Kansas basketball: KU’s offense should find success against one of the weaker defenses in the Big 12
Kansas basketball should able to keep their tempo as they welcome the Sooners to Lawrence tomorrow. The Sooners may be the conference’s second best scorers but their defense sits near the bottom of the pack.
Getting back into rhythm, Kansas basketball looks to pick up another win this week against Oklahoma. The Sooners will come into Allen Fieldhouse with a 6-3 record despite being the second-best scoring program in the conference.
Oklahoma comes into the game allowing upwards of 71 points to opponents each game and sure enough, Kansas is going to try and take advantage of that stat. The Sooners also sit in the bottom half of defensive rebounding schools in the conference.
This should allow for the Jayhawks to seize the weak defense and create some action behind the ball. Playmakers Jalen Wilson and Ochai Agbaji will surely find the ball in their hands against this Sooner defense.
The Sooners have trouble protecting inside, which proved to be quite an issue in their last contest against #2 Baylor.
Who the heck is @MatthewMayer24? @BaylorMBB has more guards that Fort Knox & this 6-9 junior is one of them. Fun to watch the massive growth of maturity in his game last night. pic.twitter.com/EMZqz0PV0z
— Fran Fraschilla (@franfraschilla) January 7, 2021
Regardless, the visitors from Norman have a dynamic offense with leading scorer Austin Reaves, who will give Kansas a challenge on defense. The senior will see a lot of responsibility as he leads the Sooners in points, rebounds, and assists.
Reaves averages nearly 16 points per game and finds quite a bit of success inside the paint. He does struggle from the perimeter, sitting at only 25% from the 3-point line so far this season.
Kansas will need to lock out Reaves from finding any inside opportunities and with the senior guard standing at 6′ 5”, it will be tough. Defending the ‘bigger guys’ hasn’t been a strength for the Jayhawks this year and it will likely hurt them down the road unless they can find ways to amp up the pressure.
Getting McCormack, Agbaji, and Lightfoot some action on the defensive end will be crucial. This trio can defend well but recently has left some fans uneasy. Keeping on their toes and defending the paint will be a must to stop any surges from the Sooners.
Another home test will give the Jayhawks another opportunity to find victory at home and start the home winning streak over again. Kansas is set to host the Sooners at 3:30 PM CT from Allen Fieldhouse on CBS.