Kansas Jayhawks at Kansas State Wildcats Predictions
K-State #K-State
The crew gets together to tell you what they expect to happen in this season’s first edition of the Sunflower Showdown.
The Kansas Jayhawks are the last unbeaten team in conference play, after two razor-thin margins in their games last week. But this week, the Jayhawks are on the road to face the in-state rival Kansas State Wildcats, who also find themselves near the top of the conference.
Kansas has shown the ability to go into hostile environments this season and emerge victorious, but this is easily the best team they have faced on the road. Can the Jayhawks feed off the energy of the crowd to will themselves to another victory, or will their close calls finally catch up with them? Take a look at what we think will happen, and then be sure to share your own thoughts on today’s game.
Do you disagree with our assessment? Make sure you read them all and then hop over to the Discord or on Twitter to share your own thoughts.
Kyle Davis
Check out our Kansas State Preview for Kyle’s full breakdown and prediction.
Derek Noll
Jerome Tang has K-State exceeding expectations and that’s great for those guys. Keyontae Johnson is a monster so far for the Wildcats, Markquis Nowell can shoot (and assist), and we know that their arena will be loud and intimidating, but I’ll take the Jayhawks. Jalen Wilson should eventually get out of his shooting slump (Kevin McCullar too) and there’s really nothing more I’d like to see than Gradey Dick absolutely on fire from three in that place. Dajuan Harris and McCullar’s defense could spark some KU fast breaks as well. Oh yeah, Jerome Tang also talked about how he’d like K-State fans to love K-State and not just hate KU. Good luck with that one. His intentions are good and honestly, someone eventually had to say it, but tell me you don’t understand the K-State fan mentality without saying you don’t understand the K-State fan mentality.
Kansas 80, Iowa State 70.
Lucas Murphy
As DJ Khaled said “anotha one” the Kansas Jayhawks continue to have scrappy games against Big 12 opponents and this one against Kansas State is going to be tough for the Jayhawks no ifs, and, or buts about it. Going into a hostile environment known as the Octagon of Doom facing off against a ranked Wildcats team is not going to be an easy task. Sandstorm will be on repeat as the Wildcat faithful scream obscene chants haha. The Jayhawks bring experience and skills. There is a reason they are the defending National Champions. Kansas will have to rely on the leadership of Dajuan Harris and Jalen Wilson if they want to come out with a victory. Grady Dick is going to have to hit some clutch three-point shots and McCullars is going to have to play the defense we have become a custom to.
Kansas 82, Iowa State 78.
Brendan Dzwierzynski
It’s truly thrilling that this matchup has real meaning for the first time since 2019, and the crowd on Tuesday is going to be as hostile as ever. KU’s defense, specifically when it comes to guarding K-State’s Markquis Nowell and Keyontae Johnson, is the most important factor in this contest. The Wildcats go as they go, and when they don’t score in bunches (like in their loss to TCU this weekend) it puts a major damper on their overall productivity. That means Dajuan Harris and Kevin McCullar need to be at their best on that end of the floor and have to avoid early foul trouble. Offensively, I think K.J. Adams could be in line for another big night as K-State still tries to sort through things with their big-man rotation. It should be fun, it should be relatively close, but I’ll take the team that’s been in way more tough games like this.
Kansas 81, Iowa State 75.
Andy Mitts
We’ve seen successful games for the Jayhawks as they travel into hostile environments. But while Missouri had a red-hot offense, they had no real defense. Texas Tech had a suffocating defense, but their offense leaves a lot on the table. Kansas State is probably closer to Missouri, but they have shown some defensive ability, they can cause some turnovers and the offense is electric. And while Bramlage isn’t the most intimidating environment in college basketball, it will be rowdy tonight.
The Jayhawks are NOT going to go undefeated in the conference, and the Wildcats are arguably the best team Kansas has played so far this season. I sure hope I’m wrong, but I think this is one of those times where the Jayhawks get a bit too amped up and turn the ball over more than they should. It will be a close one, but give me the home team to pull it out.
Kansas State 81, Kansas 79.
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