Manhattan at Kansas Preview

The Kansas Jayhawks made a statement to begin the season Monday, making shots from all over the court and racking up 59 first-half points on the way to a 40+ point win. With Kentucky and the Champions Classic looming next week, Kansas has another chance to build confidence and get in sync against the Manhattan Jaspers.

Opponent Overview

Team: Manhattan

Record: 1-0

KenPom: 325

Line: KU -33

Team Form

The Jaspers already have a road upset under their belt, at least according to KenPom. Manhattan went to Bryant and beat the No. 241-ranked Bulldogs 61-59 in the season opener. It’s a solid win considering Bryant was picked to finish second – behind only Vermont – in the America East preseason poll (receiving two first-place votes), while Manhattan was picked last (11th) in the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference with only 14 total points.

Manhattan won despite shooting six percent (1-16) from three. It helped that Bryant was just 31.6% from inside the arc and the Jaspers had eight steals.

Players to Watch

The biggest production was with the biggest players on Monday. Manhattan’s best player in the opener was 6-7 freshman Seydou Traore, who recorded a double-double of 12 points and 11 rebounds in 31 minutes. And the Jaspers’ leading scorer was 6-8 sophomore Daniel Rouzan, who scored 16 points on 8-13 shooting and grabbed two offensive boards. Brett Rumpel was the only other Jasper to reach double figures in scoring, but his 10 points came on 2-12 shooting (and 6-6 from the free-throw line).

Manhattan had 10 players go nine or more minutes and all but two of them scored, but it wasn’t efficient. And the production really fell off when reaching the bench. Fifty-two of the Jaspers’ 61 points came from the starters.

Matchups to Watch

Manhattan has the same height issue that NC Central suffered from. Only two Jaspers are 6-8 or taller, with the tallest being Rouzan at 6-9. That wasn’t an issue against Bryant, who only played seven people (outside of a couple of minutes) and none who were taller than 6-8. So, while Manhattan was able to grab 12 offensive rebounds, that sort of success on the boards is less likely on Friday.

Also concerning for the Jaspers is the fact that they only had seven assists for the game, compared to 13 turnovers. That lack of ball movement won’t cut it in Allen Fieldhouse against a longer, more athletic team. But where Manhattan excelled was forcing live-ball turnovers, compiling eight steals against Bryant.

Prediction

The Jayhawks set the bar pretty high in terms of execution on Monday. It’s unlikely Kansas shoots as well as it did against NC Central, though what stood out on Monday was KU’s passing and ability to find open teammates for high-quality shots. It feels like that should continue Friday.

We know what to expect from the big four starters. What I’m most curious about is the maturation of Elmarko Jackson and Johnny Furphy and how Jamari McDowell looks in his first real game. Any line at or above 30 points is massive. I took NC Central to cover (and KU to still win by 25) and that looked foolish almost immediately. So I guess this time I’ll take Kansas to barely cover this time around.

Kansas 96, Manhattan 62

Record ATS: 0-1

Record Straight Up: 1-0

(Last game: Kansas 99, NC Central 56)