Read below for a full Kansas vs UNC Wilmington prediction and preview.
In a battle of unbeatens, Kansas will look to hold onto its #1 spot in the AP Poll against a UNC Wilmington tea hungry for an upset. This is the first time these two teams have played in their histories.
Game Information:
Teams: No. 1 Kansas (4-0) and UNC Wilmington (3-0)
Tip Time: 7:00 PM CST (8:00 PM EST)
Watch:Â ESPN+
Listen:Â Jayhawk Radio Network
What to know about UNC Wilmington:
UNC Wilmington has done exactly as they should early on, defeating Mount Olive, Georgia Southern, and USC Upstate en route to a 3-0 start.
Something this team has done so well so far this season is scoring the ball. They lead the entire country in points per game at 108 a game. Now, this is heavily inflated by a 143 outburst against D2 Mount Olive, but the 92 and 89 point performances in the following games show that its no joke.
They are led in scoring by Donovan Newby, who is averaging 22.7 points a game so far. His shooting splits are extremely impressive as well, shooting 58.6% from the field and 46.2% from three. He scored 33 points in the win against Georgia Southern on 19-21 free throw shooting. UNC Wilmington has three other players averaging double figures, and seven total averaging one or more.
With the great offense however, comes poor defense. This team is allowing 84.5 points a game, 321st least in the country. This is against D2 and low-major opponents, not high-level power conference teams like many other teams towards the bottom. If they don’t step this up against Kansas, they’ll be ran out of the gym, and this could get ugly fast.
UNC Wilmington has been very successful since coach Takayo Siddle took over in 2020. They’ve won 20+ games in three seasons, and are hoping to add win #4 tonight against Kansas.
Latest on Kansas basketball:
Kansas is coming off a 2-0 week, defeating Michigan State in the Champions Classic before a 19-point home win against Oakland on Saturday. Bill Self passed Phog Allen for most wins in Kansas basketball history, a tremendous accomplishment, and one that is reflected in Allen Fieldhouse with a new banner.
AJ Storr had his best game of the season against Oakland, scoring 16 points in 19 minutes on 7-9 shooting. Storr was a key transfer pickup for Kansas, and they’d love to see him replicate this performance frequently, starting tonight.
Kansas has really shined in two departments, assists and a lack of turnovers. They rank in the top 26 in the country in both, in big part to Dajuan Harris, the star guard for the Jayhawks.
One note about tonight’s matchup will be the size mismatch. UNC Wilmington starts Khamari McGriff at center, who stands at 6’9. Hunter Dickinson, at 7’2 stands a whole 5 inches taller than him, so expect Kansas to try to go to Dickinson every possession until they figure it out. We may see Harlan Obioha, the 7 footer get extended minutes to try to matchup with Dickinson.
This is Kansas’ final game before the Duke matchup next week, so don’t be surprised if this is a bit of a look-ahead spot where Kansas finds itself in a closer game than it should. However, with Wilmington’s defensive struggles this season, this will more likely be a blowout.
Kansas vs UNC Wilmington Prediction: Kansas by 29