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College basketball predictions: Ride with favorites Kansas, Houston

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College basketball predictions: Ride with favorites Kansas, Houston


This is the best Saturday of college basketball this season by a country mile. Three top-10 matchups litter the card and a handful of mid-major battles stand out, as well.

Here are two that have my attention:

No. 4 Houston at No. 8 Kansas

If Kansas being installed as a home underdog made you do a double-take, you’re not alone.

Over the last 34 years, Kansas has closed as an underdog on its home court just twice — in February 1989 as a short ’dog to top-ranked Oklahoma, and in February 2021 as a 4.5-point underdog to second-ranked Baylor.

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They split those two games, losing in overtime to OU’s dynamic duo of Mookie Blaylock and Stacey King while upsetting Baylor by 13 at Phog Allen.

So why are the Jayhawks an underdog in this spot? Injuries and defense.

The Jayhawks have become a three-man team in the past month, relying heavily on Hunter Dickinson, Kevin McCullar Jr. and freshman Johnny Furphy. But now McCullar has a bone bruise on his knee.

The Jayhawks’ wing is averaging nearly 20/6/5 this season on 47 percent shooting from the field. Indications from coach Bill Self are that McCullar will play Saturday, but he won’t be 100 percent returning from that painful injury.

Kansas has fallen off defensively since the start of the new year. According to Bart Torvik’s adjusted defensive efficiency metric, KU is ranked 65th nationally since Jan. 1. In the first two months of the season, KU resided in the top 20. That’s good news for a Houston offense that is susceptible to scoring lulls.

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Center Hunter Dickinson is one of the key contributors for Kansas. AP

When Kansas is trying to crack Houston’s defense, all I can say is “good luck.” The Cougars have the highest-rated defense in the country by a big margin. They lead the nation in effective field goal percentage defense, turn opponents over on 22 percent of their possessions (third) and rank third in three-point shooting defense (28.3 percent).

If you want to find a decent comp, you need to look at 2019 Texas Tech, which nearly won the national championship, or the 38-1 Kentucky Wildcats from 2015. That’s the rarefied air of this Houston defense.

Evan Miya’s rating of the top 25 most impactful defenders in the nation features four Cougars, including the top two in the nation (Jamal Shead, Ja’Vier Francis).

And finally, if you’re going to hand KU a loss on its home floor, you’re going to need to quiet the crowd, and Houston has a special weapon in that department.

The Cougars lead the nation in kill shots, which are runs of 10-0 or better. So far they’ve produced 27 of them this season while only conceding four. That’s the best margin of any team in the country and helps Kelvin Sampson’s teams destroy opponents’ will to win.

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Recommendation: Houston -2.

Binghamton at Vermont

The Catamounts have long been the class of the America East, and as the conference bully, they’ve constantly picked on Binghamton. In their last 10 wins over this rival, Vermont has won by an average of 24 points per game.

Betting on College Basketball?

This season, after a sleepy start, the Cats have come alive with six straight wins, including three in a row on the road. Coach John Becker has credited his team’s depth for its turnaround.

This season, the conference pivoted to a Thursday/Saturday conference schedule, so depth has mattered more than usual. Nine Catamounts play 14-plus minutes per game for Becker and eight players have led UVM in scoring in the past nine games.

I would play this up to UVM -16.5.

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Recommendation: Vermont -14.



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Video shows disruption during Osawatomie City Council meeting with data center developer

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Video shows disruption during Osawatomie City Council meeting with data center developer


KSHB 41 reporter Ryan Gamboa covers Miami County in Kansas and Cass County in Missouri. He also covers agricultural topics. Share your story idea with Ryan.

A video shared by a viewer, shows a resident speaking at the Osawatomie, Kansas City Council meeting being escorted out by police on Thursday evening.

The video shows a man holding a “Hell No Alcove” sign, while commenting about a blighted property, which according to public records is owned by Pacific Apartments, LLC, operating out of the same address as Alcove Development in Lawrence, Kansas.

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KSHB 41

A video submitted by a viewers shows a resident being escorted out of a city of Osawatomie, Kansas council meeting that included an appearance from a data center developer.

Alcove Development is behind the effort to build a $1 billion, 283-acre data center development in Osawatomie’s northland property.

The video, shared by a viewer, goes on the show two law enforcement officers approaching the individual, who is Lee Brewer, at the podium, after he begins to yell, while the crowd joins in behind him. Lee Brewer reached out to KSHB 41 late Thursday night, identifying himself as the person who was escorted out.

Osawatomie, Kansas Police Chief Dave Stutteville is seen in the video also approaching the man.

