Self in hospital; Jayhawks roll
Assistant steps in for an ailing coach
KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Kansas men’s basketball assistant coach Norm Roberts was sitting inside TMobile Center on Wednesday night, scouting potential Big 12 tournament quarterfinal opponents, when he learned that Jayhawks coach Bill Self had gone to the emergency room.
Once the shock wore off, and Roberts knew the Hall of Fame coach would be OK, he turned his attention to his team, which was less than 24 hours away from beginning the defense of its conference tournament title.
“When we found out, we didn’t really let the guys know until this morning,” Roberts said after cruising to a 78-61 win against West Virginia on Thursday, “because nothing was concrete that was going to happen.”
It wasn’t until after the Jayhawks had advanced to Friday night’s semifinal against Iowa State that the school said Self would be out for the remainder of the Big 12 tournament. Still unclear is whether Self will be back for the start of the NCAA tournament, where the third- ranked Jayhawks are the defending national champions.
“Throughout all the adversity we’ve been through the entire season, this just brings us together,” said Big 12 player of the year Jalen Wilson, who led the top-seeded Jayhawks with 22 points and 10 rebounds.
“It’s bigger than us,” he added. “We play for our entire family. Just another moment to prove how close this group is.”
Gradey Dick had 18 points, Dajuan Harris Jr. added 13 points and eight assists, and KJ Adams also scored 13 points for the Jayhawks (26-6), who beat the Mountaineers (19-14) for the third time this season.
Erik Stevenson had 13 points for West Virginia, which still likely secured an at-large NCAA bid with its opening- round win against Texas Tech. Tre Mitchell and Joe Toussaint added 11 points apiece and Emmitt Matthews Jr. had 10.
“This wasn’t the team I had all year,” Mountaineers coach Bob Huggins said glumly. “We came out with absolutely no enthusiasm. No pep in our step. It was a bad game. It was a bad game from where I was trying to watch it.”
Kansas officials announced about five hours before tipoff that Self was being treated at the University of Kansas Health System for an undisclosed illness. The 60year- old Hall of Fame coach was present for Wednesday’s practice at T-Mobile Center and appeared to be in normal condition when speaking with reporters.
Dr. Steve Stites, the chief medical officer at the University of Kansas Health System, said Thursday that Self did not have a heart attack, which some outlets had reported, but that he remained a patient. Stites did not describe the nature or extent of the procedure, though Self is expected to make a full recovery.