The Jayhawks are incredibly balanced and consistent. They average about 82 points a game, while shooting nearly 50% from the field; you will win a lot of games doing that. They play sound defense – typically man-to-man – and hold their opponents to 62 points per game. The Jayhawks also protect the ball. They only turn it over 13 times a game. More possessions = more points.Kansas is led by senior guard Sherron Collins, who is Mr. Well-Rounded when it comes to statistics. He averages 15 points per game, and shoots 42% from the field, and 85% from the foul line. He is the team leader in assists with 4.3 per game. Junior big man Cole Aldrich, at 6’11” is as much a true center as there is in college basketball. He averages 11.6 points, 10.1 rebounds, and 3.9 blocks per game.
Kansas is interesting because they are more of a traditional-looking team than other big-name programs. They have a real center, 2 guards, and 2 forwards, which is a nice switch from the 3 guards-2 forward teams we so often see. Look for this throwback team to be playing on the last Saturday of the tournament.
Two reasons that Kansas will make the Final Four:
1. This team has as much depth as anybody. Only one starter – Collins – plays more than 30 minutes a game. The starters are spelled each game by Tyrel Reed (15 minutes), Markieff Morris (16 minutes), and Brady Morningstar (24 minutes). With a 6-game run needed for the national championship, resting the starters as much as possible, particularly early on, will be a plus for the Jayhawks.
2. The loss to Oklahoma State. This late-season loss may be the best thing that has happened to Kansas this year. Having had only one loss previously (early in the season vs. Tennessee) might have allowed the Jayhawks to become a little complacent. After the OSU game, Coach Self has plenty of reasons to ‘coach them up’. In that game, they couldn’t do anything right. Don’t expect that to happen again. A loss like this one late will ensure that they are sharp and ready come tournament time.
Two reasons that Kansas will not make the Final Four:
1. They are not a come-from-behind team. In the Oklahoma State loss, the Cowboys got a big lead in the first half, and held on. Every time KU made a run, OSU made one right back. If a team gets a lead on Kansas, or if they meet a team that plays a slow-down type of offense to keep the score close, they could stumble.
2. Believe it or not, Kansas is a very young team. The Jayhawks only have one senior that starts – Sherron Collins. The rest of the starting five includes one junior, two sophomores, and a freshman. There is no substitute for experience, and although Kansas has definitely been there before, it would be nice if most of the starters were more than 20 years old.
