Kansas basketball has a midweek conference clash tonight against a top-15 West Virginia team. Here is the game time, odds, stream, and more for the Jayhawks.
Kansas basketball is coming off lots of rest and a dominating win on the road against TCU. They’ll try to continue their road success against a tough West Virginia squad tonight; however, the Mountaineers are coming off of a loss to the Sooners in Norman.
Despite their recent loss, West Virginia is still one of the best defensive teams in the country, and beating them at home won’t be easy. The game is a sellout, and the Mountaineers are undefeated at home this season too.
Here’s Kansas basketball vs. West Virginia at a glance:
- Time: 6:00 p.m. (Central Time)
- Place: WVU Coliseum – Morgantown, WV
- Stream: ESPN+
- Listen: FM- KKSW 105.9, or AM- KLWN 1320 (Lawrence Stations)
- All-Time Series: KU leads 13-5
- Last Meeting: 2020, 60-53 KU
- Full Preview: KU must be ready to deal with physicality of West Virginia
- Odds: (Courtesy of The Action Network)
The game tonight against West Virginia could easily come down to free throws, considering both teams will likely have a high number of fouls. The funny thing is, neither team is particularly good at converting from the charity stripe. According to KenPom, Kansas is shooting about 68 percent from the line, while the Mountaineers are at about 64 percent, so don’t expect a clinic.
One of the main battles the Jayhawks have to win is shutting down Oscar Tshiebwe, who leads West Virginia in points and rebounds per game this season. The talented freshman totaled 17 points and 17 rebounds the last time Kansas and the Mountaineers met, and it’ll probably fall to Udoka Azubuike and David McCormack to limit him.
Finally, one of the big talking points of this game is that it’s on the ESPN streaming service ESPN+ rather than a traditional cable channel. Honestly, the fact that a top-15 Big 12 game is being streamed rather than broadcast on a major network is certainly something worthy of any criticism it receives.
That’s not to say ESPN+ is inherently bad. It’s useful for broadcasting games that would have low interest, like Kansas vs. UMKC, or Kansas vs. UW Milwaukee, but this game shouldn’t be relegated to a streaming service that many fans don’t have.
Kansas basketball can win a huge road game against a ranked opponent tonight, and keep pace with Baylor in the conference race. It’s an important game with a lot riding on it. If the Jayhawks can limit Tshiebwe and shoot over 70 percent from the line, they’ll give themselves a great chance to win.