Houston looks for revenge at Kansas in historic Allen Fieldhouse, a year after losing there 78-65. The Jayhawks shot an incredible 69% from the field in that game.

Both teams return a lot of familiar faces. Hunter Dickinson, Dajuan Harris Jr., and KJ Adams still lead the Jayhawks, but Adams is unlikely to play due to a shoulder injury. Dickinson will continue to be my “Head of the Snake” until he finally graduates, which will eventually happen. But he does too many good things to be discounted.

The Jayhawks added several talented transfers, including Zeke Mayo, AJ Storr, Rylan Griffin, Shakeel Moore, and David Coit. The guy that has impressed me most, and that Bill Self has been raving about, is freshman forward Flory Bidunga. He is a mix of Ja’Vier Francis and JoJo Tugler (Thursday, Kelvin Sampson compared him to JoJo). Bidunga has an incredible motor, an extremely long wing span, and is a great shot blocker and rebounder. If there is a knock on him, it’s that he is very reliant on his left hand to score and gets a little out of control at times on defense.

This Kansas team is beatable, even at home. I’d bet that Bill Self has shown his players game film from last season’s slaughter at Fertitta Center, a 30-point UH win. Emanuel Sharp’s availability is key for Houston – he was active in the shoot-around Friday night, but it remains to be seen if he can go Saturday evening.

Dickinson will continue to be my “Head of the Snake” until he finally graduates, which will eventually happen. But he does too many good things to be discounted.

Kansas National Rankings

• Net – #9; Houston Ranked #3
• Kenpom – #7; Houston Ranked #3
• AP Poll – #12; Houston Ranked #7
• Coaches Poll – #11; Houston Ranked #5

Kansas Offensive Rankings (Top 50 in Nation)

#11 – Assist/Turnover Ratio: 1.67

#11 – Assists Per Game: 18.2

#28 – Scoring Margin: 13

#41 – Field Goal Percentage: 48.22%

Jayhawks Defensive Rankings (Top 50 in Nation)

#8 – Field Goal Percentage (Defense): 37.58%

#14 – Three-Point Percentage (Defense): 28.6%

#14 – Fouls Per Game: 13.9

#15 – Scoring Defense: 63.3

#22 – Rebounds (Defensive) Per Game: 28.17

#25 – Blocks Per Game: 5.1

#44 – Rebounding Margin: +5

Kansas Offense Notes

• The Jayhawks use Dickinson as a facilitator because he draws a lot of attention and is an excellent passer. He toasted the Coogs MONSTER double-team last year at the Phog with his deadly over-the-shoulder skip passes to the corner. Five weeks later, Houston was ready for it in the season finale. Dickinson was +14 in Lawrence but -19 at Fertitta.
• Kansas wants to get paint touches by getting it to or from their athletic guards and forwards driving to the basket. Zeke Mayo, AJ Storr, and Dajuan Harris Jr. have all be fantastic at getting paint touches, looking to score or to kick out to guys like Rylan Griffin for three-point opportunities.
• They love to run pick and roll actions and hand-off’s to get Dickinson looks to score or to pass to wide open shooters. It will be imperative for the Coogs to communicate on defense and ensure they do not allow any open shots.

Jayhawks Defense Notes

• Kansas typically plays half-court, man-to-man defense but may try some full-court, man-to-man defense.
• They are one of the better defensive teams in the nation, but also times when they don’t seem to care. I would attack the paint and see what it opens up. When Bidunga is out of the game, the Cougars can get clean looks at the rim.
• Coach Sampson mentioned the importance of body language in his post-game press conference Wednesday night. I focused on that when I was coaching. There were times in the TCU game when Dickinson was so tired he had his hands on his hips while on defense. If I saw that as an opposing coach, I would feed the ball inside so fast, because I know he is likely to pick up a cheap foul.

The UH guards must rebound. Last year at Kansas, UH guards combined for two boards. In the game in Houston, they had 26.

Kansas Personnel Report (* Indicates Probable Starters)

*#1 – Hunter Dickinson – 7’2″ – GR – Center – (Michigan) – 16ppg, 10rpg, 2apg.

• LEFTY;
• Huge All-American center. Three-level scorer at 7’2″;
• Excellent in the post. Loves the left-handed hook shot;
• Great mid-range shooter;
• Struggling more from beyond the arc than he has in the past; 6/26 (23%);
• Great decision maker and a great passer;
• Top 50 National Rankings – #17 – Double-Doubles: 9; #33 – Rebounds: 183;

*#5 – Zeke Mayo – 6’4″ – SR – Guard – (South Dakota St.) – 15ppg, 4rpg.

