The No. 17 Kansas Jayhawks have undergone an intense opening-season stretch. Now collegiate basketball is a little more forgiving when compared to other sports, so when the Jayhawks saw powerhouses No. 25 UNC, No. 5 Duke, and current No. 5 UConn on their schedule (with a later addition of Tennessee thanks to the Players Era Championship third-place match), there was a slightly reasonable excuse for the Jayhawks to not get off to a perfect 12-0 start.
Combine that schedule, which ranks 6th in KenPom’s Strength of Schedule net rating, with the looming cloud of concern over the future of injury-prone star Darryn Peterson, and even more forgiveness may be shed on the Jayhawks’ early-season record.
Now, by no means is a 9-3 start poor at all. Yes, Kansas did lose all of those aforementioned matchups, barring the Volunteers, while we won’t overcompensate our reasoning here, if the Jayhawks had Peterson available against Duke in their 78-66 loss, or against UConn in a 61-56 loss, then Bill Self’s squad would likely have at least one, more then likely two more wins on their schedule.
“I think from a record standpoint, considering you played eight of those games without DP [Darryn Peterson], from so far, from a record standpoint, I think that would be a good record based on the quality of schedule,” quoted Self on Sunday afternoon.
With Big 12 play soon to get underway on January 3rd, the Jayhawks will be taking on a Big 12 that this season looks invincible, with the strengths of No. 1 Arizona and No. 4 Iowa State comprising the top-five alone in the AP top 25. For now, however, Self and his squad, which is still getting back to full fitness, are set to next take on the Davidson Wildcats, an out-of-conference capper that could push the Jayhawks’ record to 10-3.
“Does this one game tip the scale one way or another? I don't know if it does totally, but I will tell you this. 10-3 sounds a heck of a lot better than 9-4. So to me, this is a very important thing.”
As it stands, Kansas has impressed by most metrics. Their bracketology reports have shot their seeding up to a No. 4 seed according to ESPN, their KenPom Net Rating sits them nicely at 16th, and as Self mentioned, most of it has been done without Peterson, who has circulated in and out of the lineup with a hamstring injury, and most recently a cramping quad, which makes him questionable ahead of Davidson.
Kansas still has a lot of work to do with or without Peterson, as its offensive efficiency numbers sit 127th in the nation. It has largely been the work of a stifling 12th-ranked scoring defense, which has allowed just 63.5 points per game, that has propped up this record, but as the season wears on and the continuity amongst the team grows, so should the paltry offensive numbers.
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