Jayhawks to host Bulldogs Friday

CBE Hall of Fame Classic (host game)
#5/6 KANSAS (4-1, 0-0 Big 12) vs.
UNC Asheville (3-2, 0-0 Big South)
Date Friday, Nov. 25
Time 7 p.m. Central
Location Lawrence, Kansas
Arena Allen Fieldhouse (16,300)
LIVE COVERAGE
TV Jayhawk TV / ESPN3
Video WatchESPN
Radio Jayhawk Radio Network
Audio KUAthletics.com/radio
Stats Live Stats
SOCIAL
Twitter @KUHoops | #kubball
Instagram @kuhoops | #kubball
Facebook /KansasBasketball
STATS KU UNCA
Points / game 82.0 68.0
Opp. Points / game 72.0 67.0
Field Goal % .479 .445
3-Point Field Goal % .300 .351
Free Throw % .650 .700
Rebounds / game 39.8 29.2
Assists / game 15.6 13.4
Turnovers / game 13.4 11.4
Steals / game 7.4 9.8
Blocks / game 5.2 1.8

Kansas game notes in PDF
UNC Asheville notes for Kansas in PDF
Big 12 Conference notes

CBE HALL OF FAME CLASSIC
No. 5/6 Kansas (4-1) is in its fourth of four games played in an eight-day stretch when it welcomes UNC Asheville (3-2) in a host game for the CBE Hall of Fame Classic on Friday, Nov. 25, at Allen Fieldhouse. The contest starts at 7 p.m., and will be televised on Jayhawk TV and ESPN3. Kansas won the CBE Hall of Fame Classic defeating UAB, 83-63 (11/21), and Georgia, 65-54 (11/22) at Sprint Center in Kansas City, Missouri. The Jayhawks have won four straight games. UNC Asheville brings a three-game winning streak to Lawrence after its 64-58 win at Furman on Nov. 22.
 
KANSAS IN THE CBE HALL OF FAME CLASSIC
Kansas is participating in its third CBE Hall of Fame Classic and its first since winning the 2012 event at Sprint Center in Kansas City. The Jayhawks are 10-1 in the CBE Hall of Fame Classic with a 5-0 record in host contests and 5-1 mark in the championship brackets. KU first played in the event in 2008 losing to Syracuse, 89-81 in overtime, in the title game. KU defeated Saint Louis, 73-59, in the 2012 championship game and Georgia, 65-54, in the 2016 title game earlier this week.
 
KU’s Travis Releford was the Most Valuable Player (MVP) of the 2012 event and was joined by Jayhawk Ben McLemore on the all-tournament team. KU’s Sherron Collins was a member of the 2008 CBE Hall of Fame Classic All-Tournament Team. Jayhawk Josh Jackson was the 2016 MVP and was joined on the all-tournament team with teammates Frank Mason III and Devonte’ Graham.
 
Originally called the Guardians Classic, the event started in 2001 with the championship rounds played in Kansas City at either Kemper Arena or Sprint Center. Host contests started for the event in 2008.
 
ABOUT KANSAS
Kansas has won four-straight games and a couple of classics since losing its opener Nov. 11. KU won the Champions Classic defeating No. 1 Duke, 77-75, on Nov. 15, and the CBE Hall of Fame Classic earlier this week. The Jayhawks average 82.0 points per game and have a +10.0 scoring margin. KU averages 39.8 rebounds per contest with a +1.6 rebound margin. Kansas averages 15.6 assists, 7.4 steals and 5.2 blocked shots per game.
 
