Three reasons K-State will win
1 Michael Beasley. Face it ? he?s the franchise. The Wildcats will depend on him, and should depend on him, heavily. He scored 25 points and had six rebounds in the first game between these two.
2 Jacob Pullen. His 19-point effort against Texas could not have come at a better time for K-State. Pullen had been struggling, and looked a bit lost, heading into that one. And with the Wildcats facing a difficult test in the backcourt against KU, they?ll need a confident Pullen, who scored 20 off the bench against the Jayhawks, to be at his best.
3 Desperation. Well, K-State may not exactly be desperate. But the Wildcats are bordering on it with their three straight losses, a red flag for the NCAA Selection Committee, which takes into consideration how teams play down the stretch. K-State knows if it pulls the upset in this one that it should be safely on the inside of the NCAA Tournament at-large pool.
Three reasons Kansas will win
1 The Jayhawks will play with as much emotion as they have all season in trying to pay back the Wildcats for the loss earlier this season. With the whole country watching on ESPN and Dick Vitale in the house, KU will seize the moment. The Jayhawks might not have anything left emotionally for senior night on Monday.
2 KU?s guards, despite their performance against K-State the first time, are the deeper and more talented group. They?re sick of hearing about Jacob Pullen?s 20 points in Manhattan, and they?re right to point out that Pullen was 10 of 10 from the free-throw line in getting it done. Kansas won?t allow Pullen to get as many freebies this time.
3 Kansas actually defended Michael Beasley as well as can be expected the first time around. The Jayhawks trapped him in the post and rattled him, forcing him to go outside to score. Of course, he hit four of four from three and finished with 25 points. But KU certainly made him earn it, and that should give the Jayhawks confidence that they can do it again
1 Michael Beasley. Face it ? he?s the franchise. The Wildcats will depend on him, and should depend on him, heavily. He scored 25 points and had six rebounds in the first game between these two.
2 Jacob Pullen. His 19-point effort against Texas could not have come at a better time for K-State. Pullen had been struggling, and looked a bit lost, heading into that one. And with the Wildcats facing a difficult test in the backcourt against KU, they?ll need a confident Pullen, who scored 20 off the bench against the Jayhawks, to be at his best.
3 Desperation. Well, K-State may not exactly be desperate. But the Wildcats are bordering on it with their three straight losses, a red flag for the NCAA Selection Committee, which takes into consideration how teams play down the stretch. K-State knows if it pulls the upset in this one that it should be safely on the inside of the NCAA Tournament at-large pool.
Three reasons Kansas will win
1 The Jayhawks will play with as much emotion as they have all season in trying to pay back the Wildcats for the loss earlier this season. With the whole country watching on ESPN and Dick Vitale in the house, KU will seize the moment. The Jayhawks might not have anything left emotionally for senior night on Monday.
2 KU?s guards, despite their performance against K-State the first time, are the deeper and more talented group. They?re sick of hearing about Jacob Pullen?s 20 points in Manhattan, and they?re right to point out that Pullen was 10 of 10 from the free-throw line in getting it done. Kansas won?t allow Pullen to get as many freebies this time.
3 Kansas actually defended Michael Beasley as well as can be expected the first time around. The Jayhawks trapped him in the post and rattled him, forcing him to go outside to score. Of course, he hit four of four from three and finished with 25 points. But KU certainly made him earn it, and that should give the Jayhawks confidence that they can do it again
