@wissoxfan83 I enjoyed watching Archie getting interviewed and whomever it was doing the interview saying "Sean, are you enjoying watching your brother Archie play?" Then when Archie didn't answer, clearly a little annoyed at being addressed as Sean, the interviewer shouted "SEAN!" at him, as if it was a technical difficulty. The broadcast was then cut off, and they returned to the studio.

@JRyman Self would never go to Ok State directly from Kansas. In my mind his fortune has always read "stay at KU until you burn out on college ball after Tyler graduates, then go pro if you can find the right fit, then maybe go back to Stillwater if you still feel like coaching."

@JRyman well clearly my analogy works as you are both the entertainment system guy and the 10 conference title guy :) would you trade the one title Self won (ie erase Marios shot) for ten more conference titles?

@JRyman But would you rather go to the Grand Canyon, Yellowstone, or redwood forest than have the home entertainment system?

@wissoxfan83 Congrats to the Badgers and Bo Ryan! Awesome.

@JRyman First analogy that comes to my mind is would you trade your awesome home entertainment system / furniture in the den for a European vacation? The den might serve you well for 10 years, but that European vacation is the stuff of memories!

I'll try to answer the original question honestly. I think Self's players have historically not been mentally prepared for several tournament games. Maybe Self wasn't mentally prepared either. I think he preaches self sufficiency in life and on the court, and that can be good and bad. Good when his players figure it out and bad when they don't, especially in big games.

Self's idea of preparation is practice and planning. It isn't entering a game with clear minds, full hearts (to steal a line from Friday Night Lights). Jaybate often refers to Self's mental game. This year, it felt like it was deflated/exhausted. Maybe it was all of the hangups, both new (a team full of freshman with OAD dreams who couldn't play defense, except for one very big injured player) and old/dejavu (underperforming point guard). Whatever it was, his mental game wasn't there at the end. It felt resigned. I don't blame him. If I equate the hurdles he's had to equivelent hurdles I might experience at my job, I'd have a down year too.

I think Self is a good halftime adjustment guy, but bad at calling time outs, again because he's a work through your mistakes/practice guy. Among the upper echelon of coaches, he is usually pretty average at adjustments while the game is going on. As many have said, he's a system guy to a fault.

He's gone away from the 3 ball (remember BRush raining corner 3's, sometimes in transition?), he's gone away from taking defensive chances (remember those 20-2 runs sparked by steals by Mario/RussRob?), and become overly reliant on slow-down offensive sets and conservative defense. That was a disastrous formula with this group, and came to a head with Embiid out, but then it was too late to adjust.

So I'd say he's had a tough year with a lot of challenges, and he did not adjust his game plan to this players. Rather, he tried to adjust his personel to his game plan, while watering down his game plan, but not changing its nature.

There are other coaches whom I respect and appreciate in the ways they differ from Self. That is not to say I wish they were our coach. But I do appreciate the qualities that they have that Self may not be as strong in. I also believe Self misses some of his assistant coaches that moved on terribly, because I believe they possessed some of the qualities that Self has problems with (he's acknowledge this in his book). I think not enough focus is being placed on the assistant coaches and the level of trust/ownership that they have with the team.

Here are some of the coaches/staffs that I appreciate as being great in game coaches: Izzo, Beilein, Donovan, Pitino. There are others that have shown a lot of talent, but these guys have completely proven themselves.

I love Bill Self. I want to see him get his mojo back next season. And I think that means I want Joe Dooley back. Since that's not going to happen, that leaves me a bit uncertain about our bench. Also, I want Larry Brown to quit his job and spend all his nervous basketball energy daydreaming about what our guys could do with their talent. I want Bill Self to find a mental fountain of youth and stay fresh like the guys I listed above. I believe he can do it. I hope he does.

I like what Archie Miller has his team doing. Their ball movement is fast, not sticky on anyone. That used to be one of Self's buzz-phrases. When exactly did he stop talking about it? Dayton has 13 assists in the first half, compared to our 7 for the whole game. They established their outside game, and also rotated the ball inside quickly. Stanford's interior D doesn't look so imposing when they have to guard the perimeter and aren't camping in the lane. Also, Dayton looks confident. They shot 46.9 in the first half, including 6-13 from 3 (46.2%).

