The No. 3 Kansas Jayhawks will be looking to prove that they are one of the best teams in the country when they face the No. 11 Indiana Hoosiers on Veteran’s Day. This will be the second game of a doubleheader featuring four of the most storied college basketball institutions in the country. They are competing in Hawaii in the Armed Forces Classic and any win here will definitely help out when it comes to seeding for the NCAA Tournament.
This war on the floor will go down Friday, November 11, 2016, at 9 p.m. ET at the Stan Sheriff Center in Honolulu. The game will be televised live on ESPN. We'll have NCAA basketball odds at BookMaker.eu available for this and every game on the college basketball Friday schedule.
College Basketball Odds at BookMaker.eu
There are some interesting trends to take note of heading into this game. Kansas is a sparkling 9-2 ATS in its last 11 games played on neutral sites and 19-7 ATS in its last 26 games outside of Big 12 play.
The Hoosiers haven’t been as dependable as the Jayhawks have, with a 6-2 ATS mark over their last eight non-conference matchups. The over has hit in 19 of the last 26 games outside of Big Ten play for Indiana.
Coaching Angle
Indiana has been rewarded for its patience with Tom Crean, winning two Big Ten basketball titles over the last four years. The Hoosiers were awful during his first three seasons, not winning more than 12 games in any one year. However, he turned it around in the 2011-12 campaign and that led to a Big Ten championship the following years.
Crean’s complex offense can be extremely difficult for young players to adapt to. There are endless reads and subtle nuisances to it and that’s why the team was at its lowest during his initial few seasons here. Although Yogi Ferrell is gone, there is still a lot of talent from last year’s team that went 15-3 in Big Ten play and they should challenge for a conference crown in 2016.
Bill Self consistently has the best team in the Big 12, but Kansas has only won one title since he took over for the legendary Roy Williams and that has elicited grumbles from the Jayhawks. He is still one of the better recruiters and coaches in the nation however and it should only be a matter of time before he breaks through again.
The Jayhawks aren’t flashy under Self, but ruthlessly efficient. Under his watch, Kansas has been one of the best teams in the country at shooting two-pointers and that has made the team remarkably consistent. Rather than living and dying by the three pointer like so many teams, the Jayhawks just get layups and short-range shots that add up.
Matchup to Watch
There weren’t many guard tandems better than Frank Mason III and Devonte’ Graham last season. The two combined to average 24.2 PPG and hit over 40 percent of their three-point attempts. Although they lose running mate Wayne Selden Jr. this season, it is still one of the most extremely talented backcourts around.
Indiana might have issues matching up with this backcourt without Ferrell. Ferrell was the team’s heart and soul last year and he ran all the plays through his position as the team’s point guard. That duty now falls to someone else and whoever becomes the point guard is going to experience some growing pains.
Free College Basketball ATS Picks
It would be a shocker if Kansas wasn’t a short to medium-sized favorite in this game. The Jayhawks have a deeper, more talented roster and Self is a coach that can beat the best. Indiana may hang around into the second half, but Kansas will put the game away at that point.
College Basketball Odds: Kansas 75, Indiana 67
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