CBB Matchups

Every D1 game with tempo-free ratings, four factors and market lines, one place.

College basketball is being built for the 2026-27 season (tip-off Nov 3). What's here fills in as games are played.
Non-conferenceRupp Arena, Lexington, KY
Wichita St
Efficiency #60
2025-26: 24-12 · 14-6 conf
@
Kentucky
Efficiency #27
2025-26: 22-14 · 12-9 conf
Fri, Nov 27 · TBD
70.0
win 26%
Projected
77.6
win 74%
No line posted yet.
Model: UK −7.6 · total 147.6 · ratings as of Sat, Oct 3
Preseason ratings start from 2025-26's final adjusted ratings, regressed toward the D1 average. The stats below are 2025-26's too; both update once 2026-27 games are played.

How the projection is built

each step, from an average D-I game to this one
Projected total
Average D-I game
148.2
PaceAdjusted tempo: Kentucky 68.9, Wichita St 67.9 → 68.5 possessions
+0.3
Kentucky offense vs Wichita St defense
+1.3
Wichita St offense vs Kentucky defense
−2.3
Projected total
147.6
Axis starts at 146 pointsPoints added or removed at each step
Projected margin
Even game
0.0
Kentucky offense vs Wichita St defense
+1.3
Wichita St offense vs Kentucky defense
+2.3
Home court+2.9 points per 100 possessions to the home offense, −2.9 to the visitors
+3.9
Kentucky by 7.6
7.6
Wichita St side ◂▸ Kentucky side

Steps are rounded to one decimal, so they can differ from the total by 0.1: the total steps add to 147.5 against a projected 147.6, and the margin steps add to +7.5 against +7.6. The margin is the same build seen from the home side; positive numbers help Kentucky.

Pace & total

possessions per 40 minutes
Tempo, possessions per 40 minutes

Projected possessions: 68.5, from each team's opponent-adjusted tempo. On raw 2025-26 season pace, Kentucky is the faster team (69.7, #106 of 365) and Wichita St the slower (67.8, #211). When tempos clash, the slower team usually pulls the pace harder (study weights 0.80 vs 0.66).

Projected possessions
68.5
per team, 40 min
Projected total
147.6
model
Projected team totals
70.0 / 77.6
Wichita St / Kentucky
Adjusted tempo, vs an average opponent
67.9#218
Wichita St
68.9#130
Kentucky

How this game plays

what the study found each side's numbers actually do when these two teams meet
AdvantageWichita St
Where Wichita St struggles: shooting
Wichita St shoots an effective 49.4% (#274); Kentucky allows 48.9% (#63). Expect about 49.0%, 2.3 points below an average D1 matchup — worth roughly -3.3 points per 100 possessions.
GlassWichita St
Wichita St owns the glass
Projected offensive rebound rate of 35.5% is worth roughly +3.1 points per 100 possessions for Wichita St's offense.
TurnoversWichita St
Wichita St protects the ball
Projected turnover rate of 14.9% is worth roughly +2.3 points per 100 possessions for Wichita St's offense.
Watch for noise
3-point caution
A notable season 3-point number here (Wichita St's defense) is close to a coin flip going forward — the study's model of next-game 3P% barely beats guessing the D1 average. Shot volume is what actually carries: expect Wichita St at about 35.2% of its shots from three, Kentucky about 36.3%.
AdvantageKentucky
Where Kentucky scores: ball control
Kentucky turns it over on 15.4% of possessions (#96); Wichita St forces turnovers on 15.7% of opponent possessions (#235). Expect about 15.3%, 1.4 points below an average D1 matchup — worth roughly +1.8 points per 100 possessions.
DefenseKentucky
Kentucky's shot-blocking
Kentucky ranks #34 nationally in block rate — one of the few defensive numbers that travels. Expect about 11.2% of Wichita St's two-point attempts to get blocked against this defense.
Wichita St has the ball
OffenseKentucky allowsvs D1 avg
49.4% #274
48.9% #63
-3.3 pt/100
14.9% #60
15.5% #249
+2.3 pt/100
38.0% #8
30.0% #158
+3.1 pt/100
36.0% #149
36.4% #223
+0.2 pt/100
69.2% #291
—
-0.3 pt/100
Wichita St net across the four factors + FT%, vs. a D1-average matchup: +2.0 pts/100
Kentucky has the ball
OffenseWichita St allowsvs D1 avg
53.3% #87
47.2% #24
-1.2 pt/100
15.4% #96
15.7% #235
+1.8 pt/100
33.2% #84
28.8% #93
+0.7 pt/100
37.4% #119
34.3% #158
+0.1 pt/100
72.7% #179
—
+0.0 pt/100
Kentucky net across the four factors + FT%, vs. a D1-average matchup: +1.4 pts/100

