Kansas-Maryland NCAA South Regional preview

After a midseason lull that saw them lose three of five games, the Jayhawks have won 16 straight and are the consensus favorite to go all the way. They shoot consistently well and get balanced scoring led by Perry Ellis, who had 21 points in each of Kansas' two NCAA victories last weekend over Austin Peay and Connecticut. The Jayhawks have dominated in rebounds; they battered UConn 44-24 on the boards and didn't allow a single second-chance point. Look for Kansas' Frank Mason III to get after it on defense against Melo Trimble, the main scoring threat of the Terrapins.

The Terps defeated a 12th seed (South Dakota State) and a 13th seed (Hawaii) in their first two games but didn't look all that great until a second-half spurt versus Hawaii. Their inconsistency (5-5 in their last 10 games) has confounded their fans, and they must raise their level of play sharply against the Jayhawks. That means more mistake-free ballhandling from Trimble and solid three-point shooting from Trimble, Jake Layman, Rasheed Sulaimon and Jared Nickens, each of whom has drained more than 50 threes. The Terps shot 1 of 18 from deep against Hawaii.

Kansas limited its first two NCAA opponents to 37.4 percent shooting and outrebounded them by a total of 24. Mason has been the defensive catalyst but sophomore Devonte' Graham, with 52 steals, has five more than his teammate. Maryland has gotten a total of 99 blocks from the interior duo of Diamond Stone and Carter, and Trimble leads in steals with 43. The Terps did a fine job guarding their first two NCAA opponents, limiting them to 36.4 percent shooting.

The Jayhawks are one of the best shooting teams in the country, fifth in field-goal percentage (49.6 percent) and third in three-point shooting (42.3 percent). Wayne Selden (72 threes) and Graham (70) are their top threats from beyond the arc. Perry Ellis has shot 53.3 percent from the field this season but is 17 of 24 (70.8 percent) in the NCAA tournament. Maryland has done well from inside the three-point line thus far in the NCAAs, shooting 67.3 percent. Trimble is averaging 21.5 points in the two games but has connected on just 1 of 10 three-point attempts.

Kansas has been a machine over the last eight weeks, defeating West Virginia (twice), Baylor (twice), Oklahoma, and Kentucky over that stretch. The Jayhawks are playing with extreme confidence and for a coach, Bill Self, who has 39 NCAA victories and a national championship on his resumé. Maryland is trying to recapture its form from earlier in the season when it started 15-1, albeit not against the toughest of opponents. However, if the game is tight down the stretch, the Terps have been effective from the free-throw line, having drained 77.1 percent of their tries.

- Joe Juliano