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SPORTS
KANSAN.COM
basketball gameday
Saturday, Jan.28, 5:15 p.m., ESPN
► BRIAN MINI
@brianminimum
AT A GLANCE
Kansas just lost its first game of the conference season, an 85-69 road affair against No.18 West Virginia. It's just the Jayhawks' second loss all year, and the first in 17 games. They now hit the midway point of an impossibly tough stretch, facing three ranked opponents in as many games. After falling to the Mountaineers, Kansas will look to rebound against Kentucky, who's looking to recover from a recent loss as well.
PLAYER TO WATCH
Frank Mason III senior, guard
For Kansas to win, Mason will need to have a big game; there's not really any way around it. He's taken over in many of the Jayhawks' most impressive wins this year, such as hitting the game-winning shot against Duke or leading the second-half comeback against Oklahoma. Against a highly-talented Kentucky team in a game that seems destined to be close, Mason will need to turn on his superstar mode like he has several times this season.
QUESTION MARK
Can Kansas hit its free throws?
Kansas is still the worst free throw shooting team in the Big 12, hitting just 63.2 percent of their shots from the line. They struggled mightily in this area against West Virginia, shooting 40 percent from the line in the loss. In what's sure to be a close contest against Kentucky, the Jayhawks don't want the game decided by late free throws. Should the Wildcats choose to send them to the line, the Jayhawks will need to hit, or else they'll be in trouble.
BY THE NUMBERS
3 - It has been three seasons since Kansas lost twice in a row (2013 - at Colorado, at Florida).
7 Kansas has seven all-time wins over Kentucky.
11 It has been eleven years since the Jayhawks have won in Rupp Arena.
2. KANSAS (18-2)
STARTING FIVE
Frank Mason III, senior, guard
Mason enters the game off another solid individual performance, posting 15 points in the loss to West Virginia. He has established himself as a strong contender for national player of the year awards, as he averages 19.9 points and 5.2 assists per game. With a strong performance, capped with a game-winner against Duke earlier this year, expect him to try and right the ship against another blue-blood opponent in Kentucky.
Devonte Graham, junior, guard Graham has scored 35 points combined in the last two games, with all but seven of those points in the first half. He's been unfathomably inconsistent, showing absolute dominance at times, but completely disappearing at others. If the Jayhawks want to bounce back against Kentucky, they'll need Graham to keep his level of play consistently high all game.
Devonte' Graham, junior, guard
Svi Mykhailiuk, junior, guard
Mykhailiuk didn't score the ball well against West Virginia, earning just six points on 2-of-9 shooting, but he did dish out seven assists. Kansas will need his strong shooting to return against the Wildcats, as his seven misses from three-point range against the Mountaineers led to serious problems in the team's offense.
★★★☆☆
Jackson had a game-high 22 points against West Virginia, but also fouled out and had three turnovers. That's kind of how the entire season has gone for Jackson thus far - high scoring and effective offense but sloppy play elsewhere. Against Kentucky, Jackson will find one of his first real tests in the national spotlight. If he can stay composed, he'll likely fill out the stat sheet nicely, as he has all year.
Josh Jackson, freshman, guard
The only things certain in life nowadays are death, taxes and Landen Lucas getting double-digit rebounds. He's only scored four points total in his last two games, but that's much less of a concern when considering he's grabbed 24 rebounds across those two games as well. Since regaining the starting job, he's averaging 11.3 rebounds per game. He'll likely be lined up against Kentucky forward Bam Adebayo, one of the best rebounders in his conference. They may not put up flashy numbers, but expect Lucas vs. Adebayo to be one of the pivotal battles of this game.
Landen Lucas. senior. center
4. KENTUCKY (15-4)
STARTING FIVE
De'Aaron Fox, freshman, guard
De Aaron Fox, freshman, guard Fox was sidelined against South Carolina with an ankle injury, but returned against Tennessee to drop 17 points. Fox isn't much of a threat from outside, but his 16.2 points per game is something that Kansas' guards will need to limit. Fox is turnover-prone at times and if his injury flares up again, Kentucky might need to rely on its other two guards.
Isaiah Briscoe, sophomore, guard
Briscoe's made a huge jump from his freshman year. Aside from some disappointing games against Mississippi State and South Carolina, Briscoe's seen an uptick in scoring and efficiency, even with his minutes decreasing slightly. His biggest problem seems to come from inconsistency as highlighted by his seven turnover performance against South Carolina followed up by a 14 rebound game against Tennessee.
Malik Monk, freshman, guard
Monk is one of the best scorers in college basketball, which obviously presents an issue to opposing teams. Against Kansas, however, his 15 shot attempts per game might be a little high considering how likely it is that Kentucky will be looking to feed its forwards. Monk is hard to keep in check from three-point range, but his 3-for-13 game against Tennessee shows that the key to pulling off the upset is making sure Monk doesn't get going.
Wenyen Gabriel, freshman, forward
Gabriel isn't a great scorer, but his ability to hit threes and not turn the ball over makes him a valuable asset on offense. Defensively, he averages 1.2 blocks per game and stays out of foul trouble, which gives Kentucky a decent defensive stopper when Adebayo is on the bench. At just 21 minutes per game, Gabriel has to split some time with senior forward Derek Willis, but Gabriel is a much better rebounder, which makes him a tougher matchup.
Bam Adebayo, freshman, forward
Adebayo is a bigger, more physical and frankly, more talented forward than Gabriel. Adebayo uses his size and strength to easily score inside. His 62 percent shooting isn't a fluke, and against a team without a true rim protector, the freshman will probably exceed his average of eight attempts per game. From a pure talent standpoint, Adebayo is the best forward the Jayhawks will have faced so far this season aside from Texas' Jarrett Allen.
▶ JORDAN WOLF
@jordanWolfKU
PLAYER TO WATCH
Kentucky boasts one of the best starting lineups in the country, led by Malik Monk. Like Kansas, none of Kentucky's losses are all that surprising, even its most recent loss at Tennessee. The Wildcats can score from anywhere on the floor and their athleticism makes them a tough matchup on both ends of the court.
AT A GLANCE
Bam Adebayo freshman, forward
Ever since freshman forward Udoka Azubuike went down to injury earlier this season, Kansas hasn't found it's answer to opposing forwards. As was the case with Texas' Jarrett Allen and West Virginia's Esa Ahmad, someone on Kentucky's frontcourt is bound to have a big game. The easy bet is on Adebayo.
BY THE NUMBERS
QUESTION MARK
Adebayo is a lock to impact the game but the question remains who will assist Adebayo in the frontcourt. Willis is slightly bulkier, but other than that the two have almost identical builds. If Lucas is tasked with guarding Adebayo, whoever Kentucky plays beside him will need to find a way to get around Kansas' Jackson.
22 - Kentucky is 22-7 against Kansas all-time.
Will Wenyen Gabriel or Derek Willis step up next to Bam Adebayo?
92. 3 - Kentucky averages the third-most points in college basketball at just over 92 points per game.
2,222 - Kentucky has won 2,222 games in program history, the most of any Division I school.
Beat Writer Prediction:
Skylar Rolstad: Kansas 94 Kentucky 84 // Jordan Wolf: Kentucky 80 Kansas 76 // Brian Mint: Kansas 82 Kentucky 78
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