2) How will Kansas look without Udoka Azubuike?
The Jayhawks are the No. 1 team in the country for a reason but there’s no doubt that they looked, well, mortal against New Mexico State without their star big man.
The Aggies won the rebounding battle despite KU’s size advantage and Kansas, who usually runs their offense through Azubuike, struggled without him, going over five minutes without scoring to start the game.
Azubuike is out indefinitely with a sprained ankle and, while Kansas expects him to return for the start of conference play, some think the injury might be more serious than a simple high ankle sprain and will cause him to miss a significant amount of time.
Should that happen, Kansas needs to learn how to play at a high level without their star big man.
Lagerald Vick had been their go-to player but has been benched to start each of the last two games. His impact has also fallen off as well. Dedric Lawson is still one of the best big men in the country but he can go long stretches without making the kind of significant offensive impact the Jayhawks need from him.
Villanova lacks size so Azubuike’s absence won’t hurt KU as much as it might in the future – but other players need to show they can stay up.