NCAA Basketball: 2021 ESPN Events Invitational preview and predictions

DETROIT - APRIL 03: A detail of a player from the Connecticut Huskies holding a basketball with the 2009 Final Four logo on it during practice prior to the Final Four of the NCAA Division I Men's Basketball Tournament at Ford Field on April 3, 2009 in Detroit, Michigan. (Photo by Streeter Lecka/Getty Images) /

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Ochai Agbaji Kansas Jayhawks (Photo by John E. Moore III/Getty Images) /

Kansas Jayhawks

Record: 3-0

Kansas and Bill Self will once again be contenders for the national title, which is hardly earth-shattering news I know, but Kansas is arguably the second-best team in the country thanks to a solid returning core and a sprinkle of key newcomers. The 3-0 Jayhawks began the year by beating Michigan State in the Champions Classic 87-74 and warmed up for this event by beating Tarleton State and Stony Brook by an average of 27.5 points.

Big man David McCormack and Ochai Agbaji are All-Big 12 level talents and this summer the team welcomed Remy Martin from Arizona State to run the point. They get even stronger for this tournament with the return of redshirt sophomore Jalen Wilson who will be making his debut after being suspended the first three games of the year for a DUI. The 6-8 swingman averaged 11.8 points and a team-high 7.9 rebounds in his first season.

So far this year the Jayhawks have been a rebounding machine, grabbing over 37 per game, and Agbaji, Martin, McCormack, and Christian Braun all grabbing over four per game. Kansas is loaded with talent and will be a favorite to make the final of this tournament, but something to watch is how reliant they are on their starters because over the three games of the year the bench has only one player who has logged more than 13 minutes per game.

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