Yeah, we’re doing this again. It’s time for the Border War in the form of a non-con game with only a shred of the meaning it once had!
Ok, so I don’t like the revamped Border War thing, but after Missouri beat Kansas last year, even I have to admit I really want to see a win today to put that confederate team back in its place.
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The big news surrounding this game is that it marks the much-anticipated return of Darryn Peterson to Kansas. Out for nearly a month with hamstring issues, Peterson’s absence left the team to figure out an identity without its top player. The results have been generally positive, highlighted by a win over Tennessee and taking UConn down to the wire, there’s no question this team’s ceiling expands greatly with Peterson on the court. With Peterson returning from injury, we may not see him at his best today, but the danger of what he can do on the offensive end should help open things up for the players who’ve been carrying more of a load than they would be ideally.
Looking at the opponent, Missouri is unranked, with KenPom placing them 37th and Torvik 35th. The Tigers score more capably than they defend, with a top 25 offense in adjusted efficiency. Their eFG% is 5th in the country, and when they do miss a shot, they’re a top 10 offensive rebounding team as well. One caveat about those gaudy numbers I should point out is the competition they were compiled against. Missouri has played nine games, and seven of them have been against teams outside the KenPom top 200. Their last matchup was their toughest, playing a Notre Dame team that Kansas beat by double digits in Vegas. Missouri lost 76-71.
While the Tigers shoot well from three, they don’t shoot often from three, relying instead on a two point offense that has them making a fantastic 63.9% of their shots inside the perimeter. On the other side of the ball, Mizzou doesn’t stand out much in the four factors. They are a solid rebounding team on the defensive end, so Kansas will need to hit the glass on both sides of the court to avoid giving Missouri a big rebounding edge. Missouri doesn’t turn teams over a ton, but while they’ve had issues giving the ball away offensively, forcing turnovers has not been a specialty for Kansas, so it remains to be seen whether the Jayhawks can take advantage of that weakness.
Torvik sees Kansas as about a 7.5 point favorite, and with news of Peterson’s return, Kansas is now a 6.5 point favorite for the oddsmakers as well.
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With this game going up against the early NFL slate, I don’t know that anyone who isn’t a huge college basketball fan will be watching, but this will serve as the open game thread to talk about the latest installment of the Border War.
Rock Chalk!
