Kansas State @ Kansas preview

Last Meeting ( Feb 25, 2019 ) Kansas State 49, Kansas 64

Whether it be due to recent injuries to his backcourt or his team's inconsistency from long-range, Kanas coach Bill Self has more issues to solve than he usually does. The third-ranked Jayhawks hope to get through a game without an injury scare to one of their guards and reintroduce the 3-point shot to their offense Tuesday when they host Kansas State in the 292nd installment of the Sunflower Showdown.

Big 12 leading scorer Devon Dotson returned from a one-game absence due to a left hip pointer and did not appear to be limited at all in Saturday's 66-57 victory at Texas, but Kansas had to take a deep breath when backcourt mate Marcus Garrett stayed on the court for several minutes after landing hard on an off-balance shot attempt. Garrett was able to return a few minutes later and combined with Dotson to score the team's final 20 points, including all the points during a game-ending 12-3 run that accounted for the the final margin. The Jayhawks won in spite of finishing 2-for-10 from 3-point range, marking the eighth time this season and the third time during conference play they made four or fewer 3-pointers. The Wildcats are coming off their first Big 12 victory of the season - an 84-68 win over No. 15 West Virginia on Saturday - although they nearly surrendered a 23-point advantage midway through the second half before finishing strong.

TIME: 7 p.m. ET. TV: ESPN2

ABOUT KANSAS STATE (8-9, 1-4 Big 12): Cartier Diarra (13.3 points, team-high 5.4 assists) played a career-high 38 minutes and tied a personal best with 25 points while adding six rebounds, four assists and two steals against West Virginia, but he also committed a career-high seven turnovers to increase his total over the last two games to 13. “He’s obviously much more efficient (15-for-25) the last few games shooting the basketball, taking care of it. … He can compound his mistakes at times, and that’s part of growing up as a player," coach Bruce Weber said. The turnover issues may have contributed to a career-high 36 minutes for fellow junior guard David Sloan (4.0 points), who tallied nine points, five assists and four steals with only one turnover.

ABOUT KANSAS (14-3, 4-1): Dotson (18.2 points, 4.3 assists, 2.3 steals) had 21 points and six rebounds, while Garrett (9.6 points, 4.4 assists) pitched in 13 points, seven rebounds and seven assists versus the Longhorns. Despite scoring five points Saturday after going off for a season-high 20 points on 6-of-11 shooting beyond the arc at Oklahoma on Tuesday, Isaiah Moss (8.1 points) was named Big 12 Newcomer of the Week. Udoka Azubuike (13.1 points, 9.2 rebounds, 2.3 blocks) just missed posting his seventh double-double with 17 points and nine boards Saturday but has still recorded at least 10 rebounds in five of his last seven games and leads the nation in field-goal percentage (77.6).

BUZZER BEATERS

1. Kansas is 13-0 at home following a loss at Allen Fieldhouse under Self and hasn't dropped two consecutive games in Lawrence since the 1988-89 season.

2. The Wildcats have scored at least 20 points off turnovers in three consecutive contests.

3. The Jayhawks have held nine of their last 10 opponents below 60 points.

PREDICTION: Kansas 68, Kansas State 55