Kansas Jayhawks | 26-5
Season: 2013 Big 12 Tournament Champions | Ranked No. 1 In South Regional
The Kansas Jayhawks, fresh from their dominate Big 12 championship victory in blowout fashion over Kansas St., will now have the toughest road to the final four as number one seed from any region and one of the most deepest I’ve ever seen. With Georgetown, Florida, Michigan, VCU, UCLA, North Carolina and Villanova all in the same bracket, making it as the East regional championship will not be an easy task.
Freshman guard Ben McLemore has been running the Jayhawks show with seniors Jeff Withey, Elijah Johnson and Travis Releford all taking note to follow suit under the team’s defensively philosophy. Kansas currently holds the best defensive field-goal percentage in any team led by the best shot blocker in the country Withey. The team showed signs of a mental breakdown losing 3 consecutive games to Oklahoma, Oklahoma St. & TCU but managed to only lose one game over the last 5 weeks showcasing the nation’s best overall defense in college basketball.
Defense wins championships and when the Jayhawks are focused on that side of the court, they can stand to toe with any team virtually becoming unbeatable. We’ll find out if they become our overall favorites for the national championship depending on how their defense looks in the fierce South region.