Kansas on the Brink: Can Bill Self Extend Unbeaten Big Monday Streak to Unthinkable 41-0?

Ever felt that itch—not to place a bet, even when the game’s shouting for it on your TV? Tonight’s Houston vs. Kansas showdown might just be one of those moments. Call it superstition, call it learned caution, but if the Jayhawks have been giving me a painful run this season, maybe it’s wisdom whispering, “Hold back.” Houston’s defense usually grinds opponents to dust, yet two consecutive losses have them on the brink of a rare three-game skid—something unseen since 2017. Meanwhile, Kansas, reeling from that baffling loss to Cincinnati with threes raining down against them, is staring at a perfect Big Monday streak and a chance for redemption. Can Bill Self’s squad bounce back and reclaim their usual dominance, or will Houston’s grit wear them down? It’s a clash where strategy, history, and a dash of betting intuition blend into a tantalizing enigma. Feeling lucky or thinking twice might just be tonight’s real game plan. LEARN MORE

Houston vs. Kansas, 9:00 ET

Sometimes in sports betting the best bet to make is the one you don’t make. It sounds like some hippie mumbo-jumbo, but I somewhat agree with the concept. There are a lot of times that you force a bet because a game is on television, or you’re attending it. Also, if you don’t pay attention to who has your number (in terms of how well you do for or against them), you could just be wasting your bankroll. Tonight, I don’t feel like I’m forcing this bet, but I probably should back off of this game between Houston and Kansas as the Jayhawks have killed me this year.

Houston is one of the best teams in the country, and even after losing two games in a row, they are still one of the best. Every team is going to have some blips, and this is just a tough stretch of the season. The Cougars are defined, typically, by their defense. Even in these back-to-back losses, they have done a good job of maintaining it. They allowed 70 points to Iowa State, and then they allowed 73 to Arizona. Both held their opponent to under their season averages. However, both were reasonably more than Houston’s typical points allowed. With the Cougars, they don’t really force the issue on offense, they tend to just wear teams down on defense. Houston doesn’t lose three games in a row often, but it is in jeopardy of doing that in tonight’s game as they have to travel to face Kansas. How infrequently have they lost three games in a row? It has been almost a decade, last happening in 2017.

Kansas was coming together at the right time, but they have fallen apart a little bit in the past few games. After beating Arizona, a game that I got wrong, they were demolished at Iowa State. A rebound game seemed to get them corrected against Oklahoma State, but the problem is that it didn’t last. The very next game, this past Saturday, the Jayhawks lost to Cincinnati. I’m not really sure how that happened. I mean, I can look at the box score and tell you that the Jayhawks shot just 22% from deep in the game and their opponent hit 39% of their threes. Kansas was outscored 36-12 from deep in the game. They were also outrebounded. There aren’t a ton of things to take away from this game, other than assuming that Kansas should make the adjustments for tonight’s game. I have to imagine Bill Self was irate with the way his team lost on Saturday. However, he needed to get them ready for today.

There is another big stat for today’s game. While the Cougars haven’t lost three in a row since 2017, Kansas has gone 40-0 on Big Monday games under Bill Self. There are a number of reasons to think that Houston will win this game. They have been good enough on the road, and they’ve played tough competition, but so has Kansas. The main reason I think Kansas can take this game is because of how bad they looked against Cincinnati. This is the ultimate bounce-back game. Maybe they were looking ahead. They should have superstar freshman Darryn Peterson in the game. Kansas has to know they have a loss coming up against Arizona on Saturday. I expect them to give it all they have tonight against a tough Houston team. It isn’t like the Cougars are going to drop to 10 with a loss. If they lose, they still have a good shot at a #1 seed in the NCAA Tournament depending on what happens in the Big 12. Give me the home team, and give me Kansas to win.

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