Busting Brackets
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David McCormack and Kansas Basketball faces Evan Mobley and USC Trojans

By Daniel Benjamin

Feb 11, 2021; Lawrence, Kansas, USA; Kansas Jayhawks head coach Bill Self talks with players in a time out during the second half against the Iowa State Cyclones at Allen Fieldhouse. Mandatory Credit: Denny Medley-USA TODAY Sports
Feb 11, 2021; Lawrence, Kansas, USA; Kansas Jayhawks head coach Bill Self talks with players in a time out during the second half against the Iowa State Cyclones at Allen Fieldhouse. Mandatory Credit: Denny Medley-USA TODAY Sports /
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David McCormack Kansas Basketball (Photo by Maddie Meyer/Getty Images)
David McCormack Kansas Basketball (Photo by Maddie Meyer/Getty Images) /

6. Jalen Wilson and David McCormack vs. Evan Mobley and Isaiah Mobley

This is the first matchup to watch, and it has more to do on the defensive end and on the boards than on the offensive end. KU has struggled, at times, with defending the paint, and both McCormack and Wilson are more effective on the offensive end than on defense. McCormack is a very good low-post defender who is also an above-average rim-protector.

Evan Mobley is an exceptional talent, and McCormack won’t be able to stop him by himself, so the Jayhawks will have to “fire” a double-team or dig-down with Marcus Garrett and Ochai Agbaji. So, McCormack’s main job will be to force Mobley to work for position and basically just bang on him to hope to wear him down and hopefully force a mistake which Mobley is prone to with a 17.5% turnover rate. The 7-0 freshman touches the ball on 24% of the Trojans possessions and takes 21.8% of their shots.

While Isaiah Mobley isn’t the offensive threat his younger brother is, Isaiah does own a usage percentage and shot rate at just under 20%. Mobley is also playing his best basketball on that end of the floor lately, registering an offensive rating of at least 129 in four of his last five outings, which includes a rating of 189 against Drake as he tallied 15 points on 6 of 7 shooting and two assists. Both brothers are superb offensive rebounders.

McCormack has developed into a go-to-guy and was tremendous in 25 minutes off the bench against EWU. The 6-10 junior center, who has a usage rate of 29.1% and takes 30% of the Jayhawks shots, has struggled against top competition this year, but he is averaging 20 points and over seven rebounds while shooting, making better than 60% of his 38 attempts.

Wilson has the second-highest usage and shot percentage on the Jayhawk, although he has struggled off on the offensive end lately, totaling just 19 points on 6 of 23 shooting, including  2 of 11 from deep over the last three games. Wilson is undersized, particularly in this game, so it could be KU’s best hope is that he uses his quickness and ability to stretch the floor.

The biggest question will be how McCormack and Wilson’s conditioning will be after returning from positive Covid tests though this will be McCormack’s second game. McCormack and Wilson are both very good at drawing fouls, but McCormack, who is foul-prone, will need to stay on the foul.

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