Staff Picks: Predicting Who Wins Kansas Basketball vs St. John's

Can Kansas take down a red-hot St. John's team tomorrow evening? Here's what experts are predicting before the game.

Nov 24, 2025; Las Vegas, Nevada, USA; Kansas Jayhawks guard Tre White (3), guard Elmarko Jackson (13), guard Jamari McDowell (11) and guard Kohl Rosario (7) huddle during technical foul free throws during the first half against the Notre Dame Fighting Irish in a 2025 Players Era Festival group play game at MGM Grand Garden Arena. Mandatory Credit: Stephen R. Sylvanie-Imagn Images | Stephen R. Sylvanie-Imagn Images

After defeating California Baptist in the Round of 64, Kansas will advance to the second round of the NCAA Tournament to take on St. John's. The Red Storm are a daunting opponent for Bill Self's squad, opening as a betting favorite despite being the lower-seeded team.

The Jayhawks looked vulnerable in the second half of their win over CBU, but will they be able to bounce back in tomorrow's win-or-go-home clash? Here's what our panel of experts from Kansas On SI predict going into the matchup.

Josh Schulman: St. John's 64, Kansas 59

I felt a lot more optimistic about Kansas' chances in this game before the final 10 minutes last night against Cal Baptist. The Jayhawks' offense disappeared down the stretch, primarily because Darryn Peterson wasn't touching the ball enough and the team became complacent with a lead. 

SJU has a similar makeup to KU as a defensive-oriented team, but Rick Pitino's group has been a lot more consistent, winning 19 of its last 20 games. They are under-seeded on the five-seed line and might be the hottest team in the country.

Objectively, I don't trust the Jayhawks' offense enough for 40 minutes to outscore a defense of St. John's caliber. Unless they can build an early lead on the Johnnies, I’m thinking Kansas bows out in the first weekend of March for the fourth consecutive season.

Pete Fiutak: Kansas 71, St. John's 69

Kansas is painfully dysfunctional, this combination of talents hasn’t worked like it was supposed to, and St. John’s is ripping through everything and everyone lately.

But the Red Storm don’t have Darryn Peterson.

He won’t carry the Jayhawks, but the full attention of Rick Pitino’s defense will be on slowing him down, and from it comes a far more balanced Kansas effort than there was against California Baptist.

St. John’s likes to run, but overall, it can’t shoot. The Kansas defense, and a few big play from 22, will be enough to pull this off.

Nick Shepkowski: St John's 68, Kansas 62

Kansas hasn’t been right since the last couple weeks of the regular season and although it has perhaps the top pick in the NBA draft, his efficiency has dropped.  St John’s will D the daylights out of Kansas and I just don’t see there being enough offense.

When overall talent is even (even with Peterson), give me Rick Pitino over Bill Self seven days a week and twice on Sunday. 

Jackson Langendorf: Kansas 70, St. John's 65

Kansas hasn’t strung together 40 consistent minutes in nearly a month (since the regular-season win over Houston), and it will need to do just that to take down St. John’s. The Red Storm, notably, have beaten just two NCAA Tournament teams all year (Villanova and UConn) and aren’t exactly battle tested. Their defense – led by the legendary Rick Pitino – is exceptional, but so is Kansas’. It may come down to who can get timely buckets down the stretch, and it’s tough to bet against a seasoned Jayhawks squad, which will also have the best player on the floor in Darryn Peterson.