The North Carolina Central Eagles and the Kansas Jayhawks meet Monday in college basketball action from Allen Fieldhouse. North Carolina Central had a decent run last year at 18-12 overall for a second-place finish in the MEAC. As for Kansas, they finished atop the Big 12 standings but suffered an early exit from the NCAA Tournament in a disappointing end. Check back all season long for free college basketball picks at Sports Chat Place.

North Carolina Central Eagles 

Last year, the Eagles managed to improve their record slightly from a season prior. North Carolina Central finished 18-12 overall with a 10-4 run in MEAC play. That put the Eagles in second place (behind Howard) in the standings. After a win over Delaware State in the conference tourney however, NC Central fell in overtime 72-65 to Norfolk State. 

Head coach LeVelle Moton has his so work cut out for him in his 15th season at the helm. All five starters from last season’s squad are gone, including second-team All-MEAC players Justin Wright (16.1 PPG) and Brendan Medley-Bacon (12.0 PPG). The good news is there’s plenty of guard depth on this season’s squad, including Guy Fauntleroy and Brock Williams. 

Kansas Jayhawks 

Over on the Kansas side, they’re eager to get going this year and leave last season’s disappointment behind. The Jayhawks managed a 28-8 overall record and a regular-season Big 12 championship with a 13-5 result but were bounced by Texas in the final game of the Big 12 Tournament. The NCAA tourney didn’t go any better after a Second-Round exit thanks to Arkansas. 

Bill Self is back for his 21st season at the helm in Kansas, and expectations are high. The Jayhawks retain three of their five starters this year, minus a few additional impact players like Cam Martin, Bobby Pettiford and Joseph Yesufu. The big arrival of course, is top transfer athlete Hunter Dickinson, who bagged 18.5 PPG and 9.0 RPG last season with Michigan. 

ANDREW’S FREE PICK 

I’m going to stay with Kansas. Hopes are high once again for the Jayhawks this year, as the team worked diligently to fill their roster holes in the offseason—and did a pretty good job at it. Among the new arrivals, Dickinson has dominated the conversation. Over his last three season with the Wolverines, Dickinson averaged 17.2 points and 8.4 rebounds per game, scoring at total of 1,817 points and racking up 149 blocked shots along the way. He led the Jayhawks in scoring over the summer trip to Puerto Rico with 19.0 PPG and 7.0 RPG, which is a good indicator of how Dickinson will perform this season if all goes well. Kansas has a stacked roster from top to bottom and should dominate in the early-going, starting here.