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#7 Kansas, #1 Duke clash at MSG Tuesday
By: Zach Cohen - StatFox
Published: 11/15/2016  at  12:53:00 PM
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KANSAS JAYHAWKS (0-1)

vs. DUKE BLUE DEVILS (2-0)

Madison Square Garden – New York, NY
Tip-off: Tuesday, 9:30 pm ET
Line: Duke -2.5, Total: 167.5

#7 Kansas will be looking to avoid a second consecutive loss when the team faces #1 Duke at Madison Square Garden on Tuesday.

The Jayhawks opened the season with a 103-99 overtime loss to the Hoosiers and the team will be desperate for a win on Tuesday night. Kansas does not want to open the year at 0-2, as this is a team that has championship aspirations. Head coach Bill Self knows the importance of this one, so look for the Jayhawks to come out with a ton of energy on Tuesday. Duke, however, is another team that dreams of winning it all this year. The Blue Devils are the top-ranked team in the country, and they opened up their season with blowout victories over Marist and Grand Canyon respectively. Although these teams are staples at the top of the college basketball rankings, they have only met four times since 1997. The teams have split victories SU in those games, but the most recent meeting was a 94-83 Kansas victory on Nov. 12, 2013. One trend worth pointing out in this game is the fact that Kansas is 29-13 ATS after allowing 80 points or more in its previous game under head coach Bill Self. Duke, however, is 84-55 ATS off a home win scoring 85 points or more under Mike Krzyzewski. The Blue Devils are not going to be at full strength coming into this one, though. F Jayson Tatum (Foot) is doubtful for this game and both F Harry Giles (Knee) and C Marques Bolden (Leg) are out indefinitely for the team.

The Jayhawks lost their season opener, but they probably should have won that game. Indiana was 15-for-31 from three in the win, and that is not something that is going to happen often. The Hoosiers hit a ton of shots that they’d normally miss, and that was really the difference in that one. G Frank Mason III was absolutely outstanding in the loss, scoring 30 points and also adding nine assists, and seven rebounds. One thing he was doing was drawing fouls. Mason got to the line at will in the defeat, and he went 13-for-15 from the charity stripe. Look for him to be extremely aggressive in this one as well. G Devonte’ Graham was also solid for Kansas in the opener, scoring 16 points in 36 minutes of action. Graham was, however, just 3-for-11 from the floor and fouled out late in the game as well. He’ll need to be a bit more cautious on the defensive end, but his offense isn’t going to be a concern for the Jayhawks. He still found ways to score against Indiana, and he should hit a higher percentage of his shots against Duke on Tuesday. F Josh Jackson is going to be the x-factor in this one, though. Jackson was the top player in this freshman class, but he was disappointing against Indiana. He went just 3-for-11 with nine points in 27 minutes of action in that game. Kansas will need him to show up on Tuesday or the team might not have enough to beat Duke.

The Blue Devils are off to a great start this season, but they’ll be seriously tested by Kansas on Tuesday. One guy that is going to have to play a big game in this one is G Grayson Allen. Allen lit it up against Grand Canyon on Saturday, finishing the game with 25 points, 10 boards, four assists and three steals in 37 minutes of action. He is a very well rounded player, as he can hit the three and also get to the rim. That will come in handy on Tuesday, as he could draw a ton of fouls against both Mason and Graham in this one. G Luke Kennard will join Allen in the backcourt, and he can really shoot the ball. Through two games this season, Kennard is shooting 50.0% from the outside and it’s likely that he’ll finish above the 40.0% mark this season. He doesn’t get to the basket quite like Allen, but he’ll find ways to score in this game and he will rarely make mistakes as well. Inside, expect a big game from F Amile Jefferson. Through two games this season, Jefferson is averaging 10.0 PPG, 8.0 RPG, 4.0 BPG and 2.0 SPG. He is a hustler and just might be the best big man on the court in this game. That should give Duke a huge advantage.


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