Teams meeting for the first time as conference foes battle when the Cincinnati Bearcats meet the No. 3 Kansas Jayhawks in Big 12 action on Monday night. The Bearcats (13-5, 2-3 Big 12), who competed as members of the American Athletic Conference in 2022-23, are 2-3 against Associated Press Top 25 ranked opponents this season. This will be the sixth consecutive ranked opponent Cincinnati will have faced. The Jayhawks (15-3, 3-2 Big 12), who had a two-game winning streak snapped with a 91-85 loss at West Virginia on Saturday, are unbeaten in 10 games at home in 2023-24.
Tip-off is set for 9 p.m. ET from Allen Fieldhouse in Lawrence, Kansas. Cincinnati leads the all-time series 4-3, but the series is tied 1-1 in games played in Lawrence. The Jayhawks are 8-point favorites in the latest Cincinnati vs. Kansas odds from SportsLine consensus, while the over/under for total points scored is 147.5. Before making any Kansas vs. Cincinnati picks, check out the college basketball predictions from the SportsLine Projection Model.
The model simulates every Division I college basketball game 10,000 times. It enters Week 11 of the 2023-24 season on a 110-73 roll on all top-rated college basketball picks dating back to last season, returning more than $2,000 for $100 players. It is also off to a sizzling 15-5 start on top-rated spread picks this season. Anyone following has seen huge returns.
The model has set its sights on Cincinnati vs. Kansas. You can head to SportsLine now to see the picks. Here are the latest betting trends and lines for Kansas vs. Cincinnati:
- Cincinnati vs. Kansas spread: Kansas -8
- Cincinnati vs. Kansas over/under: 147.5 points
- Cincinnati vs. Kansas money line: Cincinnati +310, Kansas -399
- CIN: The Bearcats have hit the money line in 19 of their last 31 games (+3.15 units)
- KAN: The Jayhawks have hit the money line in 15 of their last 17 games at home (+11.85 units)
- Cincinnati vs. Kansas picks: See picks at SportsLine
Why Kansas can cover
Junior forward K.J. Adams Jr. has been red hot, scoring in double figures in each of the last five games and has registered two double-doubles in that span. In a 78-66 win over Oklahoma on Jan. 13, Adams scored 15 points and grabbed 10 rebounds, while adding three assists. In an 83-81 win over TCU on Jan. 6, he scored 18 points and grabbed 10 boards with two steals. In 18 games, including 17 starts, he is averaging 12.7 points, five rebounds, 3.2 assists and 1.1 steals in 33.1 minutes.
Another key component to the Jayhawks’ lineup is junior guard Dajuan Harris Jr. In 18 starts, he is averaging 7.0 points, 6.8 assists, 2.0 rebounds and 1.6 steals. In an 89-84 win over Kentucky earlier this season, he scored a season-high 23 points, while dishing out seven assists. He registered a near double-double with 10 points and eight assists in the win over TCU and scored 11 points in a 90-66 win at Oklahoma State last Tuesday. See who to back at SportsLine.
Why Cincinnati can cover
The Bearcats have a balanced scoring attack with eight players averaging 7.5 points per game or more. Leading the way is junior forward Viktor Lakhin, who has registered two double-doubles on the year. He scored 26 points and grabbed 11 rebounds in an 85-73 win over Eastern Washington. Lakhin had 14 points and 14 boards in a 90-66 win over Northern Kentucky. For the season, he is averaging 13 points, 7.5 rebounds, 2.2 assists and 1.2 blocks in 26.7 minutes of action.
Sophomore guard Dan Skillings Jr. has been valuable mostly coming off the bench. He has started three of 18 games but is playing an average of 24 minutes per game and scoring 11.2 points while adding 6.1 rebounds and 1.4 assists. He registered a double-double with a season-high 29 points and 10 rebounds in an 83-75 win over Stetson on Dec. 22. He had 24 points in a 62-59 loss at Baylor on Jan. 13. See who to back at SportsLine.
How to make Cincinnati vs. Kansas picks
The model has simulated this matchup 10,000 times and the results are in. The model is leaning Over the total, and it also says one side of the spread hits in well over 50% of simulations. You can only see the picks at SportsLine.
So who wins Kansas vs. Cincinnati, and which side of the spread hits well over 50% of the time? Visit SportsLine now to find out which side of the spread you need to jump on, all from the model that is on a 110-73 roll on its top-ranked college basketball picks, and find out.