Senior G Frank Mason III has led KU in scoring in four of five games this season, including 19 points in KU’s last outing against Georgia (11/2). The Nov. 14 Big 12 Player of the Week, Mason is second in the league in scoring at 21.6 points per game and also averages 5.0 assists and 4.2 rebounds per game. Freshman G Josh Jackson is coming off his first career double-double with 15 points and 11 rebounds against Georgia (11/22). He was the most valuable player of the 2016 CBE Hall of Fame Classic where he averaged 18.5 points and 9.0 rebounds in KU’s two wins. Jackson scores 14.4 points per game which is tied with junior G Devonte’ Graham for second on the team and Jackson leads KU with a 6.2 rebound average. Graham is second on the team with 4.6 assists per game and has made a team-best 10 3-pointers. Sophomore F Carlton Bragg Jr., and senior C Landen Lucas round out the KU starters. Bragg averages 8.8 points per game and his second on the team with 5.2 rebounds per outing. Lucas averages 4.2 points and 4.2 rebounds per contest.
 
Junior G Sviatoslav Mykhailiuk is behind Graham with nine 3-pointers made as he scores 8.0 points per outing. Sophomore G Lagerald Vick has been the first Jayhawk off the bench in all five games. He had nine points and eight rebounds against Georgia (11/12) and averages 7.4 points and 4.8 rebounds per contest. Freshman C Udoka Azubuike (2.0 ppg, 5.0 rpg) rounds out the KU regulars. Azubuike pulled down 12 rebounds against No. 1 Duke (11/15).
 
ABOUT UNC ASHEVILLE
Located in Asheville, North Carolina, with an enrollment 3,700, UNC Asheville lost its first two games of the season yet brings a three-game winning streak to Allen Fieldhouse. The Bulldogs are coached by Nick McDevitt who is 57-45 in his fourth season as a head coach. Preseason pick No. 3 in the Big South Conference, UNC Asheville averages 68.0 points per game and has a +1.0 scoring margin. The Bulldogs make 6.8 3-pointers per contest and average 9.8 steals. They also average 13.4 assists and force 17.2 turnovers per outing.
 
Junior G Ahmad Thomas leads UNC Asheville with a 16.4 scoring average. He also leads the team with 6.2 rebounds per game, 12 steals and five blocked shots. Thomas had made nine 3-pointers this season which is second on the team behind freshman G MaCio Teague’s 11. Teague averages 14.8 points points per game and has 10 steals. Junior G Kevin Vannatta is a starter who scores 7.4 points per game and leads the team with 13 assists. Senior F Giacomo Zilli (6.0 ppg) and senior G David Robertson (1.6 ppg) round out the Bulldogs’ starters.
 
Junior F Alec Wnuk comes off the bench to average 8.4 points and 5.0 rebounds per game. Junior G Raekwon Miller is third on the team with eight 3-pointers made to complement his 7.0 ppg. Senior F Will Weeks (7.2 ppg) rounds out the UNC Asheville regulars.
 
THE SERIES
Kansas and UNC Asheville are meeting for the fourth time in men’s basketball with Kansas holding a 3-0 series lead. The two teams last met Jan. 2, 2003, a KU 102-50 win in Allen Fieldhouse. Kansas is 6-0 all-time against current membership of the Big South Conference. KU last faced a Big South team in 2010 when the Jayhawks defeated Longwood, 113-75, on Nov. 12, 2010, in Allen Fieldhouse.
 
WHAT’S TRENDING
• Kansas has made 18 3-pointers in its last two games, compared to 12 in its first three contests.
• KU is averaging 9.0 steals in its last two outings and 7.4 swipes for the season.
• The Jayhawks’ margin of victory has been 17.3 in their last three games.
• Senior G Frank Mason III has seven 20-point games for his career, including three this season. Mason entered the year No. 42 on the KU scoring list and is already at No. 33 with 1,240 points.
• Junior G Devonte’ Graham has made seven 3-pointers in his last two games and is 7-for-18 from beyond the arc in that span. Graham’s 43.9 career 3-point shooting percentage is tied for second on the KU list (minimum 200 attempts.
• Freshman G Josh Jackson has shot 54.5 percent or better in each of his last four games. In that span he is averaging 15.8 points. Jackson is pulling down 9.0 rebounds in his last two games.
• Sophomore G Lagerald Vick has pulled down eight rebounds in two of his last three games. Last year Vick averaged 4.8 minutes per game compared to 25.2 in 2016-17.
 
