Kansas Jayhawks Vs Kansas State Wildcats: K-State Must Protect Home Floor
By Joel Wagler

The Kansas Jayhawks and the Kansas State Wildcats renew the Sunflower Showdown in Bramlage Coliseum Monday night, and the Wildcats are looking to protect their home court. The Jayhawks (22-5, 11-3) beat the Wildcats (13-15, 6-9) in Allen Fieldhouse three weeks ago, 68-57.
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The Jayhawks are leading the Big 12 Conference by just one game over Iowa State and can ill afford to lose to their in-state rival, even on the road.
The Wildcats are playing for bragging rights at this point, and they would love to help derail Kansas’ hopes of an 11th straight conference title.
The Kansas State Wildcats started out the Big 12 portion of their schedule by winning four games of their first five. Since then, the league hasn’t been kind. K-Sate has last eight of their last ten, and the only way they are going to play beyond the conference tournament is to win the thing.
Over the past thirty plus years, Kansas State has had a difficult time defending their home floor whenever the Jayhawks invaded. Kansas has won 28 of their last 31 games in Manhattan.
Recently, that trend has started to change just a bit. Kansas won every game in Manhattan from 1984 through 2007. Since then, the Wildcats have won three of the last seven meetings in the Little Apple. While this is still not the record a team wants at home against an in-state rival, it marks progress.
Overall, Kansas leads the series 188-92, according to Wikipedia.
While Kansas State has had a tough season all around, they have defended their home court well. They are 11-4 at home, and 5-2 at Bramlage in conference play.
They have beaten ranked Baylor and Oklahoma in Manhattan, as well as Oklahoma State. They also defeated the Sooners on the road.
The Jayhawks cannot dismiss Kansas State as an easy win. The Wildcats have proven they play much better on their home court. Kansas’ mystic domination over Kansas State in Manhattan has dissipated over recent seasons. The Kansas State Wildcats won just a year ago, 85-82, beating KU in overtime.
In fact, Bill Self is the only Kansas coach to lose in Manhattan since Ted Owens, and he has lost three times. The Wildcats have to know the Jayhawks can no longer be allowed to win with regularity or ease on Kansas State’s home floor.
The Kansas Jayhawks need this win. They cannot afford a stumble against K-State. The Jayhawks finish the season with a tough schedule. They have two home games against tough, athletic opponents – Texas and West Virginia – and end the regular season against Oklahoma on the road. Any of those match-ups could end in a loss if the Jayhawks have a bad game.
The Jayhawks need this win, and the Wildcats could feel good about possibly spoiling the Kansas Big 12 streak of championships. There should still be plenty to fire up both teams in this match-up on ESPN’s Big Monday.
Kansas Jayhawks Live Stream And TV Info Vs Kansas State Wildcats
You can watch the Kansas Jayhawks live stream against the Kansas State Wildcats as part of ESPN’s Big Monday coverage on WatchESPN. You must be an ESPN subscriber. The tip-off is scheduled for 8 p.m. Central Time on ESPN.
Enjoy some highlights from the earlier Sunflower Showdown clash between the Kansas Jayhawks and the Kansas State Wildcats.
Next: Where Are They Now: The 2008 Champs
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