Kansas vs. Arizona State: College basketball game preview, TV schedule
This game between Kansas and Arizona State was originally nothing more than a blip on the non-conference schedule. Now, could the Jayhawks lose a second straight game to a surprisingly good Sun Devils squad?
TV schedule: Sunday, December 10, 2:00 p.m. ET. ESPN
Arena: Allen Fieldhouse in Lawrence, Kansas
The No. 2 Kansas basketball team (7-1) is coming off a defeat to the Washington Huskies, 74-65. Considering that they already played a team who primarily uses zone defense in Syracuse this past weekend with no issues, it was surprising to see them struggle to a team similar in talent. Unlike the Orange, they had no answer for Matisse Thybulle, who had 19 in the game.
The issue for Kansas was the overall play of the perimeter, with the team as a whole shooting just 5/20 from deep. Devonte Graham had his worst performance to date, scoring just three points on 1/8 shooting. Svi Mykhailiuk wasn’t much better, with eight points on 3/12 shooting. Lagerald Vick’s career night of 28 points and seven boards was ultimately wasted. On one hand, Graham won’t play as bad. But on the other hand, relying heavily on the perimeter will have games like the one on Wednesday.
Arizona State (8-0), is actually built similarly to Kansas, built from the guard line with one true post option. The Sun Devils were expected to have a good offense, but as of now they are in the top three in both scoring offense and offensive rating metrics. Ranked No. 16 in the polls, Bobby Hurley finally has a team that can potentially make the tournament from the PAC-12.
The offense comes from a trio of senior guards in Tra Holder, Shannon Evans, and Kodi Justice. Holder is the star of the team, averaging over 20 ppg. Add sophomore Romello White down low, and there’s four players who average at least 15 ppg for Arizona State. They only play seven guys a night, so the consistent production from these players is important for the Sun Devils to remain a viable contender in their league.
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The best players for each team, Graham and Holder are both coming off poor performances in the last game. Whichever rebounds on Sunday will give their team the advantage in the game. While Kansas did play a de facto home game in the loss to Washington, it wasn’t at Allen Fieldhouse, which is easily one of the most difficult places to play and the primary reasons why they’ve won the regular season title in the Big 12 each season. Arizona State will make it interesting and could win, but it’s hard to pick against Bill Self at home.
Prediction: Kansas 87 – Arizona State 78