Kansas is being surpassed by Houston, Texas Tech, Arizona, and Iowa State in the Big 12. And now comes a longshot bid in the Big Dance. Head coach Bill Self is the GOAT of Kansas Jayhawks basketball, at least in the modern era. Self has two national championships on his resume, the best in KU history. Also, he has led the Jayhawks to four Final Four College Basketball odds appearances. But the past three seasons have shown a steady decline in wins and profits. Hunter Dickinson has been a good but hardly dominant player after arriving with great fanfare.
2025 NCAA Tournament First Round Thursday Kansas Jayhawks vs. Arkansas Razorbacks
| Date and Time: | Thursday, March 20, 2025, 7:10 p.m. ET |
|---|---|
| Location: | Amica Mutal Pavilion, Providence, RI |
| TV Coverage: | CBS |
| Team | Spread | Total | ML | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Arkansas | +4½ -103 | 145½ -110 | +175 |  |
| Kansas | -4½ -117 | 145½ -110 | -205 | |
| ||||
Arkansas Razorbacks Team Overview
Late on, Arkansas has covered two of its previous five games and has gone over the offshore betting total in six of its last seven outings. Adou Thiero is first among Arkansas scorers with 15.7 points and six rebounds per game.
Overall, the Arkansas Razorbacks are 20-12 straight up, 13-17-1 against the spread, and 13-18 over/under the total. Arkansas has national metrics of 106th for scoring offense, 81st for field goal percentage, 223rd for 3-point field goal percentage, 137th for free throw percentage, and 175th for offensive rebounding. While defensively, Arkansas is 144th for scoring defense, 74th for field goal percentage permitted, 76th for 3-point field goal percentage allowed, and 208th for defensive rebounding.
Kansas Jayhawks Team Overview
Late on, Kansas has covered four of its previous seven games and has gone over the College basketball lines total in four of its last five outings. First among Kansas scorers is Hunter Dickinson, who averages 17.6 points and 10 rebounds per game.
Overall, the Kansas Jayhawks are 21-11 straight up, 15-16 against the spread, and 10-21 over/under the total. Kansas has national metrics of 134th for scoring offense, 52nd for field goal percentage, 170th for 3-point field goal percentage, 233rd for free throw percentage, and 51st for offensive rebounding. While defensively, Kansas is 59th for scoring defense, 10th for field goal percentage permitted, 17th for 3-point field goal percentage allowed, and 219th for defensive rebounding.
Henri Veesaar and KJ Lewis each scored 19 points to lead Arizona to an 88-77 victory over Kansas in the quarterfinals of the Big 12 tournament on Thursday. Also, Arizona got 16 points from Trey Townsend and 11 from Caleb Love.
Zeke Mayo scored 20 points to lead No. 6 seed Kansas. Meanwhile, Hunter Dickinson added 19, and Dajuan Harris had 16. Dickinson also led the Jayhawks with 12 rebounds. Kansas came out of the half with a 13-5 run, tying the game at 50 on a 3-pointer by Mayo.
Kansas finally grabbed its first lead since 3-2 on a 3-pointer by Harris with 12:30 left in the game. The teams traded short spurts the rest of the half, with neither team able to lead by more than 3 points. Finally, Veesaar stretched it to four points with a three-point play with 5:02 left.
Next, the Wildcats stretched it to 76-69, but Harris answered with a 3-pointer at the 3:21 mark. Arizona made it 80-72 with 2:00 left, and Kansas never made it back to a one-possession game.
Kansas vs. Arkansas SBG Free Picks
On this occasion, Kansas has slightly more NCAABB betting value. Arkansas saw deep red ink this season.
Kansas vs. Arkansas SBG Best Bet: Arkansas Razorbacks.