Dayton's style looks like a place someone like Andrew White could thrive. The play where they got out in transition, 2 on 2, and both Stanford players went to the paint, one Flyer pulled up at the 3 line, got the dish and shot it without hesitation. I thought early on in the season, Andrew looked good in transition, his hands looked quicker resulting in a few steals, and he looked confident running in the break and finishing at the rim... If you added a green light to pull up for 3, I like thinking what he could do.

I put this comment on this particular thread not because I'm suggesting that Archie Miller is better than Bill Self, but because Archie Miller is now officially on my radar.

@brooksmd thanks man. I don't know about the countdown. Don't we all have that hardwired in our heads already? :) Think the homepage looks nice and clean as is. Maybe when we get close I'll put it up?

WOW! Where has that kid been hiding?

@truehawk93 At the time we missed on Smart, I was disappointed. Now, I think I'd throw up in my mouth a little bit if I had to watch him flop around the court in a KU uniform.

There was an interesting article in ESPN the magazine this month about Andrea Hudy testing the team weekly for cortisol levels in their saliva. The theory is that high cortisol levels directly correspond to stiffness and poorer performance on the court.

I wonder to what extent this influenced our rotations this year. My guess is not much, but it's the first I'm hearing of it. I tried to find an article online about it, but only came up with something pre-study:

Kansas' Hudy, high-tech weight room secret weapon ↗

After enduring eight knee surgeries, Hudy is also passionate about injury prevention. She is working closely with the school on a plan to test cortisol levels — better known as the 'stress hormone' — in athletes throughout a season. They'll use the results to evaluate how cortisol may affect injuries.

"This has been years in the making, in terms of what we're trying do and what we're trying to compile," Hudy said. "Cortisol could be a huge answer ... in what we're seeing in terms of fatigue, and fatigue throughout the season."

Mayor of Swagberg ↗

[

Thanks guys. Appreciate the love. @REHawk Maybe on an ad. But the format is so clean right now. Don't want to compromise that. @bskeet definitely on testing. I was thinking of spinning up a second instance to check out the new features ahead of time. I will holler at you when it's up. Thanks so much for your help with the daily news and for staying up late into the evening when we tried to reskin the site. You were the ultimate team player and your help made a huge difference.

@globaljaybird We did get our stuff tossed in the first Texas game, and I think the SDSU game. But this was up there too.

Now that the season is over, I'm going to take a break from doing the daily news and stories and let you guys post as you like, which was some of the impetus behind me cutting down the front page layout.

I have some things I need to take care of for a while, and then
I plan to look further into fixing our data so that I can upgrade the board to the latest version of NodeBB. I mentioned earlier that the last time I attempted this, it failed due to bad data when attempting to upgrade. I don't think that's a big deal for the site as it currently stands, but being cut off from all the new features stinks, so I have to do something about it. While a wholesale reboot would be quick and easy, losing our data from the last year doesn't seem like a viable option, so I need to try to fix the data, and/or see if the NodeBB guys can help me, if they have time.

Also see today's News Digest, March 24, and News Digest for Yesterday, March 23, as well as Daily Threads for Yesterday, March 23

Our Daily Threads for March 24:

Will The Team Be Better Next Year? -@bskeet

Simple question.

Better is open to interpretation.

1) Will it finish with a better record? 2014 Final record: 25-10 2) Will it advance further in the tournament? 2014: Round of 32 loss 3) Will it represent the university and be a great role model of a program dedicated to excellence in academics and athletics? 2014: KU a perfect APR and graduation rate 4) Will it have more or higher NBA lottery picks? 2014 TBD

Loss Starts With Self - @HighEliteMajor

Self is not God. Let’s get that out of the way right now. He is a great coach subject to the same human flaws as the rest of us. And today, he failed KU nation.

