The No. 17 Kansas Jayhawks have established themselves as a defensive powerhouse this season. Something many probably would have doubted with so much anticipation on their offense heading into this season.
But while Kansas’ offense has stuttered in the early portion, its defense has stepped up to the plate in nearly every category, barring one. Kansas has struggled to create turnovers and disrupt passing lanes, specifically creating steals. In Kansas’ latest win, a 90-61 win over the Davidson Wildcats, it could serve as a potential watershed moment for the Jayhawks as they forced 13 steals on the day.
“We haven't been forcing any, but I did think our hands were more active, and we got our hands on more basketballs tonight, which led to some transition deals,” quoted head coach Bill Self.
This is a far cry from Kansas 5.4 steals per game; those paltry numbers currently rank 307th in the nation.
From a larger scope, the Jayhawks force just 9.5 turnovers per game, which ranks 347th in the nation. For comparison, those 9.5 turnovers forced would rank 18th best in the nation for steals alone.
For how great Kansas’ scoring and shooting defense has been this year, it is odd to see such a downgrade in those stats; however, this could easily be a number that fluctuates throughout the season. Kansas has taken on seven quad one and two games, showing they haven’t been facing the bottom dwellers of the collegiate basketball sphere, and that teams aren’t simply giving the ball away like others would.
This should be no big point of concern for Kansas; their stifling defense has proven its worth so far this season. However, for the sake of when the gritty Big 12 season begins, and margins are razor thin, it will be interesting to see how these numbers adapt.
Kansas begins conference play on January 3rd against the UCF Golden Knights with tipoff set for 1 p.m. CT and streaming available on Peacock.
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