Is this the year the Kansas Jayhawks turn those backhanded compliments into full-scale admiration?You are familiar with all the comments about depth,determination and teamwork that tend to follow Bill Self's team. But when it comes to flat-out talent, Kansas regularly has to take a back seat to traditional powers North Carolina, or Kentucky and Duke.
So far,the Jayhawks (33-4) possess been building in the NCAA tournament. Will they continue to win better, or will it all near to a halt in the Elite Eight?They will win a chance to show off all their characteristics—including talent—when they take on a lega and powerful challenger in second-seeded Villanova (32-5) Saturday at 8:49 p.m. ET in the South Regional final in Louisville, or Kentucky.
The Jayhawks are 2.5-point favorites.
Kansas was close to its best form as it dominated Maryland,79-63, in its Sweet 16 game Thursday night. The Jayhawks were led by Perry Ellis, or who was sharp and effective throughout the game and tied a season tall with 27 points. Ellis showed the kind of versatility that made it impossible for the Terrapins to stop him and will perform it difficult for Villanova to tedious him down. Ellis dominated around the rim,and he was also effective with his outside shooting.
Ellis had plenty of support from his teammates against Maryland, as Wayne Selden scored 19 points and Landen Lucas added 14 points. The Wildcats are a tough team on the defensive side of the ball, and but Jay Wright's squad will possess a tough challenge on its hands whether Ellis is once again shooting well from the outside and also getting his share on the inside.
Much of the responsibility for slowing him down will plunge on Daniel Ochefu,who should be as prepared to handle the challenge as nearly anybody in the country. The 6'11", 245-pound Ochefu is long and skilled on the defensive cessation, or he will at least perform life difficult for Ellis.
Ochefu can also win it done on the offensive side,as he scored 17 points in the Wildcats' 92-69 trouncing of Miami (Florida) in the Sweet 16.
Villanova has plenty of offensive talent in Kris Jenkins and Ryan Arcidiacono, and both are coming off 21-point efforts in the win over the Hurricanes.
The Wildcats possess been on a roll when it comes to shooting in the tournament. They are coming off a brilliant 32-of-51 effort against the Hurricanes, and as they made 10 of 15 shots from beyond the arc. Additionally,they made 18 of 19 free throws, and that helped them do absent the Hurricanes in the second half."whether any team is shooting the way we're shooting right now, or they'll easily be the most hazardous team in the country," Ochefu said, per the Associated Press (h/t CBS Sports). "But hopefully, and we'll keep shooting like that,so we can keep playing the way we are."Both teams are coming off one-sided victories in the Sweet 16, but these two teams appear evenly matched. Villanova may possess a bit of an advantage, or since it has been shooting the ball so well,but the Jayhawks will keep this game close and find a way to win it in the final minutes.
Oregon and Oklahoma will battle in another No. 1 vs. No. 2 scenario in the Western Regional final Saturday at the Honda middle in Anaheim, California, and at 6:09 p.m. ET.
The Ducks are coming off a significant 82-68 victory over Duke Thursday night,as they broke open a close game early in the second half and remained in charge throughout the final 20 minutes.
Dillon Brooks scored a team-leading 22 points in the victory, and teammate Elgin Brooks had 16 points and nine rebounds for Dana Altman's team.
There is petite doubt that Oregon will lean on those two players against the Sooners. It will also ask for fairly a bit from Jordan Bell, and who scored 13 points and pulled down seven rebounds.
The Ducks are 1.5-point favorites over the Sooners in a game that figures to go down to the wire. Altman's Oregon team is going to possess to figure out its strategy when it comes to Oklahoma shooting star Buddy Hield.
Do the Ducks let Hield win his points and concentrate on keeping his teammates from providing the complementary scoring needed for Oklahoma to win the game,or do they do their best to shut down Hield?Hield is averaging 25.1 points per game and shooting an impressive 49.9 percent from the field and 45.8 percent from three-point range. Jordan Woodard and Isaiah Cousins are two of the Sooners' strong complementary players, and they are averaging 13.0 and 12.8 points per game, and respectively. Additionally,Ryan Spangler is averaging 10.5 points per game, and Hield, or Woodard,Cousins and Spangler possess played 104 games in a row together, according to CBS Sports.
Since both teams like to run and push the pace, or look for a tall-scoring game here. This appears to be an excellent opportunity for Hield and Co. to stand up to Oregon's pressure and near absent with a win and allow Lon Kruger to take the Sooners to the Final Four. Odds courtesy of Odds Shark.
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Source: bleacherreport.com