Kansas basketball faces crucial road test this week vs. West Virginia

Kansas basketball will play one of their toughest road games of the year this week against West Virginia, but the Mountaineers are coming off of a loss.

At this point, it’s a two-team race for the Big 12 crown. The Baylor Bears are leading Kansas basketball by just one game, and it may come down to the wire this season. Still, West Virginia is in the hunt at third place in the Big 12 right now, and they’ll look to pick up a huge victory at home this week against the Jayhawks.

Kansas is coming off of a 60-46 victory on the road against TCU last Saturday. Udoka Azubuike was a monster in the paint, totaling 20 points, 15 rebounds, and five blocks. Point guard Devon Dotson also dominated, dropping 18 points and a career-high 11 assists.

While the Jayhawks got away with a win, their offense was sluggish. They shot just 41 percent from the field, and also committed 16 turnovers; however, the Kansas defense absolutely suffocated the Horned Frogs.

READ MORE: Jayhawks are the best defensive team in the country

When it comes to defense though, the Jayhawks are going to meet their equal this Wednesday against West Virginia. The Jayhawks are ranked first overall in defense according to KenPom, and the Mountaineers are a close second.

While the West Virginia defense is elite, their offense isn’t anything special. The Mountaineers haven’t shot the three-pointer well this season, and they actually turn the ball over quite a bit. One area that West Virginia dominates though is offensive rebounding, so the Jayhawks will have to be strong on the glass.

The first time the Jayhawks and Mountaineers met this season, Kansas came away with a 60-53 victory; however, freshman Oscar Tshiebwe scored 17 points and grabbed 17 rebounds for West Virginia. Tshiebwe leads the Mountaineers in points and rebounds per game this season, so the Jayhawks will have to make it a priority to shut the big man down.

You can watch this major Big 12 clash this Wednesday night at 6:00 p.m. central time on ESPN+. It should be a good game, and it’s fairly important for the Jayhawks to keep up with Baylor in the conference race!