Big 12: What Kansas Can Prove Against No. 1 Kentucky

At 9:00 p.m. Eastern tonight in Bankers Life Fieldhouse in Indianapolis, Bill Self’s No. 5 Kansas Jayhawks will get what will arguably be the toughest test they will face all season in only their second game of the 2014-15 season.

Across the court from a Jayhawks team that’s filled with a blend of highly touted recruits and key veterans will be the consensus No. 1 team in all the land; the Kentucky Wildcats and their platoons of All-Americans.

In a Champions Classic matchup that will have the eyes of the college basketball world feasted upon it, what can Kansas show us when they face what is unquestionably the most talented program in the country?

Nov 14, 2014; Lawrence, KS, USA; Kansas Jayhawks guard Devonte Graham (4) and guard Kelly Oubre Jr. (12) celebrate on the bench after a score during the second half against the UC Santa Barbara Gauchos at Allen Fieldhouse. Kansas won 69 – 59. Mandatory Credit: Denny Medley-USA TODAY Sports /

How good are these freshmen?

The best players always shine brightest when the pressure is amped up and all eyes are on them. In their debuts, Devonte Graham led all scorers with 14 points and added four rebounds.

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Cliff Alexander had nine points and four rebounds in 12 minutes, Sviatoslav Mykhailiuk had only four points and four boards in 16 minutes and most surprisingly, the extremely explosive Kelly Oubre played only four minutes and didn’t register a single point.

Each of these guys will be key as they’ll face a slew of All-Americans and future NBA players from Kentucky, and as they should all play big minutes against the platoons of Kentucky, we’ll get an early look at just how good the Jayhawks’ freshman really are; right now at least.

Is the lack of interior size going to be an issue?

Kansas isn’t necessarily lacking in interior size when you consider they will feature three guys at 6’8” in Alexander, Perry Ellis and Jamari Traylor, while Landen Lucas stands at 6’10”, but if Kansas is going to have realistic Big 12 and national championship expectations, they’re going to have to be able to match up with the big guys from Kentucky – where the road to the national championship is expected to go through – and their Big 12 foe Texas, who is second to only Kentucky in frontcourt size and depth.

Outside of these two, Kansas should never have an issue with their frontcourt having the advantage, but the Jayhawks will have to go through Texas’ massive frontcourt en route to their 11th straight Big 12 title and Kentucky if they plan on cutting down the nets at season’s end.

It’s very early in the season and Kansas will surely be much better by the time March Madness rolls around, but one thing that can’t be coached is size and we’ll see tonight just how much of an issue Kansas’ size will be against the biggest frontcourts in the country.

Are they worthy of national championship talk?

Of course, it’s way too early to be discussing the national championship and who should find themselves in the mix in March, but we know all roads lead to Kentucky, while Arizona, Duke and Wisconsin are all favorites to end up in the final game of the season, as well.

Yes, there’s no doubt Kansas is going to be very good before it’s all said and done, but we will have an idea of if they really deserve to be considered in the national championship conversation based on how they fare against the championship favorites.

This doesn’t mean they have to knock the Wildcats off in on their second game of the season, but there will be some evident signs of how realistic their championship expectations are, whether they win, lose by five or lose by 30.

Next: College Basketball Rankings: How Well Does The Big 12 Represent?