Creighton Blue Jays vs Kansas Jayhawks Betting Preview
The Second Round of the 2022 NCAA Tournament features a matchup in the Midwest Region between the ninth-seeded Creighton Blue Jays (23-11) and the top-seeded Kansas Jayhawks (29-6).
Creighton knocked off San Diego State in overtime in the first round, while Kansas throttled Texas Southern. The winner of the matchup advances to the Sweet 16 and will face the winner of Providence versus Richmond.
Saturday’s tip-off is at 2:40 p.m. EST inside Dickies Arena in Fort Worth, TX. The game will be televised on CBS. Kansas is a 10.5-point favorite and the over-under 138.0 points.
What to Know – #9 Creighton Blue Jays
Creighton rolls into the weekend a victory away from its second-straight Sweet 16 appearance. The Blue Jays wrapped up the regular season in fourth place in the Big East standings. Creighton is 54th in the KemPom rankings and 55th in the NCAA NET.
The Blue Jays average 69.1 points per game on offense, shooting 45.0% from the field and 30.3% from the 3-point line. Creighton’s defense surrenders 66.0 points per game, 39.6% shooting from the floor, and 71.8% shooting from deep.
In the First Round victory over San Diego State, all five Creighton starters scored in double figures. Freshman Trey Alexander led the Blue Jays with 18 points, and Ryan Kalkbrenner added 16 points and ten rebounds, but Kalkbrenner will be out the remainder of the tournament with an injury. Creighton hit just 2-of-14 shots from three and turned the ball over 20 times.
Creighton is 18-14-2 against the spread with a 6-2 mark ATS on a neutral floor. The Blue Jays are 5-1 ATS over their last six contests.
What to Know – #1 Kansas Jayhawks
The Jayhawks have won their First Round game for the past 15 years and aim to return to the Sweet 16 for the first time since 2018. Kansas was co-champions of the Big 12 and capped the regular season off with a conference tournament crown. The Jayhawks rank 5th in the KenPom and 6th in the NET.
Kansas scores 78.7 points per game offensively, hitting 48.2% of its shots from the floor and 35.9% from the arc. The Jayhawks limit opponents to 67.8 points per game, 41.5% shooting from the field, and 29.9% from three.
The blowout win over Texas Southern was fueled by a balanced scoring attack led by Remy Martin off the bench with 15. Martin hit 6-of-8 shots from the field and hit double-figures for the third game in a row. Christian Braun scored 14, and Dajuan Harris chipped in 12.
The Jayhawks are 18-17 ATS this year and 6-3 ATS at a neutral site. Over the last five contests, Kansas is 5-0 ATS.
The Pick is In
The loss of Kalkbrenner for the Blue Jays is huge, and Creighton will have to lean on its bench that only saw two players see the floor in Thursday’s match. Kansas has won five in a row, and the talent and depth on the roster will get the Jayhawks back to the Sweet 16.
Betting Pick: Kansas Jayhawks -10.5
