With top-ranked Louisville losing early this week – already the fourth No. 1 team to lose this season, No. 2 Kansas could vault to No. 1 in the new polls by taking care of business against mid-major UMKC in a neutral-site game in Kansas City on Saturday. The Jayhawks will be huge favorites on the Mybookie NCAAB odds.
How to Bet UMKC vs Kansas 2019 College Basketball Betting Lines & Game Info
- When: Saturday, 4:30 PM ET
- Where: Sprint Center, Kansas City
- Live Stream: ESPN+
- Radio: SiriusXM
- College Basketball Betting Lines: TBA
UMKC vs Kansas Series History
Kansas is 7-0 all-time against Kansas City with the last meeting a KU 105-62 win on Dec. 6, 2016, in Allen Fieldhouse.
Why Bet on UMKC?
The Kangaroos are led by four seniors on this year’s roster: returning forward Jordan Giles and guard Rob Whitfield, as well as transfers Jahshire Hardnett from BYU and Javan White from Clemson. The Roos also returned two junior starters, guards Brandon McKissic and Marvin Nesbitt Jr. These two players, combined with Giles, started at least 60% of last year’s games. Giles is the only Roo who’s been in the program all four years. UMKC’s average experience is 2.18 years, which is in the top 40 in the country in terms of experience.In the preseason Western Athletic Conference’s preseason poll, Kansas City was picked to finish second to last by the conference’s coaches. But with five wins prior to Dec. 1, the Roos collected the most victories before the calendar flipped into December since the 2016-17 program went 6-2. That year was the last time Kansas City had a winning record at 18-17 overall. This is head coach Billy Donlan’s first season with UMKC.
The Roos are 5-6 overall following an 82-73 loss at McNeese State on Tuesday. It was a tale of two halves for Kansas City as they were dominant in the first half, but were outscored 50-32 in the second half. The teams combined for 61 free throw attempts. McNeese State took advantage of the whistles, going to the charity stripe for 38 attempts and converting those chances into 26 points.
Hardnett led the way for the Roos with 16 points. Nesbitt Jr. also added a season high 14 points. Foul trouble sent the Roos’ leading scorer on the season, White, to the bench for the majority of the first half.
Making an Effort
The Roos were able to force the Cowboys into 19 turnovers, grabbing 10 steals, and converting those turnovers into 25 points. UMKC entered ranking first in the WAC in scoring defense but allowed McNeese State to shoot .643 percent from the field. The 82 points were the most the Roos have allowed this year. UMKC is now 0-5 on the road.Kansas City is riding a streak of 308 straight games making at least one three-pointer. The last time the team failed to connect from deep was on Jan. 22, 2000 against Oakland when the Roos were 0-for-13. This year, Kansas City averages 6.2 makes per game, which ranks fourth in the WAC.
UMKC is 0-2 vs. the Big 12 this year, losing 69-51 at Oklahoma State and 79-61 at Iowa State.
Team Stats
Offense- Total Score: 70.27
- Field Goal Percentage: 44.92
- Three-Point Percentage: 32.56
- Free Throw Percentage: 70.00
- Total Rebounds: 33.09
Defense
- Total Score: 65.36
- Field Goal Percentage: 42.91
- Three-Point Percentage: 31.18
- Free Throw Percentage: 78.54
- Total Rebounds: 33.00
Why Bet on Kansas?
KU (8-1) lost its season opener to Duke 68-66 in the Champions Classic but has won eight in a row since. The Jayhawks routed Milwaukee 95-68 on Tuesday. Senior center Udoka Azubuike posted his third double-double of the season with 15 points and a career-high 17 rebounds as the Jayhawks claimed the program’s 300th this decade. KU trails only one other DI program (Gonzaga, 304) in overall wins since Jan. 1, 2010.Azubuike’s 13 defensive rebounds marked the most by a Jayhawk since Andrew Wiggins grabbed 14 against Iowa State on Jan. 13, 2014. The Jayhawks outrebounded Milwaukee 29-9 in the first 20 minutes of play. Azubuike accounted for 10 of KU’s boards, two offensive and eight defensive.
Rather than point to a change in strategy or technique that made a difference, Azubuike instead cited head coach Bill Self and assistant coach Norm Roberts for lighting a necessary fire ahead of the game. “They challenged me to go out there and get more rebounds,” Azubuike continued, “and I also challenged myself.” Azubuike said Roberts, who specializes in coaching the team’s frontcourt players, was especially critical of Azubuike’s recent performances — the Nigerian totaled just nine combined rebounds in KU’s previous two contests.
KU led 45-15 with six minutes left in the first half. Milwaukee whittled the KU lead to 19 points on two occasions during the final 20 minutes but that is as close as it would get.
A Little Bit of History
The Jayhawks hist 54.2 percent of their shots, the sixth time this season KU has surpassed the 50 percent clip from the field and the third-straight game. Devon Dotson and Ochai Agbaji were the top-scoring Jayhawks, scoring 22 apiece and going a combined 8-of-14 from beyond the 3-point arc.The Jayhawks have now scored 90 or more three times this season with a perfect 3-0 record in those contests along with a 67-1 mark in the Self era.
The win pushed the Jayhawks’ record to 151-7 in Allen Fieldhouse during the 2010’s. Tuesday marked KU’s final game in Lawrence this decade. KU is 8-1 or better for the second straight season and for the 10th time in the 17-year Self era.
Team Stats
Offense- Total Score: 83.11
- Field Goal Percentage: 52.27
- Three-Point Percentage: 37.64
- Free Throw Percentage: 66.49
- Total Rebounds: 38.56
Defense
- Total Score: 64.33
- Field Goal Percentage: 37.55
- Three-Point Percentage: 28.52
- Free Throw Percentage: 68.03
- Total Rebounds: 31.67
UMKC vs Kansas College Basketball Betting Trends
- Roos are 0-5 SU in their last 5 games on the road
- Roos are 4-8 ATS in their last 12 games played on a Saturday
- The total has gone OVER in 5 of UMKC’s last 6 games played in December
- Jayhawks are 10-0 SU in their last 10 games at home
- Jayhawks are 1-4-1 ATS in their last 6 games played on a Saturday
- The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Kansas’ last 7 games against an opponent in the Western Athletic conference
