Kentucky Wildcats vs Kansas Jayhawks Prediction, 1/29/2022 College Basketball Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: Kentucky Wildcats vs Kansas Jayhawks

Date: Saturday, January 29, 2022

Location: Allen Fieldhouse in Lawrence, KS

TV: ESPN

The Kansas Jayhawks (17-2) will try to beat the Kentucky Wildcats (16-4) at Allen Fieldhouse on Saturday.

The Kentucky Wildcats played Mississippi State and went home with a win by a final score of 82-74 in their last game. Kentucky walked away from the game with a 47.0% FG percentage (31 of 66) and converted 6 of their 23 shots from 3-point land. From the charity stripe, the Wildcats knocked down 14 of 20 shots for a percentage of 70.0%. In reference to hauling in boards, they compiled 42 with 12 of them being of the offensive variety. They also recorded 16 assists for the contest as well as forcing the other team into 11 turnovers and getting 5 steals. When talking about defense, Kentucky let their opponent shoot 42.9% from the floor on 27 out of 63 shooting. Mississippi State recorded 12 dimes and had 7 steals in this game. Moreover, Mississippi State pulled down 30 boards (7 offensive, 23 defensive), but didn't have a block. Mississippi State went 60.9% from the free throw line by making 14 of their 23 tries. They also made 6 of 19 attempts from distance. Regarding fouls, the Wildcats finished with 20 and Mississippi State recorded 19 fouls.

Oscar Tshiebwe is a guy who was a factor for this contest. He finished 63.6% from the field and also totaled 1 assist. He was on the court for 37 minutes played and grabbed 22 boards. He totaled 21 points on 7 out of 11 shooting.

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Kentucky comes into this one with a win-loss record of 16-4 so far this season. They average 82.3 pts per game (8th in D-1) while connecting on 49.7% from the field. The Wildcats are shooting 34.9% from downtown (130 of 372) and 73.2% from the free throw line. As a unit, Kentucky is collecting 41.7 boards per game and is sitting with 338 dimes for the campaign, which is 13th in Division 1 in terms of passing. They are giving up possession 12.1 times per contest and as a group they are committing 14.3 personal fouls on a nightly basis.

On the defensive end, the Wildcats are forcing 12.9 turnovers per contest while drawing 14.9 personal fouls. They are ranked 133rd in D-1 in allowing assists to the opposition with 220 relinquished this year. The Wildcats defensively are allowing an opponent shooting percentage of 40.7% (480 of 1,180) and they concede 28.9 rebounds per game as a squad. They surrender 30.1% from 3-point land and they are 64th in college basketball in points per game from their opponents (64.3).

The last time they took the hardwood, the Kansas Jayhawks walked away with a victory by a final of 94-91 against Texas Tech. The Jayhawks were able to collect 32 defensive rebounds and 12 offensive rebounds for a total of 44 for this contest. They also turned the ball over 12 times, while getting 4 steals in the game. Texas Tech earned 24 fouls in this game which got the Jayhawks to the free throw line for a total of 30 attempts. They were able to make 22 of the free throw attempts for a percentage of 73.3%. When it comes to 3-point attempts, Kansas knocked down 8 out of their 23 attempts (34.8%). At the conclusion of this game, the Jayhawks finished 32 out of 74 from the field which had them shooting 43.2%. The Jayhawks allowed Texas Tech to bury 34 of 73 attempts from the floor which had them shooting 46.6% in the matchup. They shot 30.0% from 3-point land by shooting 6 out of 20 and walked away from this one shooting 17 out of 24 from the free throw line (70.8%). When it comes to how they rebounded, Kansas allowed Texas Tech to get 34 overall (8 on the offensive glass).

Ochai Agbaji ended up being a major contributor for the Jayhawks for this game. He totaled 37 points in his 46 mins on the court and totaled 2 dimes for the game. He buried 13 of 23 for the matchup giving him a rate of 56.5%, and accumulated 7 rebounds.

Kansas has a record of 17-2 on the year. As an offense, the Jayhawks are connecting on 49.3% from the floor, which ranks them 10th in the nation. Kansas has 1,549 points for the season (81.5 per contest) and they grab 37.3 rebounds per game. Their rate of assisting teammates is at 16.4 times per contest (28th in college basketball) and they lose possession via turnover 12.5 times per contest. The Jayhawks are responsible for committing 15.8 fouls per contest and they hit 70.9% from the charity stripe.

The Jayhawks defensively are ranked 157th in the nation in points per game surrendered with 67.9. They are able to force 14.1 turnovers per game and allow teams to shoot 42.4% from the field (160th in college hoops). The Kansas defense allows 31.3% on 3-point attempts (122 of 390) and their opposition makes 69.9% of their shots from the charity stripe. They have surrendered 11.2 assists and 30.9 boards per contest, ranking them 75th and 34th in those categories.

Who will win tonight's NCAA basketball game against the spread?

Guy Bruhn's Pick: Take Kentucky

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