It’s gameday across the Big 12 Conference, and the most expensive ticket is in Morgantown today, as No. 22 Kansas travels to West Virginia on Saturday for an 11 a.m. CT tipoff on FOX. The Mountaineers (10-5, 1-1 Big 12) are hoping to catch the Jayhawks (11-4, 1-1) off their game following an overtime scare with TCU earlier in the week.
The spread opened up with Kansas as a 3.5-point favorite on the road, and has not moved as of Saturday morning. However, the over/under opened at 133 total points, and has moved up to 135.5 or 136 in most sports books.
Bill Self and Kansas are vying for their rightful place among a slew of talented Big 12 rosters right now, and West Virginia enters the picture as another team capable of handing the Jayhawks a fifth loss and potentially knocking them out of the top 25 altogether for just the third time in 16 years (the other two times coming in February 2021 and February 2025).
West Virginia is 3-2 through its last five games and 10-0 at home this season, including a 62-60 win over Cincinnati on Tuesday. Ross Hodge’s defense is second in the Big 12, fifth nationally, giving up 61.5 points per game. The Mountaineers are also one of the worst rebounding teams (37.1 rpg) in the conference, above only Utah and Arizona State.
TWO KEY PLAYERS TO WATCH
MELVIN COUNCIL JR., KANSAS GUARD
Council has 23 assists and just five turnovers through his last five games, with the St. Bonaventure transfer drawing 15 or more points in four of those appearances. Council played 41 total minutes with 18 points, eight assists, six rebounds and a block in the overtime win over TCU at home on Tuesday. Council has looked especially good in the absence of Darryn Peterson; In the UCF and TCU games, Council shot a combined 66% when Peterson was off the floor.
HONOR HUFF, WEST VIRGINIA GUARD
Huff is second in the nation with 60 triples already this season for the Mountaineers after leading the country with 131 last year at Chattanooga. Seven more, and Huff will crack the top 75 on the NCAA all-time career 3-point field goal list. Huff put together 24 points, eight rebounds, an assist and a steal against Cincinnati on Tuesday. Council has been especially productive
KEY STORYLINES
THE PETERSON FACTOR
Self clarified that Peterson’s absence from overtime during the TCU game wasn’t due to any sort of minutes restriction, but instead cramping visible from the television broadcast as the top-rated NBA Draft prospect worked on his hamstring from the bench. Peterson still produced 32 points, six rebounds, an assist, and a block through 32 minutes, and is listed as a projected starter in Kansas’ pregame media notes. Peterson left the 81-75 loss at UCF with roughly 10 minutes remaining in another late-game exit with the game within reach.
“FORTRESS OF SOLITUDE”
West Virginia has won two straight meetings with the Jayhawks, and are 7-5 against Kansas at Hope Coliseum. The Mountaineers last defeated Kansas 62-61 in Lawrence on New Year’s Eve of 2024, shaving the Jayhawks’ all-time series lead down to 21-8.
PREDICTION: KANSAS 73, WEST VIRGINIA 71
Should Kansas get another glass-mostly-full game out of Peterson, it’s likely to be another high-end performance that gives the Jayhawks the edge. If Huff heats up and avoids a drought, Kansas could be looking at another scary situation following a bitter upset in last year’s meeting. How much action Peterson sees, and how West Virginia approaches him defensively, could end up being the top factor in whether Kansas can escape Morgantown without a second conference loss.
