LAWRENCE -- Kansas basketball's non-conference slate for the regular season will come to an end Sunday with a home game against Brown.
The No. 8 Jayhawks (8-2) rebounded from a pair of road losses with a win at home against NC State. The Bears (7-3) are on a six-game winning streak. It's an important matchup for KU, as it continues to ready itself for Big 12 Conference play.
Here are a few things to consider, plus a prediction, before the 2 p.m. (CT)-scheduled tip-off inside Allen Fieldhouse:
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Kansas coach Bill Self is aware of the winning streak Brown is on, and the fact it isn't far removed from a win against a Rhode Island team that is off to a fast start. He also knows the Bears' head coach has been around for a while, so there's been time for that coach to put a system in place. Self considers Brown a team that can compete for a league title in the Ivy League.
Self noted that he thought Flory Bidunga, a freshman forward for the Jayhawks, was progressing on a dramatic incline through the initial weeks of the season. However, in the time that coincided with Kansas' back-to-back losses on the road against Creighton and Missouri, Self thought that progress plateaued. Self would like to see a return of that momentum from Bidunga, who's averaging 5.9 points and 4.8 rebounds per game off of the bench, so graduate center Hunter Dickinson doesn't have to be called upon to play so many minutes.
Due to an injury, graduate guard Shakeel Moore hasn't always been able to be the asset for the Jayhawks he was recruited to be. However, Self said part of why the recent week of practice has gone well is because Moore has been available without any limitations. Self sees Moore as someone who can be graduate guard Dajuan Harris Jr.'s backup, and a potential elite defender on the perimeter.
Kansas has yet to lose at home this season, and that's not going to start this weekend. The Jayhawks are set to stop the winning streak that Brown is on. This should be an 84-66 win for KU.
Jordan Guskey covers University of Kansas Athletics at The Topeka Capital-Journal. He is the National Sports Media Association's sportswriter of the year for the state of Kansas for 2022. Contact him at [email protected] or on Twitter at @JordanGuskey.