There are times when a coach has to adjust. He has to recognize that business as usual isn’t working. That time arrived in the second half when Stanford went on a 7-0 run to take the lead. Game on. And what did Self do in response? Nothing.

We can say, well, “we missed a lot of shots.” That happens in basketball. They were contested shots. Stanford was tall, and long. We had to find a way to win. That starts with Self. Instead, we got nothing. Three big reasons that our season is done, all within Self's control:...

Godspeed Andrew & Tarik - @JayhawkRock78

Boy, days like this are tough, but not so tough I can't look for something good to think about.

Thank you Andrew for coming to play at KU. Thank you for handling all the distractions you had to deal with with such poise and grace. Thanks for the great memories this season.

Tarik, Thank you for choosing KU, and playing whatever roll you were handed. Thanks for your leadership with so much youth on this team.

See you guys next season - @Lulufulu85

This one hurts really bad. We needed Embiid and Wigs to show up and play like all stars. Too sad for words right now. No more Wiggins, maybe even no more Embiid. I couldn't watch the game but I heard we got hosed on some calls and Tarik fouled out when we needed him. Wiggins probly got out matched by his 6'10 240 lb counterpart. This sucks unbelievably.

Dayton Downs Xcuse! - @jaybate

All crew and ships of Task Force 2014: Path cleared for Battle of MIDWAY with Florida's monster fleet of carriers. Stop.

Dayton sunk the Syracuse! Stop!

First serious contact with enemy today vs Stanford. Stop. Stanford's two BATTLESHIPS must be sunk. Stop.

more than 5 min scouting report on Stanford - @Lulufulu85

Scouting report and thoughts for the Stanford game tomorrow 3/23 at 1115.

More than 5 minute Scouting report on Stanford. Kenpom is giving KU a 69% chance to beat Stanford 75-70. According to Kenpom, Stanford’s pace ranks right at the D1 average. Right on par with KU’s So we shouldn’t expect a slowed down, grind it out type of game from them. That being said, Kenpom doesn’t have them locked down as a zone or a M2M team, which says to me that KU can expect many different looks on defense from them. They might press full court because they should know we are vulnerable to that type of defense and they will show us different zones and they will play some man to man. They shoot the ball well as their Offense EFG% is 51.7 to KU’s 54.7 and their Defense EFG% is 48.1 to KU’s 47.2 Stanford doesn’t seem to turn the ball over much as their % per 100 possessions is 16.7 to KU’s 19.1 D1 ave is 18.3 but Stanford doesn’t force a lot of turn overs either...

Mar 23: Frankamp To Make Testosterone Gel Commercial - @drgnslayr

Conner Frankamp should receive a phone call this weekend from the CEO over at AndroGel to make a new television ad immediately.

It seems obvious, Conner must have bathed in this stuff yesterday, because he grew to 6'2" in height and grew several testicular inches in girth. Gee... that stuff must work!

Mar 23: FLOOR BURN AWARD: KU vs EKU - March 21 - @drgnslayr

I bet most of you already know who I'm going to pick.

I'm going for the tandem. I'm going for the two guys who started this season as the "cruise brothers" then earned the "bruise brothers" and are now working on owning the "not gonna lose brothers!"

Mar 23: Second Guessing and Backseat Driving - @drgnslayr

No one likes a backseat driver. Same can be said for those who hang their rep on second guessing. You can't go wrong in retrospect. But you can't be taken completely serious either. So I'm throwing this out there, for what it is worth... just a couple of cents.

I'm going back in time here to second guess Coach Self on a decision he made this year that may cost us now. I'm not calling him out in error... if he had known the future, I'm pretty sure he would be with me on this decision.

Mar 23: Let's Play a Half! Or Mozart Leading the Boston Pops - @jaybate

Chicago Cub legend Ernie Banks used to say, "let's play two."

KU's response is: "Let's play a half."

First things second: I really liked EKU. I liked everything about their offense and defense and trifectation. I liked how their coach spoke at half time, like Norman Dale. I liked how clean and hard their guys played. I liked how even though each of our guys was twice as good as each of their guys was, their "team" beat our "individual talents" for 30 minutes. I found myself rooting for them at times, because they had actually learned to play together long enough to become more than the sum of their parts. They ran the weave better than we did. They shot the three better. They passed better. They dribbled way better. They were better at every aspect of the game that one can teach.

