Kansas City, Mo. — Top-seeded Kansas’ maturity was on full display during a 78-61 win over No. 8 seed West Virginia at the Big 12 tournament on Thursday.
Playing without head coach Bill Self, who was hospitalized late Wednesday night and missed Thursday’s game, the Jayhawks took it upon themselves to handle their business and the Mountaineers.
While that certainly seemed to be easier said than done, given the serious nature of Self’s absence, KU junior Jalen Wilson said the Jayhawks took pride in making sure they delivered for Self, the roster and the program, with acting coach Norm Roberts leading the way.
“We’re so hard on our culture and how we talk to each other, it’s really no difference,” Wilson said after scoring a game-high 22 points to go along with 11 rebounds in the win. “Coach (Roberts) picks up right where coach Self was and we execute everything the same way. There’s no substitute teacher kind of vibe. We all have a job and that’s to win. And this is the best time of the year to do it.”
The Jayhawks found out about Self’s absence early Thursday morning. And most of them admitted that it affected them. But thanks to a message from Self, relayed to them by Roberts, the nation’s No. 3 team was able to lock in on the Mountaineers (19-14) when the game began.
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Box score: Kansas 78, West Virginia 61
Photo Gallery: Kansas basketball vs. West Virginia
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Wilson set the tone early, getting on the glass and leading the Jayhawks to a quick 5-0 lead and Kansas really turned it on late in the first half, turning a 14-11 deficit into a 29-18 lead with an 18-4 run.
Wilson and point guard Dajuan Harris Jr., were responsible for most of that, which made a ton of sense given the fact that those two are the unquestioned on-court leaders of this team that needed a boost while playing without their leader on the sideline.
Roberts recalled one specific moment when Wilson and Harris took charge, and they all said that play, and others like it, illustrated exactly what Wilson meant by KU sticking to its style and standard to get through this latest round of adversity.
“It helped a ton,” Roberts said of Harris and Wilson’s experience on the floor. “There was one sequence where I wanted to call something and Juan said J-Wil already called something else. OK. Let’s go with what J-Wil called.”
It worked, Roberts remembered, smiling before saying, “J-Wil scored.”
Added Wilson: “Today was an example of us coming together again. I just told them to block out all the distractions. We don’t need to think about anything else but winning.”
That’s not to say Self’s health scare wasn’t on their minds throughout the hours leading up to the 2 p.m. tipoff. Sophomore forward KJ Adams, who scored 13 points in 30 minutes, with three vicious, rim-rocking jams, said the coaching staff did a good job of keeping the players’ minds in the right place, focusing more on the routine of game day than the unexpected situation with Self.
“You always think about it,” Adams said. “But right when the ball tips, you just kind of switch your mind up and just play as hard as you can. We heard that coach wanted us to make (KU) proud and be men and we did it today.”
Last November, Roberts led the Jayhawks to four wins, including a Champions Classic victory over Duke in Indianapolis.
All parties involved agreed that Roberts having coached this team before, when Self missed the first three games of the regular season to serve a university-imposed suspension, played a positive role in Thursday’s win.
“To say it wasn’t would be wrong,” Roberts said. “It is easier, just that the guys know how I’m going to coach them and they responded. They were terrific on the court. The leadership that J-Wil and Dajuan and Kevin (McCullar) and KJ showed was terrific.”
Three of those Jayhawks scored in double figures, with Harris adding 13 points, eight assists and five steals in his 38 minutes. Freshman guard Gradey Dick broke out of a mini-slump by knocking in four of seven 3-pointers and seven of 12 shots overall to finish with 18 points in 37 minutes.
McCullar, who had been questionable because of back spasms and did not start, added three points and seven rebounds in 26 minutes off the bench. His lone field goal in four attempts — a 3-pointer in front of the Kansas bench — came late in the game and put the Jayhawks up 69-55 with just under three minutes to play. After the ball swished through the net, McCullar held up his follow through and then kissed his right hand, signaling that the game was over.
“I thought our guys were terrific,” Roberts said.
Wilson, who has thrived in the face of adversity throughout his basketball playing career, said the situation with Self coming at the most important time of year was merely the latest test he and his team needed to pass.
Like a proud coach himself, Wilson said he was thrilled with the way his group kept the focus on playing the right way and as a team to push past West Virginia and into Friday’s semifinals.
“Throughout the adversity, I think we just get tighter and tighter and it’s the best time of the year to be the tightest team we can be,” Wilson said. “A lot of people may doubt us now that our leader isn’t on the sideline. And that’s exactly what we need, man, people to doubt us. We’ve been counted out numerous times, but that’s the beauty of this team. We block that all out and just play our game.”
Next up, the Jayhawks (26-6) will take on an Iowa State team that thoroughly dominated them in a 68-53 ISU win in Ames, Iowa on Feb. 4. The fifth-seeded Cyclones knocked off fourth-seeded Baylor, 78-72, in Thursday’s opening game, coming back from eight down early in the second half to build a double-digit lead midway through the second half.
Wilson, Harris and others said bringing energy early would be a big key against Iowa State. And now that they’ve been reassured that Self is going to be OK and have another game with Roberts at the helm fresh in their minds, they’re moving forward ready to attack the rest of the postseason.
Roberts said he and the rest of the staff talked with Self after Thursday’s win.
“He was just so proud of our guys, how they performed, the way they defended and stuck together and played Kansas basketball,” Roberts said. “He’s always going to be churning when he’s watching the game. But he sounded really good and he sounded really happy for the guys.”
The win, the fight, the togetherness, the adversity; it all sets up nicely for another memorable story in Wilson’s eyes.
“A lot of people may doubt us now that our leader isn’t on the sideline,” he said. “And that’s exactly what we need, man, people to doubt us. We’ve been counted out numerous times, but that’s the beauty of this team. We block that all out and just play our game.”
Friday’s semifinal is set for a 6 p.m. tipoff, with the winner advancing to Saturday’s Big 12 title game at 5 p.m.
