Three Keys: Perimeter Defense, Interior Offense should power Jayhawks against the Cougars.
The Kansas Jayhawks have just four games left in the regular season, and while the regular season Big 12 Championship may be out of reach, they still have a good shot at getting a double by in the Big 12 Tournament in Kansas City. To do that, they can't afford to drop any more home games, including tonight's game against the BYU Cougars.
The Cougars are trying to stay in the middle of the pack in the conference and on a good seed line for the NCAA Tournament, and a huge win in Allen Fieldhouse would go a long way to doing that. What does Kansas need to do to shut down BYU tonight? Here are my top three keys to the game:
Perimeter Closeouts
It's a problem that we have been talking about all season long: the Jayhawks don't close out well on three-point shooters. That's especially true when the defense is rotating to help on a shooter and/or fighting through screens. Unfortunately, BYU has been really good at creating and converting those open opportunities for their shooters.
According to CBB Analytics, the Jayhawks have been especially bad at closing out on assisted three-pointers (where the shooters received a pass before the shot), allowing 81.5% on the season but a staggering 93.2% in the last five games. Thankfully, BYU has struggled recently, hitting only 84.1% in the last five games compared to their normal 88.3% on the season. Kansas will need to keep that trend going if they are going to shut down BYU tonight.
Pound It Inside
BYU lives outside the perimeter. That goes for both sides of the floor, as they not only take one of the smallest number of shots inside the arc, but allow their opponents to take almost 55% of their shots from inside the arc. Kansas has a huge advantage on the interior with Hunter Dickinson and KJ Adams, who both had huge games against Texas on Saturday. Keep it up and this one won't be close.
Momentum Breaks
The Cougars are a team that thrives on making a ton of three pointers in series. When they get on a roll, it seems like they can't miss. But when teams are able to keep them from getting into rhythm, it can cause the wheels to completely fall off.
The crowd can help with that a lot, as only two teams have been able to beat the Cougars at home, and they have only been able to get two wins on the road, at UCF and West Virginia. Coming to Allen Fieldhouse for the first time in conference play, BYU may find it rough to stay energized from start to finish.
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