The Michigan women’s basketball team plays in one of the toughest conferences in the nation. Throughout its Big Ten schedule, it will face solid opponents on a nightly basis.

So one might presume that Michigan would play an easy non-conference schedule lined with foreseeable victories. This might be the case for some programs, but it is definitely not the case for the Wolverines.

Even though the Wolverines are only .500 right now, that can be in part attributed to their brutal schedule so far. Besides Marquette, Michigan has only lost to ranked teams, including No. 5 Xavier, No. 8 Texas A&M and, most recently, No. 19 Iowa State on Dec. 5.

“Our kids have to know what it takes to be a good program,” Michigan coach Kevin Borseth said after beating Wake Forest on Dec. 1. “You have to be able to play good teams.”

Staying true to that sentiment, Michigan (4-4) will take on another tenacious opponent when undefeated Kansas (8-0) comes to Ann Arbor on Thursday night.

The Jayhawks feature a high-octane offense that averages 85.3 points per game, good for ninth in the NCAA. They are led by two forwards, 6-foot-3 sophomore Carolyn Davis and 6-foot-2 junior Aishah Sutherland. Davis averages 19 points per game and Sutherland averages close to a double-double with 12.9 points and nearly 10 rebounds per game.

Kansas may have a size advantage and two scoring threats in the post, but size might not play as big of a role as it could in Thursday's game. The Wolverines' biggest defensive issue all year has been stopping the opposition’s outside shooting, not its inside scoring, which is surprising for a team whose starting center stands at 6-foot-1.

Michigan held the Cyclones to 18-percent shooting from beyond the arc in last week's contest and only trailed by two points entering the second half. But the Wolverines surrendered seven 3-pointers in the second frame and went on to lose, 60-47.

In Michigan’s most impressive win this season, it held a vaunted Wake Forest team to 15 percent from beyond the arc in the second half en route to a 91-58 victory. The key to that victory was defense against the deep ball, and Thursday night's game will most likely depend on defense once again.

The Wolverines play a high-risk, high-reward defense that creates a lot of turnovers but also gives up a lot of points.

“We are going to really have to get after them defensively and force them to make turnovers,” senior guard Veronica Hicks said before the season. “So our pressure is going to have to be great.”

The Wolverines have been inconsistent on offense this year, especially in their last two games. After scoring 91 points against the Demon Deacons, Michigan was held to just 47 points against Iowa State. Granted, the Cyclones feature the 13th-ranked defense in the country.

In Borseth’s last three years as Michigan’s head coach, the Wolverines are 40-13 when their opponent scores fewer than 60 points. When their opponents do score more than 60 points, Michigan is 11-35. That means Michigan will have to play some great defense if it wants to hand the Jayhawks their first loss of the season.