Shot diet

Where each offense shoots from and where each defense lets teams shoot · 2025-26 numbers
Wichita Stoffense vsKentuckydefense
Share of shots by zone
Wichita St shoots
Kentucky allows
D-I average
FG% by zone
ZoneD-I avg
Rim55.4%#28857.3%#12458.6%
Short 2 (≤9 ft)39.9%#17742.8%#24639.5%
Mid 2 (10 ft+)38.4%#17439.3%#21138.0%
Three33.5%#19531.8%#5533.7%
Kentuckyoffense vsWichita Stdefense
Share of shots by zone
Kentucky shoots
Wichita St allows
D-I average
FG% by zone
ZoneD-I avg
Rim64.1%#3553.9%#3958.6%
Short 2 (≤9 ft)45.4%#5835.5%#7339.5%
Mid 2 (10 ft+)33.5%#32239.8%#23538.0%
Three34.2%#15831.5%#4433.7%
RimShort 2 (≤9 ft)Mid 2 (10 ft+)Three

Zones from play-by-play shot descriptions; garbage time removed. Bars show the share of field-goal attempts in each zone; where a slice is too thin for its number, the shares are listed under the bar. FG% ranks: #1 = best for that side (most accurate shooting, stingiest defense).

Shot volume

Extra scoring chances from rebounds, turnovers and the foul line · 2025-26 numbers
Wichita St
+4.1extra scoring chances per game vs a D-I average team#34 of 365
Off reb %
38.0%
#8
Def reb %
71.2%
#93
Turnover %
14.9%
#60
Forced TO %
15.7%
#235
FT rate
36.0%
#149
FT allowed
34.3%
#158
Where the chances come from (per game)
Offensive rebounding+2.5
Defensive rebounding+0.6
Ball security+1.3
Forcing turnovers−0.7
Foul shots drawn+0.2
Foul shots allowed+0.2
Kentucky
+1.5extra scoring chances per game vs a D-I average team#119 of 365
Off reb %
33.2%
#84
Def reb %
70.0%
#158
Turnover %
15.4%
#96
Forced TO %
15.5%
#249
FT rate
37.4%
#119
FT allowed
36.4%
#223
Where the chances come from (per game)
Offensive rebounding+0.9
Defensive rebounding+0.2
Ball security+0.9
Forcing turnovers−0.8
Foul shots drawn+0.6
Foul shots allowed−0.3

Wichita St has more extra scoring chances per game: +4.1 (#34 of 365) to Kentucky’s +1.5 (#119).

Grade = extra shots and foul-line trips per game compared with a D-I average team, built from six season rates. Cell shading is the national rank for each rate (greener = better for that team).

