What to Watch for: TCU (Round Two)

Jamari is in and Embiid likely out when Kansas takes on TCU in Allen on Satuday afternoon. The Jayhawks defeated TCU 91-69 on the road in a game that they dominated the first 20 minutes and sort of puttered through the second. Part of that was due to Self utilizing some of his bench in unusual combinations. KU played 13 guys in the victory, 10 of whom played soule digit minutes.  TCU is still searching for their first Big 12 victory and it is a tall task for them to get it in the Phog. Here are two things to watch for:

1. Rim protection. Kansas State scored on every overtime possession in their win over Kansas earlier in the week hitting layup after layup at ease. The ‘Hawks really missed the presence of their two bets rim-defenders in Embiid (who was limited) and Traylor (who did not play). While nobody expects Ellis to be the same kind of defensive force, he and the other bigs have to do better when Embiid is out. They will get their chance tomorrow. I don’t think it would be wise to play Embiid until the Texas game, so Jamari, Black and Ellis will have to carry the load inside defensively. At the same time, the on-ball defenders have to do a better job of stopping penetration. It will be interesting to see what kind of percentage TCU gets at the rim.

2. Do Greene and Frankamp get early minutes? If this game turns into a blowout it may be hard to judge, but Greene and Frankamp have really been able to spark the team at times. I would argue that they deserve some more of Selden’s time out there. Probably not both of them in the same game, but one of them, depending on match-ups. Given KU’s struggles from behind the arc at times, if one of those two guys begins to emerge as a consistent three point threat, they could see some more time going into the final third of the season.