Mar 23: Time to make the change - @icthawkfan316

So by now we've breathed a collective sigh of relief after escaping Eastern Kentucky. We're all still probably replaying the Traylor & Wiggins highlights in our heads. And most surprisingly, we're all smiling and shaking our heads at the performance of Connor Frankamp. Before getting into the meat of this let me just say kudos to coach Self for expanding his bench and continuing to give players like Frankamp & Greene minutes all year. They didn't get into every game, but they got into enough of them that they won't be overwhelmed if called upon this tournament.

Now if I may direct your attention to a quote from Eastern Kentucky forward Eric Stutz: "We went into the game knowing that we could turn their starting point guard over. That was our game plan." Look, I know the Colonels are a scrappy team full of pesky guards and their calling cards are raining 3s and creating turnovers, but let that quote sink in. 15 seed Eastern Kentucky from the Ohio Valley conference KNEW they would be able to turn over the junior starting point guard for number 2 seeded Kansas. What else do you really need to know? In classic Tharpe fashion, he turned it over on the second possession of the game, and generally looked uncomfortable all game long when trying to run the offense. In the second half, Self played him almost exclusively at the 2 with either Frankamp or Mason in the game with him.

Mar 22: Whew! - @vailhawk

Did we really win? My stomach is still turning!

Survive and advance!

Mar 22: ESPN/BATE: Headline/Counter-Headline--Day 1 - @jaybate

ESPN: L'ville dodges Manhattan scare Video | Schlabach BATE: Slick Rick gambles,wins with B game, but AmCon Soft

ESPN: North Dakota St. shocks OU in OT Video | Jennings BATE: Bi-brow b-game gamble bombs, 2 regrow unibrow

Mar 22: Awesome photos at KU Sports - @drgnslayr

I'm really primed after seeing these...

Mar 22: Things to Do to Get Ready for Round 1 - @jaybate

~Light incense and do anti-fouling chant for Tar.

~Throw three sunflower seeds over shoulder and appeal to the Tri-gods for Wayne to be hot from 3pt stripe.

~Hum "John Brown's Body" while asking the basketball god for Perry to have the fire of an abolitionist raiding party retaliating for Quantrill's torching of Lawrence...

Mar 21: Blog for tourney games - @RockChalkInTexas

Someone suggested so am starting this. What are your upset picks?

Mar 21: KU's Secret Weapon in Dome Ball - @jaybate

File this under seeing Gatorade bottles half full.

KU as I posted recently is not a very good trey ball shooting team.

KU is an average trey ball shooting team at best...

Mar 21: Difference Between "Really" and "Really, Really" - @drgnslayr

Part of what I really like about Coach Self is the way he talks. Really. I was born in Kansas, and Oklahoma is like "Kansas South" in many regards. Really. Like the way we express ourselves in really simplified and coded language. Really.

In an interview today, Coach Self was asked on the status of Joel Embiid and he gave a really Midwestern reply. Really. He really did parse his words in Midwestern code. Really. Because here in the Midwest, we really, really love the word "really" and we define it to our own needs.

Mar 20: Why Wiggins Won Me Over - @HighEliteMajor

As an unabashed anti-OAD guy, I have to admit that I like Andrew Wiggins. It didn’t start out well. Word was he was trying to negotiate out of coming to KU during the summer. Then there was the deluge of preseason publicity. It was easy to assume that Wiggins was buying into the hype.

Since then, though, it’s become easy to separate the OAD from the player. Wiggins, actually, is a breath of fresh air...

Mar 20: WSU v. Creighton: PO Ball on the Rise? - @jaybate

Is it a good year for private oligarchy (PO), or what? The Kochs and Buffets are highly seeded.

Even ancienne PO like Harvard and Stanford are in it!