• Athletic three-level scoring guard;
• Good three-point shooter: 40/106 (38%);
• Can make tough pull-up jumpers off the bounce;
• Likes to get downhill in the paint and make a play inside;

*#3 – Dajuan Harris Jr. – 6’2″ – GR – Guard – 10ppg, 3rpg, 5apg.

• Outstanding point guard;
• At his best when getting in the paint to score or distribute to an open shooter;
• Best floater in college basketball (now that the Shead kid from UH is gone);
• Top 50 National Rankings – #10 – Rebounds Per Game: 10.2; #11 – Rebounds (Defensive) Per Game: 7.44; #19 – Assist/Turnover Ratio: 3.16; #40 – Assists Per Game: 5.4; #43 – Assists: 98;

*#0 – Shakeel Moore – 6’1″ – GR – Guard – (NC State/ Mississippi State) – 5ppg, 2rpg.

• LEFTY;
• Smaller guard but a high-energy guy;
• Pesky defender;
• Only 40 shot attempts on the season; Capable from 3pt or getting in the paint – 5/13 3pt. (39%);

*#40 – Flory Bidunga – 6’9″ – FR – Forward – 6ppg, 6rpg, 1bpg.

• LEFTY;
• Very athletic/long/forward; Think of a hybrid of Ja’Vier and JoJo;
• Really good around the basket but MUST to have it in his left hand to shoot;
• Top notch shot-blocker and rebounder; Extremely long wing-span;
• He is a POWER forward; He wants to dunk everything;

#24 – KJ Adams – 6’7″ – SR – Forward – 8ppg, 5rpg.

• Very unlikely to play due to a shoulder injury but would likely start if available;
• SUPER athletic forward; Can jump out of the gym;
• Not a good shooter outside of the paint; Hasn’t attempted a three-pointer this season;
• At his best in the short pick and roll;
• Coaches and the media LOVE him, but I don’t get it. Yeah, he plays hard and is super athletic, but he can be a liability. He is a GREAT role player, but coaches and the media treat him as a superstar. But what do I know?

#2 – AJ Storr – 6’7″ – JR – Guard – (St. John’s/ Wisconsin) – 7ppg, 2rpg.

• Highly paid transfer who has been at six schools in the last 6 years (including high school). First-team all-world traveler;
• Long/athletic scoring guard;
• Really good at attacking the rim;
• Capable, but not a great three-point shooter this year – 12/42 (29%);
• Sometimes settles for poor jump shots;

#6 – Rylan Griffen – 6’6″ – JR – Guard – (Alabama) – 6ppg, 2rpg.

• Really good outside shooting guard;
• High-level “Three and D” guy;
• Has taken 87 shots and 56 of those were from 3pt – 20/56 (36%);

#8 – David Coit – 5’11” – SR – Guard – (Atlantic Cape CC/ Northern Illinois) – 4ppg, 2rpg.

• Short/stocky back-up guard;
• Was a great scorer at Northern Illinois and has shown flashes at KU;
• Crafty at getting in the paint to score;
• Solid three-point shooter; 18/51 (35%);

#41 – Zach Clemence – 6’11” – RS/JR – Forward – 1ppg, 1rpg.

• Tall back-up center;
• He’s tall and is a valued member of their team;

#4 – Rakease Passmore – 6’5″ – FR – Guard – 1ppg, 1rpg.

• Athletic freshman guard;
• Not likely to play much on Saturday;

Keys to Victory

1. Communicate on defense. Kansas is savvy on offense. They do a good job of finding the open shooters. Last year, when UH doubled Dickinson, he skip-passed to wide-open guys in the opposite corner. It will be critical for UH not to allow any open outside shots.
2. Keep Dickinson and Bidunga off the glass on both ends. They are both big, physical guys in the paint. The Coogs will need great effort to keep them off the glass and allow them to get second chances.
3. Hold the Mayo and Dickinson to under their averages. Zeke and Hunter can be explosive scorers. It will be important for the Coogs not to allow them both to go off.
4. Beat them in fast-break and second-chance points. Neither team is a huge fast-break squad, but both can run. The Coogs need to get some easy transition baskets off of turnovers. The Coogs need to make 2-3 dagger three-pointers off of offensive rebounds in this one.
5. The UH guards must rebound. Last year at Kansas, UH guards combined for two boards. In the game in Houston, they had 26.
6. Toughest team wins. Kansas was the tougher team in Lawrence last season while Houston was the tougher team in the Fertitta Center. Both teams desperately need this win psychologically. Who will get to the loose ball or take the charge that turns the momentum around?