The Kansas Jayhawks will visit the Utah Utes on Saturday night, hoping to notch a road win in the Big 12. On the season, the Jayhawks hold a 3-5 record on the road and have lost their last two games away from Allen Fieldhouse.
The Utes enter having lost two consecutive games – both on the road – but will play on the comforts of their home floor against Kansas. Can they capitalize on a key opportunity to claim a ranked victory, or will the Jayhawks regain form as they prepare for the stretch run of the season?
Find out below as we make a prediction for this intriguing Saturday night matchup and break down the spread, total, and money line bets.
Kansas vs. Utah Betting Preview
All Michigan State vs. Illinois odds are from Fanduel Sportsbook and are correct as of Saturday, Feb. 15, 2025.
- Spread
Kansas -6.5 - CSN Spread
Kansas -11 - Moneyline
Kansas -280, Utah +230 - Over/Under
145.5 points - Game Time
Saturday, Feb. 15, 10 p.m. ET - Location
Jon M. Huntsman Center | Salt Lake City, UT - How To Watch
ESPN
Kansas is 17-7 overall and 8-5 in Big 12 play, good for fifth place. They’re 11-13 ATS, including 5-8 in conference matchups. Despite their road woes as of late, the Jayhawks are an even 3-3 as the road favorite. However, they’ve only covered two of their last nine games.
A combination of excellent defense and a relatively disappointing offense is the main culprit behind Kansas’s astonishing 6-18 O/U record. They’ve covered only one of six outings as the home favorite. After beginning the season on an amazing streak of unders, five of their past eight games have gone over the listed point total.
Utah brings a 5-8 conference (tied for 11th place in the Big 12) and 13-11 overall record into this matchup. Identical to Kansas, they’re 11-13 ATS on the season. Two telling — yet contradicting — stats related to this game: the Utes hold a 3-9 record ATS as the underdog, yet a 9-6 record ATS on their home floor.
Also not a terrific offensive team, as only 10 of 24 games have gone over for Utah. Only three of 13 conference games have reached the over — during that span, only nine of their past 11 contests have gone under.
Kansas vs. Utah CSN Power Rankings Line
Our CSN line is set at Kansas -11, 4.5 points higher than the listed line of -6.5. It has moved since it first opened, however. It began at -9.5, closer to where we have it.
In our power rankings, the Jayhawks occupy the No. 11 spot, while the Utes are farther down at No. 44. The advantage, despite being on the road, is in the Jayhawks side of the line.
Prediction for Kansas vs. Utah
The Jayhawks, ranked No. 17 nationally, have shown the ability to compete with every team in the country. However, they’ve been hampered by spurts of offense scoring woes at times and struggles on the road.
They’ll try to turn it around and put it all together against the Utes.
Kansas is led by senior point guard Dajuan Harris Jr., who sets the table for others with 5.8 apg along with scoring 9.8 ppg. Senior guard Zeke Mayo is the leading scorer at 15.0 ppg despite bouts of inconsistent efficiency.
Senior center Hunter Dickinson is an extremely consistent force down low. He’s scored 14 or more points in eight consecutive games while averaging 9.6 rpg, second-most in the conference.
The Utes scoring leader is senior guard Gabe Madsen, who puts in 15.3 ppg. He’s coming off a 28-point performance against Cincinnati, in which he nailed eight three-pointers on an eye-popping 22 attempts. He isn’t shy about getting them up.
Forward Ezra Ausur and center Lawson Lovering hold it down in the paint, averaging 11.0 and 8.9 ppg, respectively. The Utes play through Lovering at times due to his innate passing ability.
Best Bets and Final Score Prediction
Playing Utah on the road isn’t an easy task, especially for an opponent that isn’t used to the high altitude and atmosphere of Huntsman Center.
Combine that with the Jayhawks’ struggles away from home, going only 3-5 away from Allen Fieldhouse and neutral sites, and this one projects to be a close game.
However, the line is now only -6.5 after opening at -9.5. The Utes can still compete well and be nudged past the current line.
If Kansas is able to put together a complete game with an excellent offensive output, they should breeze past the -6.5 line. Even if they don’t, they have the experience on hand to hold off the Utes and put the game away late. Because of that, Kansas -6.5 is an extremely safe bet.
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As far as the total goes, we’ll follow the numbers here. Eighteen of the Jayhawks’ 24 games have gone under, while seven of Utah’s last nine games have gone under as well. That’s an easy tell to follow the stats; we’ll go with the under of 145.5 points.
This one may not look pretty, with two middle-of-the-pack offensive teams with solid defense. I expect the Utes to keep the game close led by the three-point shooting of Madsen in the first half, but the Jayhawks will pull away late, covering the line and notching a coveted road win.
Picks: Kansas -6.5, Under 145.5 points
Prediction: Kansas 74, Utah 66
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