In just under 24 hours, the No. 14 Kansas Jayhawks will be taking to the hardwood against the No. 13 BYU Cougars in what will be the first of four upcoming ranked opponents in the next five games for Bill Self and his resilient bunch.
Ahead of the monster clash against AJ Dybantsa and company, ESPN released where Jeff Borzello and Myron Medcalf rank the 47 most likely teams and their chances at winning this season's NCAA National Championship.
Where did the Jayhawks rank?
Let's be honest, while this is a KU team filled with cult heroes and some of the nation’s most underrated talent, like Melvin Council Jr. and Tre White. Combined with the dominance provided by Flory Bidunga and Darryn Peterson, this team can create chaos against any team, but with the constant injury concerns of Peterson, and the fact that Kansas has yet to see sustained gelling with everyone healthy, does pose deserved question marks over their sustainability.
Borzello and Medcalf echoed the same sentiments as they placed Kansas in Tier III labeled “Second-weekend threats.”
“We know what Kansas is capable of when Darryn Peterson (21.6 points per game) is available. The Jayhawks are a top-15 defensive team with the luxury of a high-level star, but Peterson's injury concerns could be an issue if they linger into March (he's missed 10 of their 20 games so far).”
The Jayhawks were ranked as the fifth team in the list, with No. 11 Texas Tech, BYU, No. 8 Iowa State, No. 10 Houston, and No. 1 Arizona all in the two tiers above Kansas, with UCF being placed in a tier under Kansas.
What is next for Bill Self’s team?
With the Big 12 as talent-laden as it is, you will hardly find a day off, and the Jayhawks are beginning to hit their stretch of its toughest stretch of games with BYU, the Red Raiders, Arizona, and a reverse fixture against the Cyclones, sandwiching what should be a slight reprieve against the Utah Utes.
Make sure to bookmark Through the Phog and follow us on X and Facebook with the username @Throughthephog