The Kansas basketball team received a favorable seeding considering how they limped through the last several games of the regular season and the Big 12 tournament. Wins over Arizona, Houston, Iowa State, Texas Tech, and Tennessee were enough to give KU a four-seed rather than a five-seed.
KU drew the Cal Baptist Lancers from the Western Athletic Conference. The Lancers were an impressive 25-8 and are on a six-game winning streak. They played games against three Big 12 opponents during the season. BYU beat them by 31, while they lost to Colorado by eight and Utah by six.
While the Lancers were winning the conference tournament, the Jayhawks struggled in the semi-finals in theirs. KU shot a shockingly terrible 24.6 percent from the field against Houston while losing by 22. Kansas made just 14 shots and only seven two-pointers in the game.
Betting lines and odds for Kansas vs. Cal Baptist in the first round of March Madness
The Jayhawks will have a full week between games, and considering how poorly they've played of late, that can't be a bad thing. The game is scheduled to start at 8:45 p.m. CDT in the Viejas Arena in San Diego.
BetMGM has the Jayhawks listed early as a solid 14.5-point favorite over Cal Baptist. The money lines sit at -1100 for Kansas and +700 for the Lancers. The oddsmakers expect a fairly low-scoring game because the over/under is 137.5.
Kansas averages 75.6 points per game, and that is the exact number for the KU points scored over/under. The Jayhawks give up an average of 69.4 points per game.
The Lancers score 73.3 per game and give up 67.8. Considering the spread, the oddsmakers obviously don't think Cal Baptist will score easily against KU. The Lancers only make 6.3 three-pointers a game on 18.8 attempts.
The Jayhawks are good at guarding shots beyond the arc, allowing only 30.7 percent from long range, which is ranked 35th in the country. The Lancers are even better. They rank fifth in the nation, allowing only 5.4 threes a game, and opponents only make 29.6 percent of their three-pointers.
This will be a game of two-pointers. Flory Bidunga will have his hands full, as the Lancers have three guys who play significant minutes who are six-foot-ten or taller. The Lancers also feature Dominique Daniels Jr., who scores 23.3 points a game.
Kansas has four players who average 12.9 points a game, led by Darryn Peterson with 19.8 a game. The Jayhawks haven't been shooting the ball well, and their offense has deserted them over the last nine games. KU will need to resolve those issues if they hope to beat the Lancers and have any chance to make a run during March Madness.
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