Kansas to Face Tennessee in Orlando Classic Semis Friday

Orlando Classic – overnight update – Kansas vs. Tennessee
Kansas enjoyed its Thanksgiving Day with a 76-60 win against Rhode Island in the opening bracket game of the Orlando Classic at HP Field House at ESPN Wide World of Sports at Disney World. The Jayhawks will face Tennessee in the semifinals at 11 a.m. (Central) on ESPN. Tennessee defeated Santa Clara, 64-57, to advance to the semifinal.
 
2014 Orlando Classic
HP Field House * Orlando, Fla. * All times Central
 
Thursday, November 27
G1 – Tennessee 64, Santa Clara 57 
G2 – Kansas 76, Rhode Island 60
G3 – Michigan State 77, Rider 45
G4 – Marquette 72, Georgia Tech 70
 
Friday, November 28
Semifinal #1 – KANSAS vs. Tennessee – 11 a.m. (ESPN)
Consolation #1 – Santa Clara vs. Rhode Island, 1:30 p.m. (ESPNU)
Consolation #2 – Rider vs. , 5:30 p.m. (ESPNU)
Semifinal #2 – Michigan State vs. Marquette, 8 p.m. (ESPN2)
 
Sunday, November 30
7th-place game – 9:30 a.m. (ESPN3)
3rd-place game – 12 p.m. or 3 p.m. (ESPN/2)
5th-place game – 5:30 p.m. (ESPNU)
Championship Game – 12 p.m. or 3 p.m. (ESPN/2)
 
About Kansas
No. 11/12 Kansas is 3-1 on the season after its 76-60 win against Rhode Island Thanksgiving Day. The Jayhawks average 68.0 points per game and have a +5.3 scoring margin. KU is outrebounding foes 39.2 to 35.0 and averaging 12.5 assists, 6.8 steals and 5.3 blocked shots per game. Kansas has 10 players who average nearly 10 or more minutes per game for 12th-year head coach Bill Self.
 
One of four Jayhawks on the Wooden Award Preseason Top 50 for 2014-15, junior F Perry Ellis leads KU in scoring with 12.8 points per game after his second-straight contest of 17 points against Rhode Island (11/27). Ellis is averaging 5.0 rebounds and has four steals. Sophomore G Frank Mason III had 12 points and five assists against URI and is second on the team with a 9.5 scoring average and 10 assists. He had five dimes and no turnovers versus Rhode Island. Joining Ellis and Mason in the starting lineup is sophomore G Wayne Selden, Jr., freshman G Sviatoslav Mykhailiuk and sophomore F Landen Lucas. Selden averages 7.3 points and leads KU with 4.0 assists per contest. He had a career-high seven rebounds against Rhode Island. Mykhailiuk scores 4.5 points per game, while Lucas leads KU with five steals and averages 3.8 points and 3.8 rebounds per outing.
 
Freshman F Cliff Alexander leads KU in rebounds with a 6.0 rpg. He is third on the team with 9.0 points per contest. Freshman G Devonte’ Graham, who missed the Rider game on Nov. 24, is scoring 8.0 points per game, while sophomore G Brannen Greene is scoring 6.5 points per game and has made a team-best five three-pointers through four games. Junior F Jamari Traylor is just behind Alexander in rebounds with 5.8 per game. Traylor averages 4.0 points per contest. Freshman G Kelly Oubre, Jr., scores 3.3 points per game. Selden, Alexander and Oubre join Ellis on the Wooden Award Preseason Top 50 list as KU is one of only two schools, Kentucky being the other, to have four on the list.
 
The Series
The Kansas-Tennessee series is knotted at 1-1 with each team claiming home victories in a home-and-home series just a few seasons ago. Kansas defeated Tennessee, 92-85, on Jan. 3, 2009, in Allen Fieldhouse and the Vols beat the Jayhawks, 76-68, the following season in Knoxville on Jan. 10, 2010. Tennessee is the second of three SEC teams KU will face in 2014-15. Kansas lost to top-ranked Kentucky, 72-40, on Nov. 18, in the Champions Classic in Indianapolis. Florida will visit Allen Fieldhouse on Saturday, Dec. 5, at 8 p.m. on ESPN in the Big 12/SEC Challenge.
 
Kansas’ In-Season Tournament History Under Bill Self
When Kansas hosted Rider in a non-bracket game of the 2014 Orlando Classic on Nov. 24, the Jayhawks began their 11th in-season tournament in the Bill Self era.
 
Including the Rider win on Nov. 24, under Self, Kansas has played in 10 regular-season tournaments and has amassed a 33-6 record for an 84.6 winning percentage. The Jayhawks have won five events in Self’s 11 seasons, including three of the last five tourneys. In the Self era, the Jayhawks have won: the 2006 Las Vegas Invitational, the 2007 Jayhawk Invitational, the 2009 Hall of Fame Showcase, the 2011 Las Vegas Invitational and the 2012 CBE Classic. Adaditionally, with the win versus Rhode Island, KU has now finished in the upper half in 10 of the 11 events.
 
Kansas Regular-Season Tournaments in the Bill Self Era
Season – Event (location) – place
2003-04 – Holiday Classic (Reno, Nevada) – second (1-1)
2005-06 – Maui Invitational (Lahaina, Hawaii) – seventh (1-2)
2006-07 – Las Vegas Invitational (Las Vegas, Nevada) – first (4-0)
2007-08 – Jayhawk Invitational (Lawrence, Kansas) – first (4-0)
2008-09 – CBE Classic (Kansas City, Missouri) – second (3-1)
2009-10 – Hall of Fame Showcase (Lawrence, Kansas) – first (4-0)
2010-11 – Las Vegas Invitational (Las Vegas, Nevada) – first (4-0)
2011-12 – Maui Invitational (Lahaina, Hawaii) – second (3-1)
2012-13 – CBE Classic (Kansas City, Missouri) – first (4-0)
2013-14 – Battle 4 Atlantis (Nassau, Bahamas) – third (3-1)
2014-15 – Orlando Classic (Orlando, Florida) – (2-0)
 
Note: Records includes early round games played prior to final destination.
 
Up Next
Kansas will face either Marquette or Michigan State on Sunday, Nov. 30, in either the championship game or the third-fourth game of the Orlando Classic. KU will return to Allen Fieldhouse to play No. 8/7 Florida on Friday, Dec. 5, at 8 p.m. (Central) in the Big 12/SEC Challenge. The KU-UF game will be televised on ESPN.
 
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