Kansas and Iona meet up in the third place game of the “ESPN Events Invitational,” a holiday tournament coming to you from the Orlando area.
Kansas enters the contest with a ranking of #4 by the AP, while Iona comes in unranked. KenPom has the Jayhawks at #4 and the Gaels at #125. The preseason conference media poll unanimously picked Iona to win the 11-team MAAC this year.
Kansas is 3-1 all-time against Iona. The most recent meeting was an 86-66 KU win in Lawrence back in November 2013.
Kansas finds itself in this position after failing to put away Dayton on Friday afternoon, losing 74-73, while Iona fell to Belmont, 72-65 (after beating #10 Alabama on Thanksgiving Day).