Arizona vs Kansas State Prediction and Preview

Arizona travels to Kansas State looking to extend its win streak. Read more for a full Arizona vs Kansas State Prediction and Preview.

No. 13 Arizona basketball (17-6, 11-1 Big 12) faces the Kansas State Wildcats (12-11, 6-6 Big 12) on Feb. 11 at 6 p.m. MST (8 p.m. EST) in Brimlage Coliseum in Manhattan, Kan. Arizona has not faced Kansas State since 2014 in the Maui Invitational, where then-No.3 Arizona won 72-68. Arizona is looking to extend a stellar 6-game-win streak, while Kansas State is looking to increase its 5-game-win streak.

General Information:

Teams: Arizona (17-6, 11-1) and Kansas State (12-11, 6-6)

Tip time: 6 p.m. MST

Watch: ESPN+

Latest on Kansas State basketball:

What started as a rough start in the conference with a 6 game-losing streak, has now proceeded in a dominant run where their average margin of victory sits at a whopping 13.8 points. Kansas State currently sits at 7 in the conference with their 6-6 record, one they will be hoping to improve on in this last season stretch before the dawn of tournament season. Kansas State looks to grab its sixth-straight win after huge battles against the likes of then-No.23 West Virginia, then-No. 3 Iowa State and then-No.16 Kansas. These wins have been made possible by such players as David N’Guessan, Dug McDaniel and Coleman Hawkins. 

N’Guessan, a senior guard, is currently averaging 13 points, 7 rebounds and 1.5 assists per game. He leads the team in points and rebounds on the season. N’Guessan has been crucial in this win streak as he has dominated on offense, scoring 10+ points in 7 of the last 8 games. He has scored 20+ points in both their last victories over ASU and Kansas, including his season-high of 22 over ASU. N’Guessan is tied for ninth in the Big 12 with rebounds with his 7 per game. While he might not be the highest-scoring player in the conference, he is one of the most accurate in the nation. He sits seventh in the country when it comes to field goal percentage (with 5+ attempts) with 64.5%.

McDaniel, a junior guard, has been crucial in Kansas State’s most important victories over ranked opponents. He led the team in scoring with their victories over West Virginia and Iowa State, with 15 and 20 points respectively. He also leads the team in assists with 4.7 per game, which has him at sixth in the conference. 

Finally, Hawkins, a senior guard, has also been critical for their performance in this streak. Hawkins tied McDaniel for the team leader in assists with 4.7, which also ties him for sixth in the conference. However, Hawkins has been a consistent machine for the Wildcats as he has scored 10+ in 15 of his last 18 games, most recently in 7 of his last 8. 

Kenpom currently sits Kansas State at 57 overall with a +13.60 score, it also rates both their offense (114.5) and defense (100.9) at 64 respectively. 

Latest on Arizona basketball:

No. 13 Arizona basketball just keeps rolling as they enter this game off of a hot 6-game-win streak, with massive wins over then-No. 3 Iowa State and then-No. 13 Texas Tech. Arizona enters the week at No. 13, its highest of the season since the No. 9 placing in week 2. You can’t talk about Arizona basketball without Caleb Love, the fifth-year guard has lit up the court for the Wildcats. From half-court heaves to clutch late-game moments, Arizona has turned its lights onto the Caleb Love show. 

Love’s dominance in the past few games has overshadowed several great outings from the likes of Henri Veesaar, Jaden Bradley, Tobe Awaka, Trey Townsend and Anthony Dell’Orso. 

Veesaar has been around the court having a three-straight game with 10+ points, 6+ rebounds, and several blocks and steals. His best game during this streak came against BYU, where the forward had 17 points, 6 rebounds, 2 steals and a block. His dominant outing was crucial in keeping Arizona’s production up and BYU hampered.

Bradley has had three straight outings of 10+, with his best game coming in the most recent outing against Texas Tech. Here, Bradley would drop 16 points, 5 assists, 2 rebounds and 5 steals. The 5 steals ties his season high which came against both Duke and UCLA.

Awaka has been a dominant paint threat for the Wildcats with his last two games averaging 14 points and 10 rebounds. He also arguably, had one of his best games in the season in Arizona’s upset over Iowa State, where he dropped 17 points and 12 rebounds on 6-6 shooting from the field and 5-6 shooting from the charity stripe. During this streak, Awaka tied his season-high in rebounds against Colorado with 15. Awaka and Veesaar will prove to be a scary frontcourt for Kansas State

While Anthony Dell’Orso and Trey Townsend have been quieter as of late, they each had huge games in this streak. Dell’Orso had a 20-point outing against Colorado, where he shot 6-9 from three. Townshend had a 19-point game against Oklahoma State to open the streak.

Kenpom currently sits Arizona at 10 overall with a +126.20 score, it also rates their offense (121.3) at 14 and defense (95.1) at 18. 

Arizona vs Kansas State Prediction: Arizona by 6, 86-80

I believe that Arizona’s offense will have a back-and-forth shootout against Kansas State for much of the first half. However, Arizona has been playing lights-out basketball whenever they enter the second quarter. I have faith that Arizona can get scorers like Love and Bradley going, but I think this game will be close and Arizona will come on top in a narrow 86-80 victory.