The defending national champion and top-seeded Kansas Jayhawks meet the eighth-seeded Arkansas Razorbacks in a 2023 NCAA Tournament West Region second-round matchup on Saturday. The Razorbacks (21-13, 8-10 SEC), who are making their 34th NCAA Tournament appearance, advanced with a 73-63 win over Illinois on Thursday. The Jayhawks (28-7, 13-5 Big 12), who have now appeared in the tournament 51 times, rolled over Howard 96-68 in Thursday’s first round. Kansas has four national championships, while Arkansas has one. Kansas leads the all-time series 8-5, including a 1-0 edge in games played in the NCAA Tournament.
Tip-off from Wells Fargo Arena in Des Moines, Iowa, is set for 5:15 p.m. ET on CBS. The Jayhawks are 3.5-point favorites in the latest Arkansas vs. Kansas odds from Caesars Sportsbook, while the over/under for total points scored is set at 143.5. Before making any Arkansas vs. Kansas picks, be sure to check out the college basketball predictions and March Madness betting advice from the SportsLine Projection Model.
The SportsLine Projection Model simulates every Division I college basketball game 10,000 times. The model enters the 2023 NCAA Tournament 79-53 on all-top rated college basketball picks this season, returning nearly $1,300 for $100 players. Anybody who has followed it has seen huge returns.
Now, the model has set its sights on Arkansas vs. Kansas and just locked in its picks and March Madness predictions. You can visit SportsLine now to see the model’s picks. Here are the college basketball lines and trends for Arkansas vs. Kansas:
Junior forward Jalen Wilson powers the Jayhawks, averaging 20.1 points, 8.4 rebounds, 2.3 assists and one steal per game. He is coming off a 20-point and seven-rebound effort in 33 minutes in Thursday’s first-round win over Howard. It is the sixth game in a row he has scored 20 or more points. He has reached double-digit scoring in 33 games this season and has registered 12 double-doubles, the last coming in last week’s Big 12 Championship Game win over Iowa State, when he scored 25 points and grabbed 10 rebounds.
Freshman guard Gradey Dick had a monster game in the win over Howard on Thursday, posting his first double-double of the season. He scored 19 points, grabbed 11 rebounds, dished out five assists and had three steals in 32 minutes. Dick has reached double-figure scoring in three of the last four games, and in 24 games on the year. In 35 starts this season, he is averaging 14.1 points, 4.9 rebounds, 1.6 assists and 1.4 steals.
Junior guard Ricky Council IV recorded his first double-double of the season on Thursday, when he scored 18 points and grabbed 10 boards in 39 minutes of action against Illinois. For the season, he is averaging 15.9 points, 3.4 rebounds, 2.3 assists and 1.2 steals in 33.8 minutes. He has scored in double figures 29 times this season, including 10 games with 20 or more. Council scored a season-high 27 points in a 74-61 win over Troy on Nov. 28.
Freshman guard Nick Smith Jr. is one of five Razorbacks averaging in double-digit scoring. He scored six points on Thursday against the Illini, but had 16 in last week’s SEC Tournament quarterfinal loss to Texas A&M. He had reached double-figure scoring in his seven previous games. In 14 games, including 11 starts, entering the tournament, he was averaging 14 points, two assists and 1.8 rebounds.
SportsLine’s model is leaning Over on the total, projecting 144 combined points. It has also generated an against-the-spread pick that cashes in over 50% of simulations. You can only get the model’s pick at SportsLine.
So who wins Arkansas vs. Kansas? And which side of the spread cashes in over 50% of simulations? Visit SportsLine now to see which side of the Arkansas vs. Kansas spread to jump on, all from the advanced model that has returned nearly $1,300 on its college basketball picks this season, and find out.
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