Rotation

Wichita St2025-26 numbers
ESPN hasn't posted Wichita St's 2026-27 roster yet — these are last season's players.
#PlayerPosClHtGP-GSMPGPPGRPGAPGTOVeFG%3P%3PA/gFT%UsageStatus
1Kenyon GilesGSr5'10"36-3636.319.12.61.41.351.2%37.8%9.283.1%31.5%
0Karon BoydFSr6'6"36-3633.810.95.81.61.649.2%35.1%3.663.8%21.2%
9Michael Gray Jr.GSr6'1"36-3626.98.23.32.31.343.0%31.1%4.685.9%21.8%
4TJ WilliamsGFr6'5"35-1622.08.75.01.51.346.8%8.3%0.368.3%26.4%
44Will BergCJr7'2"35-1021.98.88.10.71.155.9%0.0%0.169.0%22.5%
3Dre KindellGJr5'11"36-017.35.91.62.31.149.4%34.3%1.080.0%21.8%
20Emmanuel OkoraforFSr6'10"36-2616.96.35.20.41.157.0%—0.067.2%22.6%
8Dillon BattieFSo6'8"31-2017.47.64.70.70.956.9%18.8%0.561.4%24.4%
5Brian AmunekeGSo6'5"36-07.92.40.70.30.243.8%33.3%1.650.0%21.7%
2Jaret ValenciaFJr6'8"11-013.22.81.80.60.433.9%27.3%1.058.8%18.5%
22Noah HillFFr6'7"19-05.11.72.60.10.366.7%—0.028.6%19.9%
21Henry ThengvallFJr6'6"11-02.50.30.10.30.212.5%0.0%0.550.0%23.2%
12Joy IghovodjaGJr6'4"0-00.00.00.00.00.0——0.0——
11Pierre CouisnardGFr6'1"0-00.00.00.00.00.0——0.0——
10Tyrus Rathan-MayesGFr6'5"0-00.00.00.00.00.0——0.0——
Rosters come from ESPN and are still filling in; incoming transfers and freshmen may be missing.

Tale of the tape

national rank toned left for away, right for home
Wichita StKentucky
Efficiency
111.1
115.6
103.4
102.5
67.9
68.9
—
—
Shooting
49.4%
53.3%
49.0%
54.7%
33.5%
34.2%
69.2%
72.7%
36.0%
37.4%
Ball control & glass
14.9%
15.4%
15.7%
15.5%
38.0%
33.2%
28.8%
30.0%
8.7%
9.7%
8.3%
8.5%
Style
33.8%
39.7%
45.1%
44.7%
9.5%
19.2%
41.3%
56.9%
32.4%
34.9%
Roster
3.21
3.22
6'4.5"
6'7.8"
—
21.4%

Offseason

roster movement into this season — descriptive, not a model input
Wichita St
Returning minutes: 100.0%Returning production: 100.0%
ESPN hasn't posted Wichita St's roster for this season yet — no movement to show.

Returns 100% of last season's minutes. Teams returning at least 65% of last season's minutes have historically gained about 2.2 points of AdjEM (n=156 team-seasons, 2022-2026). (ESPN hasn't posted this season's roster yet -- this may still be last season's list.)

Kentucky
Returning minutes: 21.4%Returning production: 21.9%
Lost
  • Otega Oweh 32.7 mpg, 18.6 ppg · not on a D1 roster yet
  • Denzel Aberdeen 30.6 mpg, 13.5 ppg · transferred to Florida
  • Collin Chandler 27.1 mpg, 9.7 ppg · not on a D1 roster yet
  • Mouhamed Dioubate 18.6 mpg, 7.6 ppg · not on a D1 roster yet
  • Brandon Garrison 16.2 mpg, 4.7 ppg · not on a D1 roster yet
  • Andrija Jelavic 14.0 mpg, 4.9 ppg · not on a D1 roster yet
Added
  • Milan Momcilovic from Iowa State · 30.4 mpg, 16.9 ppg last season
  • Alex Wilkins from Furman · 29.7 mpg, 17.8 ppg last season
  • Zoom Diallo from Washington · 29.6 mpg, 15.7 ppg last season
  • Justin McBride from James Madison · 25.5 mpg, 14.3 ppg last season
  • Jerone Morton from Washington St · 24.9 mpg, 7.8 ppg last season
  • Franck Kepnang from Washington · 18.8 mpg, 5.1 ppg last season

Returns 21% of last season's minutes; lost 4 of its top 5 (1 transferred). Teams returning under 40% of last season's minutes have historically fallen about 0.8 points of AdjEM (n=716 team-seasons, 2022-2026).

Head-to-head

this season and last
No meetings the last two seasons.

The CBB Matchups tab lays out the day's Division I slate: matchup, tip time, records and rank, and — once posted — Pinnacle's spread and total (the median across books when Pinnacle has no line). Three views switch the table between projected scores, pace and totals, and each team's offensive and defensive tendencies. Each game opens into opponent-adjusted possessions, efficiency and four-factor tendencies for both teams, plus recent form, rotation and head-to-head history. Every game also carries our projected score, spread and total, built bottom-up from those same numbers: expected possessions times each side's opponent-adjusted points per possession, plus home court.

What these numbers mean: line shopping.