Mar 20: This Fuels My Hate Fire - @nuleafjhawk

http://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/ncaab-the-dagger/seven-teams-that-can-win-the-ncaa-tournament--and-three-that-can-t-034218488.html ↗

Mar 20: To Play or Not To Play... that is the question... - drgnslayr

After our first game with Eastern Kentucky it will be time for Self to put on his fancy riverboat hat and long poker face and mumble these words, "I believe JoJo will be ready for our next game!"

He needs to say that from here on out, even if JoJo never plays another second of Jayhawk basketball this year.

Mar 19: Best Championship Team of the Past Decade - @DinarHawk

It seems that whenever this topic is discussed, most analysts consistently overlook the '08 team.

Florida back to back years, North Carolina in '09, and Kentucky in '12 are the ones that are mostly thought to be the best.

Mar 19: It's the most wonderful time of the year - @JRyman

It really is, the best time of the year. It's March madness, it's the pinnacle of college basketball.

Upsets, Cinderella's, fanatic finishes, 68 teams one goal.

I mean this is the time of year when a cocky Mislose team lost to a 15 seed. Duke too.

Mar 18: Keep the Doubters Coming! - @DinarHawk

I think it is good for this team that there are so many people in the media, including the folks on KWCH Sports Sunday, that are doubting whether or not this team can beat UNM without Embiid.

Mar 18: Opening Vegas odds... - @JayHawkFanToo

This how Vegas has the opening odds. I have listed only the teams with 50-1 odds or better. Look like Vegas likes KU....

Mar 17: KUBuckets Brackets on ESPN - @approxinfinity

I thought a KUBuckets bracket group on ESPN would be fun, so I'm going to start one once the brackets come out. I'll post the group info here when it's ready. Hope you guys are able to join!

Done! - Group is named KUBuckets. here's the link to it - http://games.espn.go.com/tournament-challenge-bracket/2014/en/group?groupID=370930 ↗

Mar 17: Self Loss To ISU Smart? - @jaybate

What would Bill Self have gained for KU's seeding by pulling out all the stops to beat ISU?

Before we even try to answer, let's consider what Self might have done differently against ISU in terms of pulling out all the stops?

He might have zone pressed intermittently during the first and second halves...

Mar 17: Did we draw the toughest bracket? - @konkeyDong

I gotta kind of think that the NCAA seeding committee doesn't want us to do anything this year. Florida, 'Cuse, VCU... Add in 'ville and that would complete my list of teams I think we match up the worst with.

Mar 17: Worst 3PT Team of Self Era? - @jaybate

As of the end of the B12 tournament, these are the 3pt shooting percentages of KU's perimeter players.

Wiggins 35%

Selden 34%

Tharpe 38%....

Mar 17: USA Today All-American lists - @REHawk

Wiggins 2nd team. Embiid and Smart Honorable Mention.

Mar 17: Very Good without Jo, Great with Jo - @jaybate

I feel juiced about the team, because...

• On no day of rest after an OT game, KU without its star center, with its star forward shooting 7-21 FG, and shooting 27% from trey ville, ALMOST BEAT A RANKED TEAM that played its best game of its season. This means KU is very good without Joel and ring grade with him.

• Perry Ellis had a great game with 30 and 8 against a ranked team proving he is out of his slump....

Mar 16: Our Best Chance To Win Six Games - @HighEliteMajor

How do we best attack the NCAA tournament? What is our best chance to win 6 games?

Coach Self relies upon strong man to man defense as his philosophical center point. This season, the team’s defensive inadequacies threaten that philosophy.

This team is now ranked 189th in points per game allowed. That has gone up since we lost Embiid, but even with Embiid, our points per game allowed ranking was significantly more than normal -- 51, 35, 69, 62, 106, and 21 in past years, with the #21 being the title season...

Mar 16: FLOOR BURN AWARD: KU vs ISU - March 14 - @drgnslayr

I feel bad for Perry Ellis, The Impaler. When a guy goes 11-12 from the field and hangs 30 points on the stat sheet, you expect him to be the player of the game on the winning team. Perry was the player of the game for both teams, unfortunately he didn't get to celebrate on the winning team.

Perry also snagged 7 rebounds and had an assist.

