Ohio State vs. Kansas: Jayhawks Still Have Much to Prove

The No. 13 Kansas Jayhawks knocked off the No. 2 Ohio State Buckeyes at Allen Field House in a 78-67 win on Saturday. Despite the win, the Jayhawks still have much to prove.

Sure, a win is a win, but the Buckeyes were without star forward Jared Sullinger. If Sullinger wasn't out, who knows what way this game would have gone. The Jayhawks put together a great game against strong Big Ten competition, but there is no doubt that Sullinger could have caused there to be a different result.

The Jayhawks had strong showings from forward Thomas Robinson and guard Tyshawn Taylor. Robinson had 21 points and seven rebounds in Saturday's win, while Taylor added nine points with his 13 assists.

The Jayhawks did allow sophomore forward Deshaun Thomas to score 19 points on them, and it could be argued that Sullinger could have poured even more points on the Jayhawks defense.

The Jayhawks have already dropped two games this season to the Duke Blue Devils and a No. 1 Kentucky Wildcats. This win will definitely put them on the right direction, but again, they still haven't proved anything with this win over Sullinger-less Buckeyes squad.

The Jayhawks have a relatively easy schedule coming up. They face Davidson, USC and Howard next. Their next real challenge isn't until they play the currently ranked No. 7 Baylor Bears on January 16. Their second half of the year is much tougher than what they will face in the first.

They have two games against the Baylor Bears, two against the Missouri Tigers, and another two against the Texas A&M Aggies.

Now the bigger problem for the Jayhawks is that Taylor will be out at least three weeks with a torn meniscus and sprained his MCL. This is a major setback that will affect the Jayhawks for the rest of their season.

Kansas is moving in the right direction, but no one should take this win as a huge step. We'll see how they respond to the win and deal with their difficult end of the year schedule.

The Jayhawks have proven time and time again over the years they can do it, so the odds are on their side. Time for them to prove it.