**Jesse Newell:** Welcome back to the GameDay Cram Session, as Kansas is taking on South Florida on Saturday at Allen Fieldhouse.
Tom, what’s one thing you took away from KU’s 77-54 victory over Florida Atlantic on Wednesday?
**Tom Keegan:** That games against opponents that are that overmatched are not very interesting to watch and seemingly aren’t very interesting for the players to play in.
**JN:** It was a weird game to be at. The crowd was flat, the game was sloppy, KU didn’t play particularly well, yet somehow, the Jayhawks still won by 23.
I guess it makes sense in hindsight. KU had just come off three high-emotion games in Maui, and coming back to play a Sun Belt team at home just doesn’t get the same juices flowing.
Afterwards, it was hard to even single out a Jayhawk that played all that well. Thomas Robinson rebounded and shot free throws well, but he finished just 4-for-13 from the floor. Travis Releford played strong defense and had some nice drives late, but afterwards, KU coach Bill Self said he expected more out of the junior. Jeff Withey made all five of his shots, but he ended with just two rebounds. Conner Teahan made three big three-pointers, but he definitely wasn’t KU’s best defender while he was in.
Though Saturday’s game has a weird start time (4:15 p.m.), you’d have to think that KU might be a bit more fired up after its sluggish performance against FAU.
Tom, you mentioned in your column (and a few other times as well) that you believe Thomas Robinson is the best defensive rebounder in the nation. What do you see from him that makes him so good at that particular skill?
**TK:** He’s right there grabbing the ball as soon as it leaves the rim on what seems like every miss. And as soon as he’s got it, he’s looking to fire an outlet pass. He threw a couple of great ones against Florida Atlantic. Great instincts, quick leaper, so strong he never has trouble getting positions, good hands, great energy. If the rest of his game is good enough to get minutes when he makes it to the NBA there isn’t any reason he won’t be one of the best rebounders in that league.
**JN:** As of right now, Robinson leads the nation in defensive rebounding percentage, grabbing 34.58 percent of the available defensive rebounds while he’s in.
One of KU’s biggest strengths this season has been defensive rebounding, and the Jayhawks have mostly Robinson to thank. KU’s opponents are coming away with 26.6 percent of the available offensive rebounds according to KenPom, which ranks KU as 30th in the country in that statistic.
All right, Tom, what’s your prediction for this game?
**TK:** KU by 18.
South Florida’s a better team than Florida Atlantic and always has a wide-body who knows how to score (Gus Gilchrist). Plus Victor Rudd was a national recruit before he got run from the Findlay Prep team. They have some talent, but look for a more tuned-in KU to perform better.
**JN:** I’ll go with KU by 14.
Stan Heath’s team likes to slow things down, and so far, the Bulls play the ninth-slowest pace of any NCAA team.
Keeping the possessions down isn’t a bad strategy to try to stay with KU, but I still see the Jayhawks pulling away. If KU stays patient offensively, it should be able to get open three-pointers against the Bulls. Knock those shots down, and the Jayhawks should win comfortably.
OK, Tom, who’s your Hawk to Rock?
**TK:** Tyshawn Taylor.
He’s trying to figure out the right balance between scoring for a team that doesn’t have as much firepower as the others he has played on and being a pure point guard. He’ll come to the realization that he can’t achieve the main goal of any guard — making sure the team gets a good shot — if nobody gets a shot, so look for him to calm down in this one.
**JN:** I’ll go with Elijah Johnson.
He should get some open looks from three, and making a few shots will only help his confidence after a zero-point, seven-turnover performance against Florida Atlantic.
I’d expect KU’s guards to do everything they can to try to rack up assists after being singled out by Self following Wednesday’s game. Johnson averaged 5.7 assists per game in his first three games before posting just five combined assists in his next three games.
I’ll say he gets back to five assists on Saturday against USF.
Tracking the picks
——————
**Predictions tally (through six games)**
Tom: 5-1 record, 45 points off (7.5 points off/game)
Jesse: 6-0 record, 35 points off (5.8 points off/game)
Hawk to Rock
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**Tom Keegan**
Towson: Tyshawn Taylor (4th in Keegan ratings)
Kentucky: Tyshawn Taylor (1st in Keegan ratings)
Georgetown: Elijah Johnson (4th in Keegan ratings)
UCLA: Tyshawn Taylor (2nd in Keegan ratings)
Duke: Elijah Johnson (4th in Keegan ratings)
FAU: Jeff Withey (4th in Keegan ratings)
**Average: 3.2nd in Keegan ratings**
**Jesse Newell**
Towson: Conner Teahan (6th in Keegan ratings)
Kentucky: Elijah Johnson (4th in Keegan ratings)
Georgetown: Kevin Young (9th in Keegan ratings)
UCLA: Elijah Johnson (1st in Keegan ratings)
Duke: Thomas Robinson (1st in Keegan ratings)
FAU: Tyshawn Taylor (7th in Keegan ratings)
**Average: 4.7th in Keegan ratings**
Kansas guard Elijah Johnson splits Florida Atlantic defenders Dennis Mavin (10) and Andre Mattison (4) for a loose ball during the second half on Wednesday, Nov. 30, 2011 at Allen Fieldhouse.
