Hey, guess what?
It’s time to start talking basketball. Well, it’s never NOT been time to talk about basketball, because that time is all the time for me. But we are getting closer to the basketball season, and I’ve already started prepping for the SEC Conference Previews. That means it’s also time to look at the non-conference schedule.
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The Full Non-Conference Schedule:
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October 24th — vs. Kansas State (exhibition)
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November 3rd — at Howard Bison | Preview
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November 7th — vs. Southeast Missouri | Preview
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November 12th — vs Minnesota | Preview
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November 17th — vs Prairie View A&M | Preview
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November 20th — vs South Dakota | Preview
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November 25th — vs South Carolina State | Preview
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November 28th — vs Cleveland State | Preview
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December 2nd — at Notre Dame | Preview
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December 7th — vs Kansas (in Kansas City, MO)
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December 11th — vs Alabama State
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December 14th — vs Bethune-Cookman
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December 22nd — vs Illinois (in St. Louis, MO)
These previews aren’t here to re-hash the argument over whether Dennis Gates put together a good schedule or not. It’s simply to talk about the opponents, and what can be expected. We’re also not going to use these to preview Kansas State since it’s an exhibition. We’ll do a quick K-State preview before the game, but for now we’re going to focus on the games that matter.
Let’s Meet: kU jayhawks
I don’t think I need to do this do I?
Last year, the year before, two years ago, and at the beginning of the renewal of the series. If there’s any opponent that needs no introduction it’s that team to the west.
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Head Coach | Billy Eugene Self, Jr | 23rd Season 609-148
The Antlers here express all of us when we think about Bill Self.
It’s true in the past on these (if you follow the links above) that I’ve basically just re-posted what I wrote the first time, blah blah blah I respect Self as a basketball coach but he’s a cheater. It’s been the same each time because he barely deserves me re-writing the same stuff in different ways. Self IS a great basketball coach, but that doesn’t mean he deserves any respect for how he went about things. And I don’t think KUs sudden slide coinciding with it being legal to pay players is some fluke. KU’s ability to fund their roster and program when others were trying to play it straight gave them an advantage and Self’s ability as coach put them over the top towards dominance.
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So yes, Self is an all time great coach who, for the longest time, played on an uneven playing field. Now the field is level and the treading has gotten tougher. In recent seasons Self has also battled some health issues, missing the 2023 NCAA Tournament, and then again this offseason he spent some time at the hospital with a separate heart related issue. By all accounts he’s healthy now and will continue on coaching, but you can see the end of his career a lot sooner these days than in the past.
I’m not so cruel that I wish Self ill health. That’s just not in my nature. I hope he’s fine and can continue to coach until he wants, and retires. I just hope he coaches long enough to see Dennis Gates beat his ass in this matchup each and every year before he retires.
Series History | kU leads 176-95
Last year was cathartic.
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The series is long and tortuous, particularly in more recent seasons when Missouri struggled, post-Norm, to really field a high level basketball team. Roy Williams and Self were churning out top 15 ranked squads and Missouri was all over the map. We remember the wins, but most of them were upsets, in fact nearly all of them were upsets.
The Tigers might’ve been favored in the 2000 home game, they were probably favored in the home game in 2009, and barely favored in 2012. They weren’t favored last year. And that’s just comparing the KenPom rankings from the start of his data collection which goes back to the 1996-97 season. If anyone has access to the Vegas odds going back, I’d be curious to look into those things. But that’s three times in 39 games. Now there are 11 wins in there, but kU has as many wins by 18 points or more since then.
The series has always been hotly contested, but the Norm teams of the 70s, 80s, and early 90s really made this rivalry cook. Both teams were elite, and it was a blast.
What about the team now?
Kansas has the makings of a top 25 team, but unless top ranked freshman Darryn Peterson (a very real possibility!) has the look of an All American guard, I don’t think this roster is quite Final Four level good.
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Peterson has the look of a potential top overall draft pick, he’s a 5-star recruit, a 6’5 lead guard who can do everything. He can be a primary point guard, or play off the ball, and the only weakness is his three point shooting… which isn’t really that bad. He’s a good FT shooter so it’s very likely he ends up a quality three point shooter before it’s said and done.
With Peterson on board, the rest of the roster is kind of new. Hunter Dickinson, Dajuan Harris, and KJ Adams all had their eligibility expire, along with Zeke Mayo and David Coit. A.J. Storr and Rylan Griffen entered the transfer portal after disappointing seasons.
The only returner with any significant experience back is Flory Bidunga, a former 5-star post who played a reserve role last season but projects to have a big role this year.
Self and co. went hard into the portal, landing Illinois transfer Tre White, St. Bonaventure guard Melvin Council, and Loyola transfer Jayden Dawson. White’s numbers aren’t flashy, but he’s a do everything wing who makes plays off the ball. Council is an athletic guard who scored nearly 15 ppg last year in the A-10. And Dawson averaged almost 14 ppg while shooting 37% from 3FG last year.
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The Jayhawks also return Elmarko Jackson after a medical redshirt last year, and Jamari McDowell who took a regular redshirt last year. Bryson Tiller is also ready after joining the Jayhawks roster mid season last year and redshirting, he’s a former top 50 recruit.
Expect a lot of Peterson and Bidunga. I expect this team to have a rebound season and be one of the better squads in the Big12, but it remains to be seen if they’re any kind of title contender, which is the expectation in Lawrence.
