Stanford men’s basketball (6-2) will need to regroup quickly from a demoralizing loss to No. 12 Saint Mary’s (6-0) as it heads to Lawrence to play No. 4 Kansas (6-1) on Saturday.
The Cardinal struggled defending the perimeter against the Gaels in the second half, a recipe for disaster if it continues against Kansas. The Jayhawks shoot 51.5 percent from the field and 38.8 percent from three.
Stanford’s leading scorers, juniors Dorian Pickens and Reid Travis, will have to rebound from subpar offensive performances.
Pickens, who led the Cardinal in scoring in the Advocare Invitational with 18.3 points per game, did not score a single field goal and ended the game with two points. Travis had eight points and only five rebounds after averaging a double-double in the first seven games.
The Jayhawks are led by senior guard Frank Mason III, who is averaging 19.6 points per game. The Cardinal will also have their hands full with Big 12 Newcomer of the Week freshman guard Josh Jackson. Jackson scores 14.1 points per game and leads Kansas with 5.7 rebounds per game.
For first-year Cardinal coach Jerod Haase, the game marks a return to the team he starred on as a guard, going undefeated at home over three seasons.
The teams will tip off at 12:30 p.m. on ESPN.
Contact Jose Saldana at jsaldana ‘at’ stanford.edu.