Busting Brackets
Fansided

Tanner Groves looks to lead Eastern Washington Basketball over Kansas Jayhawks

By Jacob Stevenson

Dec 5, 2020; Tucson, Arizona, USA; Eastern Washington Eagles head coach Shantay Legans talks with players during the second half against the Arizona Wildcats at McKale Center. Mandatory Credit: Joe Camporeale-USA TODAY Sports
Dec 5, 2020; Tucson, Arizona, USA; Eastern Washington Eagles head coach Shantay Legans talks with players during the second half against the Arizona Wildcats at McKale Center. Mandatory Credit: Joe Camporeale-USA TODAY Sports /
facebooktwitterreddit
Prev
3 of 4
Next
Kansas Jayhawks forward David McCormack Amy Kontras-USA TODAY Sports
Kansas Jayhawks forward David McCormack Amy Kontras-USA TODAY Sports /

2. Control the Glass

With Wilson being out and David McCormack coming back from Covid protocol and expected to play Kansas is going to be thin on the front line. You have to wonder how McCormack is gonna play after coming back from Covid protocol. With Kansas missing a player on its front line Mitch Lightfoot the 5th year senior is gonna have to step up.

He is a player the older Groves can take advantage of in the post. With Kansas probably having to play smaller, Eastern has a better chance to win the battle on the boards with Kansas missing its leading rebounder Wilson.

According to Jordan Sperber, the team that wins the offensive rebounding margin wins the game 65 percent of the time.  Eastern Washington ranks 277th in offensive rebounding percentage and 83rd in defensive rebounding percentage. Kansas checks in at the 73rd best offensive rebounding percentage and the 140th best defensive rebounding percentage in the country without being adjusted for competition. Wilson and McCormack are 3rd and 2nd on the team respectively in offensive rebounding percentage.

But with defensive rebounding percentage, they rank 1st in 3rd. With Wilson being out and McCormack possibly not at 100% that is a place where the Eagles need to take advantage.

Home/Mid Major Conferences