3 things Texas Tech basketball fans need to know about Kansas
Kansas enters this game against Texas Tech banged up
One strength of the KU roster is its talented backcourt of Kevin McCullar Jr. and Dajuan Harris. That duo averages 27.5 points per game with each player logging over 35 minutes each contest.
What could be a problem for KU is that each is questionable to play tonight. McCullar Jr. didn't play Saturday against Baylor and Harris missed time in that contest with a rolled ankle. After the game with the Bears, KU head coach Bill Self didn't sound optimistic about either of his guards.
“I don’t know anything about (Harris), but I can’t imagine Kevin being a lot better on Monday if he can’t hardly move on Saturday,” Self said. “But we’ll see. So — but I don’t know about (Harris). They said he got it pretty good, but he’s a pretty tough kid so we’ll see if he can come back.”
With McCullar and guard Jamari McDowell out vs. Baylor, KU was down to just a seven-man rotation and even played a couple of walk-ons a few minutes. Still, they managed to pull out a 64-61 win on their home court.
“Obviously we’re missing a lot, with Kevin being one of the best players in college basketball, but we all felt pretty confident in one another to step up and make big plays,” KU senior center Hunter Dickinson said. “I think we did that there, today. We’re at Kansas for a reason. Everybody’s talented enough to play at Kansas. And so, it’s not a surprise that guys stepped up. That’s kind of what we expected.”
McCullar averages 19.5 points per game while Harris is one of the best defensive guards in America. What's more, McCullar is also a nasty defender, and that duo, if they play, could make life difficult on Texas Tech's small guards, Pop Isaacs and Joe Toussaint.
Without them, though, Tech could be able to dictate the pace of the game and the Red Raider guards might have a night that could carry the team to a win. So keep an eye on any news about Harris and McCullar as the day wears on because their status for tonight will be a huge factor in determining how this game plays out.