After losing to the Kentucky Wildcats in their third game, the Duke Blue Devils are now going to go up against the Kansas Jayhawks in their sixth regular season matchup on Tuesday. The highly anticipated game will show whether Jon Scheyer’s recruitment will bear fruit for his reign this year or if he will walk the unexciting path that the Blue Devils have after Coach K retired. While the Blue Devils are prepping to show their potential, a certain basketball analyst believes they will have a hard time, and not without reason.

On Tuesday’s episode of The Field Of 68: After Dark, Tyler Hansbrough discussed why the Jayhawks might have an edge in this game, and his thinking resonated with many NCAA fans.

“Duke’s a young team. They’re gonna get better as they get more experience, and the season goes on. With that said, I like Kansas to win this one because they’re a little more veteran and they have older guys, and Dickinson down low. He’s a bucket. So I’m gonna lean towards Kansas as well with John on this,” Hansbrough stated.

The Kansas Jayhawks are an experienced team led by the senior Hunter Dickinson. They have won all the five games they have played this season and only have one notable freshman in Flory Bidunga. Other than that, most of their players are either in junior year or senior year. This certainly gives them an edge since they have played together and individually in the NCAA, like in the case of Dickinson, who transferred to the Jayhawks in 2023. Notably, Dickinson averages 17.8 points with 10.4 rebounds per game. However, it is not only the experience factor that increases their chances of winning the clash.

The Bill Self team stands atop the AP men’s basketball polls with their five straight wins. The Duke Blue Devils are placed at the eleventh spot, one better than last week, after having won 4 and lost one game against the Wildcats. What puts more pressure on them is that they haven’t punched above their weight till now in this NCAA season, and all the teams they defeated were either unranked or ranked below them in the AP men’s basketball polls. But despite these disadvantages, Hansbrough did not shy away from applauding the man of the hour: Cooper Flagg.

Basketball analysts are excited to watch Cooper Flagg

When the NCAA season started, the country’s top recruit of the 2024 season hoped to improve his NIL. However, somewhere after losing the crucial game to the Wildcats by a 77-72 margin, all doubted if Flagg would ever be able to live up to the expectations. Then, Flagg also had a poor display against Wofford in his fourth game of the regular season, as the defenders contained him.

The 17-year-old could only score 8 points in that game. However, he made a comeback against the Arizona Wildcats, hitting 24 points with 10 out of 22 field goals, thus again establishing his supremacy. With that, his NIL, too, reached $2.7 million. Therefore, Hansbrough is excited to watch him play.

“Cooper Flagg’s unbelievable talent. He’ll be fun to watch. So you know I’m looking forward to him and also like can nipple… I think he’s been one of my favorite players to watch. He’s very active. I like how he’s always moving,”  Hansbrough added. Notably, the 2025 NBA mock draft’s number-one projected pick averages 17.8 points with 8.8 rebounds per game. Hence, it will be exciting to watch him play.

Meanwhile, it remains to be seen if Hansbrough’s predictions come true. But if the Blue Devils upset the Jayhawks, it will send a signal that Scheyer is taking steps towards emulating his mentor, Coach K, as his legacy shines on.