streak yesterday against Texas A&M; however, the Cowboys are still winless in the Big 12 this year. The Cowboys’ offense has struggled to keep up with opposing teams this season, ranking second to last in the conference according to KenPom.
Oklahoma State could have one advantage over the Jayhawks though on Monday night.
This will be the quickest turnaround for Kansas basketball this season since the Maui Invitational games. Of course, the Cowboys will be on a quick turnaround too, but they don’t have to travel since the game is in Stillwater. The little preparation time will probably benefit Oklahoma State more than Kansas, given that the Jayhawks are already out of whack due to the suspension of David McCormack.
The thin Kansas frontcourt against Tennessee easily could have cost the Jayhawks the game, but they were lucky that Udoka Azubuike didn’t ever pick up a fifth foul. It was obvious that the Jayhawks needed Azubuike on the floor to be effective, as the five guard lineup wasn’t getting things done on the defensive end.
This week, it’d be smart for the Cowboys to go right at Azubuike, and try to get him in foul trouble early on similar to what Tennessee did. Playing in foul trouble limits what Azubuike can do even when he’s on the court since he can’t protect the rim for fear of picking up another foul. The limited amount of practice time won’t allow Bill Self to work on the five guard lineup, so odds are that it will be just as ineffective on Monday against Oklahoma State.
RECRUITING. Bryce Thompson chosen as McDonald’s All American. light
Analytically, Kansas basketball should blow out the Cowboys, but it probably won’t be that easy. Given the limited time Bill Self and the Jayhawks have to prepare and the history between the Cowboys and Kansas, this one isn’t in the bag from the get-go.
The game is scheduled for Monday night at 8:00 PM central time on ESPN.