Kansas Basketball: 3 keys to beat Duke in 2019 Champions Classic

3. Ball security will be essential against Duke’s opportunistic defense

For all the discussion about the Blue Devils’ toothless three-point game, there’s no question that they have some serious defensive chops.

Tre Jones is one of the nation’s best on-ball defenders and Wendell Moore is perhaps the best defensive wing from the Class of 2019. With Vernon Carey and Javin DeLaurier patrolling the paint, expect Duke’s opponents to do a lot of ball-handling on the perimeter. The pressure that Jones and Moore put on the ball could force teams into a lot of bad passes. Cassius Stanley, one of the most athletic freshmen in the country, will be waiting to make interceptions and score in transition.

Coming into the season, Duke is projected by Ken Pomeroy to have the nation’s third-best defense, trailing only Kentucky and Virginia, and they finished last season ranked sixth among all programs in the KenPom defensive ranks. They were in the top five nationwide in both block percentage (16.4%) and steal percentage (12.4%).

Kansas’ offense, meanwhile, ranked 200th in turnover rate last year. Obviously, that’s not an encouraging number for the Jayhawks. That said, two of the most turnover-prone players from last season—LaGerald Vick (22.0% TOV) and Quentin Grimes (21.3%)—are gone. Marcus Garrett and Ochai Agbaji took care of the ball relatively well, but Devon Dotson was slightly below average. As is often the case with young point guards, Dotson should improve his ball security over the course of his sophomore season.

But that improvement will be put to the test from the outset of the 2019-20 campaign as he goes up against Tre Jones on opening night.

If Dotson gets forced into making multiple bad passes, the Jayhawks are going to be in trouble. Mike Krzyzewski employed a full-court press at times last year, so it’s reasonable to assume that Bill Self will have his team practicing the press break in advance of the Champions Classic matchup. Though it’s something of an obvious sentiment, Kansas needs to maintain their composure and cut down on turnovers if they want to win this game.

If Kansas wants to make a statement on college basketball’s Opening Night, much like the Blue Devils did a year ago, then they need to feed Azubuike at the rim, force Duke into shooting three-pointers, and maintain ball security throughout the game. If they do those things, they should walk away from Madison Square Garden with a marquee victory in their back pocket.