Kansas forward KJ Adams Jr. (24) and the Jayhawks wait as the starting lineup is announced on Wednesday, Jan. 8, 2025 at Allen Fieldhouse. Photo by Nick Krug

Looking to sustain its renewed momentum from a pair of resounding victories over UCF and Arizona State, the Kansas men’s basketball team will make its first road trip to face Cincinnati in 60 years.

The Jayhawks’ date with the Bearcats, set for 1 p.m. Central Time at Fifth Third Arena on Saturday, is the third game of a challenging swing early in conference play that includes three separate road trips and four games total in a 10-day span.

While 11th-ranked KU is playing some of its most spirited basketball of the season, UC is floundering. The Bearcats have sustained three straight conference losses — at Kansas State, versus Arizona, at Baylor — that caused them to plummet from No. 16 in the country to unranked and the bottom of the Big 12 standings (along with Colorado and Utah), taking the shine off a solid nonconference slate that had been marred only by an eight-point road defeat at Villanova.

“It’s really, really a must-win game for them,” KU wing Rylan Griffen said. “They know that, we know that … We’re going to get their best effort, I feel like, with their home crowd.”

Cincinnati has remained a strong defensive team in particular, as its 61 points per game allowed are second in the Big 12 behind Houston and it ranks 11th on that side of the ball on KenPom.com.

“I think Wes’ teams always guard, they run a lot of sets and they score out of their sets,” KU coach Bill Self said. “I like their personnel.”

UC gets its most consistent scoring from the dynamic 6-foot-6 guard Dan Skillings Jr.

“The kid that just killed us last year was Skillings,” Self said. “He’s a good-looking ball player. I mean, he can score at all three levels and he’s got size.”

Indeed, Skillings scored a team-high 16 and all three of Cincinnati’s 3-pointers as an otherwise poor shooting night sank UC’s upset bid in Allen Fieldhouse last January, then put up 25 to knock an unrecognizable KU squad out of the Big 12 tournament two months later.

The player who did not display his potential against the Jayhawks, as he shot a combined 5-for-25 in those two games, was the sharpshooting Butler transfer Simas Lukošius. He went on a tear to start the 2024-25 campaign but has cooled off considerably in recent weeks. Other familiar faces include guard Jizzle James (11.1 points, 4.7 assists per game) and the frontcourt duo of Aziz Bandaogo and Texas transfer Dillon Mitchell, making for a potent starting lineup with heaps of Big 12 experience.

“Wes has done a great job,” Self said. “We’ll have to play from an energy standpoint like we have the last two games in order to have a good shot.”

Cincinnati Bearcats (10-4, 0-3 Big 12) vs. No. 11 Kansas Jayhawks (11-3, 2-1 Big 12)

• Fifth Third Arena, Cincinnati, 1 p.m. Central Time

• Broadcast: ESPN+

• Radio: Jayhawk Radio Network (in Lawrence, KLWN AM 1320 / K269GB FM 101.7 / KMXN FM 92.9)

Keep an eye out

Road show: Senior guard Zeke Mayo has been KU’s most reliable perimeter scoring option by a wide margin this season, as he’s averaging 14.6 points per game while shooting 38.3% from beyond the arc. But it’s remarkable just how much better he’s been at Allen Fieldhouse than elsewhere. He’s scoring 18.3 in nine home games, including four straight showings of at least 23 points, compared to eight in five neutral-site and road matchups. Of course Mayo’s value extends beyond his ability to score — he’s a skilled passer and ball handler, an improved defender and a decent rebounder and usually finds ways to show up on the stat sheet somehow. The Jayhawks are still waiting, though, on his first scoring outburst away from his hometown.

Off nights: Reserve guard David Coit has seen his role shift slightly with Shakeel Moore’s entry into the starting lineup, in that Coit is doing more work as a ball handler given that Moore is no longer subbing in directly for Dajuan Harris Jr. The most notable trend for Coit, though, has been a string of poor shooting performances. He’s scored just nine points in 72 combined minutes the last five games while shooting 3-for-21, mostly on attempts from beyond the arc. Coit has made himself useful regardless as a vastly better defender than many expected, and helped execute the full-court press that beat ASU on Wednesday, but hasn’t quite lived up to his role of providing instant offense off the bench in recent days.

Something has to give: Neither KU nor UC has experienced much success from the free-throw line. The Jayhawks shoot at a reasonable rate (75%) but, as has long been a topic of conversation around the program, get to the line less frequently than just about anyone. Meanwhile, the Bearcats draw a fair amount of shooting fouls but can’t make their free throws. In games Cincinnati lost by a combined eight points to K-State and Arizona, it shot 16-for-30 (53.3%) from the stripe, and on the season it has converted just 63.0% of its attempts, which is one of the worst marks in the nation.

Off-kilter observation

The trip to Cincinnati is the first of four visits for KU to new conference foes’ home arenas this season. The remaining ones occur in rapid succession in February to Utah (Feb. 15), BYU (Feb. 18) and Colorado (Feb. 24).