Big 12 Tournament Preview: Kansas Looks To Defend Title

March 9, 2022

Source: Draft Kings and Google Images

College basketball throughout this season has been very lively and energetic with crowds having more of an impact on games again post pandemic. As the NCAA starts to recover after a brutal two years from the pandemic there has been no clear “best team” this year making conference tournaments and seedings for March Madness very interesting.

The Big 12 conference dominated college basketball, especially up until conference play. Teams like Kansas, Baylor, Texas Tech and Texas have all gone neck and neck putting on impressive performances throughout the entirety of the season.

Kansas (No. 1 Seed) - The Jayhawks have looked sharp this whole season with 10 Quadrant 1 wins. With a player like Ochai Agbaji leading the team with 19.8 points per game and 41.1% from 3pt the Jayhawks have a solid player leading their team. Agbaji has improved his game drastically this season compared to his past few seasons being granted Big 12 Player of the Year, All-Big 12 First Team, Wooden Award National Ballot and Jerry West Award Finalist. The Jayhawks are a well-rounded basketball team with so much depth in their line ups. Players like Christian Braun who is All-Big 12 Second team averaging 14.9 points a game and Jalen Wilson who has been a monster rebounder averaging 7.3 rebounds a game have played huge roles in the Jayhawks successful season thus far. Bill Self looks to lead his team deep into March Madness with a lot of highly experienced players Notable Wins: Texas Tech, Iowa State, Baylor, Texas, Michigan State

Baylor (No. 2 Seed) - The Baylor bears have been an incredibly competitive team throughout the season. The defending champions have been known to have a great defensive team with James Akinjo averaging 2 steals a game and nearly 5 players average a steal a game. Adam Flager who leads the team in points with 13.8 points per game and LJ Cryer averaging the second most points with 13.5 points per game and a 46.8% 3pt. Both Flager and Cryer look to take Baylor on a run in the Big 12 Tournament and attempt to repeat in March Madness. Notable Wins: Villanova, Iowa State, Kansas, Texas, Michigan State

Texas Tech (No. 3 Seed) - The Red Raider have been a scary team this year with Bryson Williams leading the way. Williams is averaging 14 points per game and has a 42.7% 3pt. With

Williams being 6’8 and being able to shoot that well it spaces the floor very well for the Raiders. The Red Raiders and Coach Adams look to make a deep run in the tournament. Notable Wins: Tennessee, Kansas, Baylor, Texas

Texas (No. 4 Seed) - The Longhorns have been an on and off team throughout the season, still looking pretty decent, especially with their 79-76 win over the Jayhawks. Timmy Allen leads the team in points, averaging 12.2 points per game and 1.2 steals per game, showing he is also a good defensive player. Allen struggles with his 3pt percentage which is 26.7% with the rest of the Longhorns struggling to stay above 30% from 3point range it doesn’t look too hot for themcoming tournament time. Notable Wins: Tennessee, Kansas, Iowa State

TCU (No. 5 Seed) - The Horned Frogs have shown some sparks of potential coming into the tournament with their back-to-back victories over KU and Texas Tech recently. TCU’s two guards have carried them throughout the season leading the team in points and steals. Mike Miles averages 15.1 points per game and 1.4 steals per game and their second star guard Damion Baugh averaging 10.6 points per game and 1.4 steals per game as well. Besides those two guys no one has really stood out besides maybe starting forward Emanual Miller averaging 10.5 points per game and 6.2 rebounds per game. The Horned Frogs are an on and off team and with the team shooting an average 29.9% from 3point range I don’t see them winning the Big 12 Tournament. Notable Wins: Iowa State, LSU, Texas Tech, Kansas

Iowa State (No. 6 Seed) - The Cyclones have been an inconsistent team and started to fall off mid-season. Izaiah Brockington has been an absolute stud this season, averaging 17.5 points per game and 7.2 rebounds per game. The Cyclones have potential to make a run, but the rest of the team needs to step up. Notable Wins: Xavier, Memphis, Iowa, Texas Tech, Texas

Oklahoma (No. 7 Seed) - Oklahoma has been a mediocre team but could potentially be a sleeper team coming into the tournament. Recent transfer Tanner Groves from Eastern Washington is leading the team in scoring with 12.4 points per game and 5.5 rebounds per game. They’ve been a decent 3point shooting team throughout the year and are definitelycompetitors for the Big-12 title. Notable Wins: Florida, Arkansas, Iowa State, Texas Tech

Kansas State (No. 8 Seed) - Although the Wildcats record doesn’t show it, they are not as bad as they look at all. They have a few solid players, their best being Nigel Pack who is averaging 17.4 points per game and 1.4 steals per game. K-State has also been decent with their 3point percentage at 34.5%. Nigel Pack is 43.6% and has shown how versatile he can be. Bruce Weber and the Wildcats hope to shock people and make a run by beating West Virginia on Wednesday. Notable Wins: Texas Tech, Texas

West Virginia (No. 9 Seed) - The Mountaineers haven’t looked too sharp this season although they had a strong start. WVU went on two separate 7 game losing streaks which is not good at

all. Taz Sherman has had to carry the Mountaineers through their drought this season, averaging 18.3 points per game and 1.3 steals a game. I would be shocked if they somehow pulled off a run in the Big 12 tournament. Notable Wins: UConn, Iowa State

My Top 3 Picks:

1. Kansas (25-6)

2. Texas Tech (23-8)

3. Baylor (26-5)