HUGE AUDIENCE WATCHES KANSAS-DUKE
ESPN saw Kansas’ win over Duke (Nov. 15) generate a total live audience of 2,444,000 viewers, up 28% over last year’s Kansas vs. Michigan State game. The streaming audience of 83,000 average minute viewers marks ESPN’s most streamed men’s college basketball game ever.
 
IN THE POLLS
Kansas is currently ranked No. 5 in Associated Press and No. 6 in the USA Today Coaches’ polls, released Nov. 21. KU entered the 2016-17 season No. 3 in the AP poll and No. 2 in the coaches’ poll.
 
Kansas has been ranked in each of the last 145 AP polls dating back to the 2008-09 season, which is the longest active streak in NCAA Division I.
 
Kansas was ranked in the preseason for the 25th time in time in the 28-year history of the coaches’ poll. The No. 2 preseason ranking marked the sixth time KU has been preseason No. 2 or higher in the coaches’ poll.
 
The AP ranking marked the highest preseason rank for the Jayhawks since entering the 2009-10 season No. 1. This is the fourth-straight season KU has been ranked No. 5 or higher by the AP preseason poll. KU was No. 4 last season in the AP preseason poll and No. 5 in 2014-15 and 2013-14. It is also the seventh time in the last eight seasons that the Jayhawks have entered the season No. 7 or higher by the AP.
 
SOME THINGS TO LOOK FOR IN 2016-17
• Bill Self has 389 wins at KU (11 shy of 400), 596 overall (four shy of 600). When he won his 500th, Self tied for the ninth fastest in NCAA history. Entering 2016-17, Self coached 780 games, which is how many it took Phog Allen to win his 600th. Self will most likely end up 10th or 11th fastest to 600.
• KU is 745-109 all-time in Allen Fieldhouse, approaching win No. 750 in the venue.
• Kansas has the nation’s longest active home court winning streak at 43 games entering 2016-17; 41 of those in Allen Fieldhouse.
• KU has sold out of 244-straight games in Allen Fieldhouse, approaching 250.
• Kansas has won 2,190 all-time games, approaching 2,200, which is second all-time in NCAA history. Kentucky is first at 2,210 and North Carolina is third at 2,183.
• Entering the 2016-17 season, Kansas is the winningest program, by percentage, this decade: 1. KANSAS (216-43, 83.4%); 2. Kentucky (217-47, 82.2%); 3. Duke (210-47, 81.7%).
• Should Kansas advance to the 2017 NCAA Tournament it would be its 28th-consecutive NCAA tourney appearance. The current 27 straight is tied for the NCAA Tournament longest consecutive appearance streak with North Carolina (1975-2001).
 
THIS DATE IN KANSAS BASKETBALL HISTORY
Kansas is 8-1 all-time in games played on Nov. 25
Nov. 25, 2006: In the highly anticipated final round of the Las Vegas Invitational, No. 10 Kansas defeated the defending national champion No. 1 Florida Gators, 82-80, in overtime. Sophomore Brandon Rush made a baseline lay-up in the final minute of overtime and junior Russell Robinson knocked down a free throw with five seconds remaining to seal the victory. The victory marked KU’s first win against a No. 1 opponent since the Jayhawks defeated UMass in December of 1994. The 2006-07 team went on to finish with a 33-5 record and an appearance in the Elite Eight.
 
UP NEXT
Kansas will host Long Beach State on Tuesday, Nov. 29 at 7 p.m., Stanford on Dec. 3 at 2:30 p.m., UMKC on Dec. 6 at 7 p.m., Nebraska on Dec. 10 at 2:15 p.m., and Davidson at Sprint Center on Dec. 17, at 6 p.m.