Osawatomie Data Center

Fabian Rosales/KSHB

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Osawatomie Data Center

KSHB 41 Miami County Reporter Ryan Gamboa reached out to the Police Chief, City Manager, and Mayor Nick Hampson for comment late on Thursday night and is waiting on a response.

Residents in contact with Gamboa attending the meeting shared the meeting was still in session after 9:30 p.m.

Thursday night’s meeting was the city and Alcove Development’s attempt at sharing potential benefits of a data center for the community.

Gamboa has long covered the data center project in Osawatomie, Kansas — and neighbors to the project have voiced their opposition to the proposed development.

Osawatomie Data Center Fight, 6/11/26

Brian Luton/KSHB

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Osawatomie Data Center Fight, 6/11/26

This is the first time Alcove Development has approached the public, but not the first time it has worked with the city of Osawatomie.

In late 2025, Alcove Development approached the city with the project and weeks later, a pre-development agreement was signed giving Alcove exclusive rights to the development for three years.

But city council meeting records from 2023 show, the city of Osawatomie entered into a pre-development agreement with Alcove Development to redevelop a property known as Old Swenson School.

Alcove Development had six months to asses the condition of the property and determine a course of action for redevelopment, and the overall agreement would last 18 months, according to public records.

6th Street, Osawatomie

Will Shaw/KSHB

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The pre-development agreements states, Alcove would consider asking for tax breaks on the project, including utilizing the Low-Income Housing Tax Credit.

At the time, the property had sat in disrepair since 2016, according to the records, and was frequently found in violation of city code.

If the re-development were to fall through, the city would be on the hook to purchase the property from the developer for $25,000, with unclear total costs for infrastructure improvements.

Osawatomie Water Tower

KSHB 41

KSHB 41 will follow up on the status on this project at a later date.

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Earlier this week, Miami County Reporter Ryan Gamboa, sat down with Donna Ingram who doesn’t live far from the data center site.

Ingram expressed her concerns about the amount of infrastructure that would be built to operate a data center, and how it might overtake the land around her home.

Donna Ingram

Ryan Gamboa/KSHB

Donna Ingram

She expressed concerns because the City of Osawtomie changed the public comment guidelines of a promise town hall with the developer.

“Watching this process play out is disheartening,” Ingram said in an interview on Monday. “A town hall was promised that didn’t come to fruition… I don’t believe it’s the definition. This is a city council meeting. We’re the ones that are gonna live next to it. We’re the ones that live in the path of the infrastructure.”

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The city told KSHB 41 on Monday in a statement, they changed the format to prioritize the voices of city taxpayers, as county taxpayers have dominated the public comment periods over the past couple of months.

Nick Hampson

Brian Luton/KSHB

Nick Hampson

Mayor Nick Hampson also told Gamboa in an earlier interview he was hoping to have a productive “town hall” — instead, the first meeting with the public and the developer of the project was during a formal and regularly scheduled city council meeting.

The city also required residents to submit questions ahead of time, and the city would filter questions to the developer, while limiting public comment to three minutes.

“We have been and will continue to hear from the residents that are in the county and closest to this project,” Hampson told KSHB 41 in an email on Monday.

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Alcove Development owned Property

Miami County, Kansas

A former school house in Osawatomie, Kansas, owned by a company operating out of Alcove Development’s address.

Residents shared a record to KSHB 41, submitted to the city for a formal investigation into 1009 Pacific Avenue in Osawatomie, which is owned by a company operating out of Alcove Development’s address.

The dilapidated property is the a former school house, that sits with broken windows, and other parts of the building breaking down.

The Miami County Republic reporting on Thursday, the city launched an investigation into the building.

Osawatomie

Ryan Gamboa/KSHB

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Residents cite the buildings deteriorating condition and potential danger to the public, and lack of property maintenance.

Lee Brewer issued a comment regarding the incident at Thursday night’s meeting, stating he was escorted out after the Mayor closed public comment, and he was not on the list.

Brewer told KSHB 41, he has a time -stamped email of pre-submitted questions ahead of the meeting. KSHB 41 asked Brewer to review the email, and is waiting for an answer.

