Samantha Axon, Sports Editor
To kick off this season of college basketball, the Indiana Hoosiers and Kansas Jayhawks will face off in the Armed Forces Classic this Friday in Honolulu. The teams are ranked 11 and 3, respectively, and have both made considerable changes to their teams this off-season in order to become more competitive.
First, Indiana will have James Blackmon Jr. back in the game after playing in only 13 games last season due to an ACL injury. Blackmon Jr. averaged 15.8 points per game and shot 46 percent from the 3-point line. While he is not as strong defensively, he will be very beneficial to this Hoosier team that has historically struggled offensively.
Indiana sophomore standout Thomas Bryant will be returning to the court for the Hoosiers team after an exceptional freshman season, in which he averaged 11.9 points per game and played an average 5.8 rebounds per game. The team struggled defensively last season, and they relied heavily on Bryant. With Blackmon Jr. joining the team this season, the two will most likely lead the team defensively.
The Jayhawks, on the other hand, have strong starters this season that did not have much opportunity to play last season. Junior Sviatoslav Mykhailiuk will be back on the team, after deciding not to enter the NBA draft last season. Last season Mykhailiuk averaged 5.8 points per game, but only played an average of 12.8 minutes. Despite his limited playing time, he was sixth on the team in total points and had the third-highest points per minute average, only behind Perry Ellis and Wayne Selden Jr, both of whom went to the NBA this season. With more playing time and a starting position, Mykhailiuk will be in position to be one of the strongest players on this Jayhawks team.
During the offseason, the Jayhawks were also able to gain Josh Jackson, the number 1 ranked recruit in the country. He can play three different positions on the court, which allows him to be a versatile tool for the team. He is also known to be an expert rebounder, and can easily grab a ball that may be missed by Landon Lucas, the top rebounder on the Kansas team with 6.8 rebounds per game last season. On offense, Jackson was compared to Kobe Bryant by recruiter Jerry Meyer, proving that he deserves his number 1 recruit position. Self noted that he has the momentum and athleticism to last for as long as needed, whereas last season the Jayhawks struggled in this sense and needed to constantly switch in and out the starters.
Prediction:
The Jayhawks will remain strong this season, with their first win being against the Hoosiers. They mostly able to retain their strongest players from last year, and have gained some of the most sought after freshman this year. If the Jayhawks can capitalize on that and carry over their momentum from last year, they will be able to be one of the top teams this season.
