Hoops Preview: No. 7 Ohio State vs. No. 9 Kansas

Finally, a meaningful and competitive contest in the month of December as No. 7 Ohio State hosts No. 9 Kansas at Value City Arena later today. Tip-off is scheduled for 4:00 p.m. ET, and the game will be televised on your local CBS affiliate.

The Jayhawks will have their first test on the road after going 7-0 at home and 2-1 on neutral courts. Kansas has won eight straight and is 9-1 on the season after a 87-59 win against Richmond on Tuesday. KU’s other wins have come against Southeast Missouri State (74-55), Chattanooga (69-55), Washington State (78-41), Saint Louis (73-59), San Jose State (70-57), Oregon State (84-78), Colorado (90-54), and Belmont (89-69). Their lone loss was a 67-64 setback to then-No. 21 Michigan State at the Champions Classic in Atlanta.

Kansas is coached by Bill Self, who is in his tenth season leading the Jayhawks and has an overall record of 278-54 with nine NCAA tournament appearances, advancing to two Final Fours with one national championship in 2008.

Through 10 games so far this season, Kansas is averaging 77.8 points per game and is giving up 58.5 for a Big 12-leading +19.3 scoring margin. KU is also outrebounding their foes 38.8 to 33.1 and averages 7.9 steals while also leading the conference in field goal percentage at 49.1, blocked shots at 8.7 and assist-to-turnover ratio at 1.4.

Redshirt freshman Ben McLemore leads the team in scoring at 15.9 points per game, which is tops among Big 12 freshmen and third overall in the conference. He leads KU with 17 three-pointers made and is second on the team with 12 steals.

Senior center Jeff Withey leads Kansas in rebounding (8.1 rpg), field goal percentage (59.2 percent) and blocked shots (5.4 bpg), which also leads the nation. Withey has four double-doubles on the year and is second on the team in scoring averaging 14.1 points per game.

This is the third meeting between the two schools in just over a year. Kansas won both times last season, defeating Ohio State 78-67 at Allen Fieldhouse in Lawrence on Dec. 10, 2011, then again on March 31, 2012, in the NCAA national semifinals at the Superdome in New Orleans, 64-62, a game the Buckeyes should of won.

Ohio State also enters the game at 9-1 riding a five-game winning streak, though the Buckeyes looked far from impressive in their 65-55 win over Winthrop on Tuesday. Deshaun Thomas scored 21 points, though he missed nine straight shots at one point. Lenzelle Smith Jr. added 14 points for the Buckeyes, who shot just 38.6 percent from the field and 28.6 percent from three-point range against the Eagles.

Today’s game is going to be a good one and I expect Ohio State to win, though it’s going to be very close and low scoring.

2012-13 TEAM STATISTICS

Ohio State Buckeyes 9-1, 0-0 Big Ten AP: 7 USA Today: 7 RPI: 38 SOS: 180 OSU OPP Points Per Game 78.6 57.2 Field Goals Made-Att. 277-591 197-530 Field Goal Pct. .469 .372 3-Pt. Field Goals Made-Att. 77-199 58-189 3-Pt. Field Goal Pct. .387 .307 3-Pt. FGs Made Per Game 7.7 5.8 Free Throws Made-Att. 155-217 120-169 Free Throw Pct. .714 .710 FTs Made Per Game 15.5 12.0 Rebounds Per Game 38.8 31.6 Assists Per Game 15.8 8.7 Turnovers Per Game 10.2 15.0 Assist-to-Turnover Ratio 1.5 0.6 Steals Per Game 7.6 3.7 Blocks Per Game 4.3 2.5

Kansas Jayhawks 9-1, 0-0 Big XII AP: 9 USA Today: 8 RPI: 4 SOS: 7 KU OPP Points Per Game 77.8 58.5 Field Goals Made-Att. 285-580 204-581 Field Goal Pct. .491 .351 3-Pt. Field Goals Made-Att. 59-174 68-221 3-Pt. Field Goal Pct. .339 .308 3-Pt. FGs Made Per Game 5.9 6.8 Free Throws Made-Att. 149-198 109-159 Free Throw Pct. .753 .686 FTs Made Per Game 14.9 10.9 Rebounds Per Game 38.8 33.1 Assists Per Game 17.0 9.5 Turnovers Per Game 12.6 14.5 Assist-to-Turnover Ratio 1.3 0.7 Steals Per Game 7.9 6.3 Blocks Per Game 8.7 3.2