I am severely disappointed in our Mayor and the city council. They told us we were required to send in an email with our questions and our address to prove we were citizens of the town by Wednesday the 24th at noon. I have my email which is timestamped at 10:26 a.m. Wednesday the 24th. They shut me down and first told me I didn’t put the email in and then once I was kicked out of there I was told by people coming out that they were told I turned in my email too late. I’m not a math teacher but last time I looked at my clock 10:26 a.m. falls just over an hour and a half before noon. I mean correct me if I’m wrong. I thought because the mayor and I were having decent conversations on Facebook Messenger, whereas I would ask him questions and he would answer to the best of his ability. And I would thank him I thought we were pretty cordial. So to basically call me a liar in front of the entire town on video recording, take away my freedom of speech My first amendment right, and have me removed from a public building was completely wrong I am very disappointed in our city council and mayor. When I approached the podium all I was trying to do was point out that resolution number 1169 in Osawatomie Kansas refers to Alcove development LLC being the owner of the old Swenson School at 1009 Pacific. As I pointed out in these earlier messages to you Alcove has left this building dilapidated in ruins and a danger to our community. Our great city council and mayor seem to have other plans for me being able to speak though.

Lee Brew, via Facebook to KSHB 41 News

KSHB 41 reached out to Alcove Development late on Thursday night, and is waiting on a response.

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Ryan Gamboa





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Ethanol tanker overturns, leaks in El Dorado

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Ethanol tanker overturns, leaks in El Dorado


Editor’s note: This article has been updated to clarify information about cleanup information.

WICHITA, Kan. (KSNW) — A tanker transporting 8,000 gallons of ethanol crashed in El Dorado on Thursday.

It happened at the intersection of Kansas Avenue and South Main Street.

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According to dispatch, the vehicle overturned, causing the fluid to leak out and spill into the storm sewer system.

City Manager David Dillner said traffic is being diverted in the area while crews work to clean up the ethanol.

Nearby residents have been evacuated to the El Dorado Civic Center due to the pungent smell of the fuel, Dillner said.

No injuries have been reported.

This is a developing story.

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For more Kansas news, click here. Keep up with the latest breaking news by downloading our mobile app and signing up for our news email alerts. Sign up for our Storm Track 3 Weather app by clicking here. To watch our shows live on our website, click here.



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Body believed to be Kansas City highway shooting suspect found in burned home’s basement by family: police

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Body believed to be Kansas City highway shooting suspect found in burned home’s basement by family: police


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Police told Fox News on Wednesday that a body believed to be Oscar Sanchez-Munoz, the 22-year-old suspect in a deadly string of highway shootings near the Kansas City World Cup venues, was discovered by his family in the basement of a burned home.

Officials said the family contacted police at about 2 p.m. local time after finding decomposing remains hidden beneath piles of debris. 

While the family had visited the home several times since it caught fire during an overnight police standoff, police said they only discovered the body after removing debris and noticing a distinct odor.

MANHUNTS ACROSS AMERICA IN 2025: FIVE CASES THAT LEFT CITIES, CAMPUSES AND TOWNS ON EDGE

Oscar Sanchez-Munoz was wanted in connection with at least six shootings across multiple states. (FBI)

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Previously, investigators, federal partners and K-9 units had repeatedly searched the Independence, Missouri, property without success. 

Authorities said the basement partially collapsed, flooded with water, and was filled with a large amount of “clutter,” which complicated the search.

The discovery brings a presumed end to a massive multi-agency manhunt that began after Sanchez-Munoz allegedly fired at vehicles along Interstate 70, just miles from Arrowhead Stadium where FIFA World Cup matches were being held.

MANHUNT INTENSIFIES FOR ARMY VETERAN SUSPECTED OF KILLING 4 IN BAR SHOOTING AFTER TRUCK FOUND ABANDONED

The FBI released a wanted poster seeking the public’s assistance in finding suspect Oscar Sanchez-Munoz. (FBI)

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The spree of half dozen shootings left one person dead and several others seriously injured, including an Uber driver who was shot while transporting soccer fans. 

During the search for Sanchez-Munoz, the FBI offered a $25,000 reward for information leading to his capture, warning the public that he was “armed and dangerous.”

Acting U.S. Attorney General Todd Blanche had publicly speculated that the suspect might be dead inside the Missouri home, though police were unable to confirm it at the time.

MANHUNT UNDERWAY AFTER MISSOURI DEPUTY SLAIN, SUSPECT’S TRUCK SPOTTED HEADING TOWARD ARKANSAS BORDER

FBI officials said suspect Oscar Sanchez-Munoz had visible acne scars and is 5 feet 8 inches tall. (FBI)

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Officials said investigators are currently operating under the assumption that the deceased person is Sanchez-Munoz, noting clothing on the body matched what the shooter wore during last week’s attacks.

A medical examiner will confirm the identity and determine the cause of death.

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Officials assured the public there is no threat to the community, and added that all surviving victims are expected to recover.

Fox News Digital’s Kelsie Cairns contributed to this report.

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