12. Kansas (14-5)
There are certain expectations when you’re Kansas and it’s fair to say that they haven’t quite been matched to this point. The Jayhawks absolutely started the season on fire, getting wins over Duke and Michigan State that have aged incredibly, but they’ve also had some headscratching performances. They blew a game against West Virginia to open league play and are now up to five losses after what transpired this week.
The week started with a bit of struggle, as the Jayhawks used a strong second half to beat TCU 74-61 after a poor start. Five different Kansas players were in double figures, including 16 points and 9 rebounds from Hunter Dickinson in the team’s third road win of the year. On Saturday, Kansas blew a real opportunity, faltering late in a 92-86 double overtime home loss against Houston. Flory Bidunga led the charge with 19 points and 7 rebounds before fouling out while three other players all scored at least 16 points in the loss.
For weeks the Jayhawks have been begging for more production from those role players. They got that from Bidunga and Rylan Griffen on Saturday but AJ Storr remains a disappointment. Kansas falls to 5-3 in Big 12 play, with losses to the two teams atop the standings already. That pair of home losses is disappointing, but Kansas has to keep pushing forward, including a road test at Baylor next weekend.