Arkansas vs Kansas Prediction & Best Bets: New Life for the Jayhawks?

The Kansas Jayhawks have been one of, if not the biggest, disappointments of the college basketball season. But March Madness brings an opportunity to reset and finish on a high note, and it all starts with a first-round matchup with Arkansas tonight in Providence (7:10 pm ET, CBS).

Kansas (21-12) sat at the top of the rankings to open the season and remained there into the month of December until they lost back-to-back games at Creighton and Missouri.

Fast forward to March, and the Jayhawks are unranked and guaranteed to finish with their most losses since 1989, and they are the #7 seed in the West Regional, their worst NCAA Tournament seed since 2000.

But a March Madness could render the last few months nothing more than a difficult learning experience, and a win over the tenth-seeded Razorbacks could set them on their way.

As for Arkansas (20-13), the outlook wasn’t positive when they were 15-11 overall and 4-9 in the SEC with five regular season games. But a 5-2 stretch that included wins over four tournament teams assured them of a spot in the March Madness bracket and the same opportunity that awaits Kansas.

Arkansas vs Kansas Betting Trends

• Arkansas is 7-7 SU and 4-10 ATS as an underdog this season.
• The over is 6-1 in the Razorbacks’ last seven games. In their first 26 games of the season, the over was 9-17.
• In the Jayhawks’ first 16 games this season, the over hit just once. In their last 17 games, the over is 11-6.

Arkansas vs Kansas Prediction and Best Bets

Will we see the best versions of each of these teams tonight in Providence. If so, this could be one of the better games on today’s March Madness schedule.

The Jayhawks’ season was derailed in part by disappointing returns by players who were expected to provide a lift offensively. The most glaring example is Wisconsin transfer A.J. Storr, who went into the season as a potential Wooden Award candidate but has not delivered as expected. But it takes a team to win, and it takes a team to lose, and there are a lot of fingers to point.

That said, Kansas did score 75+ points four times in their last seven games, matching the number of games they scored 75+ points in their first 15 Big 12 games this season.

Timing is everything, and the timing of that stretch could not be better, given that Arkansas averaged 80.8 points per game across their final seven pre-NCAA Tournament games. That’s even with a 53-point dud in a loss at South Carolina on March 1.

NCAA Tournament games can bring out the best or worst in teams, so backing trends can be hit or miss. But with both teams showing a decent bit of life offensively down the stretch, the over is a good shout here.

As for the spread? That one shouldn’t be touched, even though yours truly backs Kansas as one of this year’s March Madness sleepers.

More March Madness Information

All of our non-game content for this year’s NCAA Division I men’s and women’s basketball tournaments can be found in one place. Bookmark our March Madness main page to keep up with our picks, predictions, and tips on how to bet on the action at the best online sportsbooks.

• March Madness Betting Guide

If you are looking for more March Madness game coverage, we have plenty of that as well, in addition of this look at Arkansas vs Kansas.

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