Kansas Basketball: Live Stream, TV, betting odds vs. No. 1 Gonzaga

The Kansas basketball season is set to launch in a national matchup against the Gonzaga Bulldogs.

When the number sixth-ranked Kansas basketball team meets the number one-ranked Gonzaga team on Thanksgiving Day, it will be only the second times these two twenty-first century heavyweights have ever played. The Jayhawks won the first one by 12 points in 1998 in Allen Fieldhouse.

The Kansas Jayhawks open the season as the sixth-ranked team in the nation, and Gonzaga holds the AP poll’s top spot.

When the 2019-20 season came crashing to a halt right before the NCAA Tournament last spring, these two teams were the cream of the crop, with the Jayhawks finishing the season ranked first and the Bulldogs second in the AP poll.

Amid all the chaos that has been 2020, it is exciting to see such a prominent matchup to get this season rolling. Hopefully, all players and coaches can participate safely, and the season can progress.

Kansas basketball – Where to live stream and watch on TV vs. Gonzaga

Where: Suncoast Credit Union Arena, Fort Myers, FL

When: November 26, 12:30 p.m. Central Time, Thanksgiving Day

Where to Live Stream: FuboTV

Where to watch: Fox

Kansas basketball – Betting odds vs. Gonzaga

According to Odds Sharks, Bovada has the Jayhawks as a three and a half point underdog. The money lines don’t show Kansas as much of an underdog at -105 and Gonzaga at -115.

Kansas, who finished 28-3, scored 74.6 points a game while holding opponents to 60.7 last season. Gonzaga led the nation in scoring with 87.4 points an outing while giving up 67.8. With no preseason exhibitions or warmup games, the team that can get into an offensive rhythm first will probably win.

Kansas basketball – Key players to watch vs. Gonzaga

For the Jayhawks, Marcus Garrett will be the key player. He enters the season as a CBS Sports third-team preseason All-American. Last year as a junior, Garrett took over the point guard position and handled it with aplomb, dishing out 4.6 assists per game and turning it over just 1.7 times. To this point in his career, he has not been much of a scorer, tallying just 9.2 points per game last year.

He hopes to improve his shooting, especially from three, where he hit just under a third of his attempts as a junior.  His biggest skills come on the defensive end, where he is a two-time member of the Big 12 All-Defense team and the reigning Big 12 Defensive player of the year.

Another key returning player is junior David McCormack, who scored 6.9 points a game last year and grabbed 4.1 rebounds while averaging just under 15 minutes. He will probably be the only true, experienced big man in the Jayhawks’ rotation and should see a huge uptick in his offensive production.

Two newcomers to watch are freshman Bryce Thompson and junior college transfer Tyon Grant-Foster.

For Gonzaga, they return CBS Sports First-Team preseason All-American Cory Kispert. As a junior, Kispert averaged 13.9 points per game, four rebounds, and 2.1 assists. His biggest strength is his ability to drain the long ball, connecting on nearly 44 percent of his threes last season.

Junior Joel Ayayi will also be a force for the Bulldogs. Last year, he was a stat sheet filler, averaging 10.6 points, 6.3 rebounds, 3.2 assists, and 1.3 steals.

Five-star recruit Jalen Suggs gives Gonzaga their own impact newcomer, while Julian Strawther, Dominick Harris, and Florida transfer Andrew Nembhard should figure into the rotation.