Mar 16: Rethinking SOS - @nuleafjhawk

For years I've harped ( to my wife, kids, pastor, cashier at Dillons ) that it is to our benefit to play the toughest teams we can all year long, here, there, anywhere.

I was wrong.

Mar 15: Why We Lost to Iowa State - @DinarHawk###

I have to admit, I agree somewhat with the Debbie downers over on KU Sports that not having Embiid hurt us in this game. Niang wouldn't have been able to do half the things he did with him in there.

That said, Black and Traylor did not play good post defense at all. Therefore, Niang did whatever he wanted.

There seemed to be an overall lack of energy, and Iowa State seemed faster to the ball than KU did.

Mar 15: Well, that wasn't good. - @Hawk8086

Offense was terrible in the 2nd half. Nobody could guard Niang. Wiggins wasn't hitting. Tharpe was invisible, for the most part. They were hot from 3. Did I miss anyting?

Mar 15: Who? Part Two - @JRyman

Who will step up tonight vs Iowa St?

Sure the easy pick is Andrew

I am going with Traylor, I think his quickness on D is going to help us out vs the spread floor of ISU.

Mar 14: Did Bill Self really call.... - @JRyman

At the post game on floor interview did Bill self call Holly Rowe "Babe". I swear he said, "thanks babe".

Maybe it was "thanks bye". But I'm not sure and that doesn't sound like a Self quote but either does babe.

Anyone?

Mar 14: They All Stepped Up.. - @jaybate

They ran the stuff and everyone stayed plugged in. And 14 TOs against that kind of pressure was solid.

Wigs walked the tight rope between over impact and under impact. He stayed plugged in beginning to end. He had 30 and 3 assists and was on AWACs radar screens for three or four get-ups. Still think he can and will get 30 with 5 assists, and when he does it, KU will super nova on someone. Regardless, his defense and boarding was what stood out the most to me. He just guarded the best he has guarded all season and didn't just grab boards with hops, but he got in and mixed it up on the glass on lots of plays. Still wish to heck he would look for two more dishes to anyone and two more post feeds for Tar, but he was plugged in beginning to end. But man did I love that defense he played, especially early in the game. His 5 TOs were excusable this game considering how well they were guarding him and how much we were asking him to work in traffic. 5 is high, but if we ask him to shoot 17 in traffic AND handle against that much pressure, and rebound, its probably the best we can hope for. And look at those 3 steals and a block!!!! Sweet.

Mar 14: Adjustments I'd like to see Self make for OSU and going forward without Embiid - @konkeyDong

Adjustments I'd like to see Self make for OSU and going forward without Embiid:

The question that's on everyone's mind, or at least should be, will be answered around 4pm this afternoon. Was the WVU game last Saturday an aberration, or was it the true KU-sans-Embiid exposed? My take is neither, but that doesn’t mean changes won’t have to be made. As @HighEliteMajor and others have pointed out, Self, as talented as he is, is about as flexible as a 2-ton i-beam.

Mar 14: Who? - @drgnslayr###

In your opinion... who will step up?

Mar 14: Today's over/under's - @JRyman

Margin if victory by KU. 7.5

Points by Andrew Wiggins. 21.5...

Mar 13: Making a run without JoJo - @icthawkfan316

So by now the disappointing news has sunk in for most of us regarding Embiid's back injury. While we may speculate as to if/when he will be back, it is in the best interest of the team to prepare as if he will not be back. After all, they've had a whole season's worth of preparation playing with him, so if he is available at some point, re-inserting him in the line-up will not necessitate any adjustments. So make plans to play without him.

Mar 13: Revisit last game of last season-EJ was hit first. - @JayhawkRock78

I was at the KU Michigan game last year, and watched in agony as we let it slip through our hands. By the time I got home, the EJ -McGary hit was everywhere. Since I DVR'd the game, I had a hint something preceded it, and boy it is there on tape. I am not defending EJ's low blow, but 12 months ago I wasn't posting.

Mar 13: KU gets OSU tomorrow... - @JayHawkFanToo

OSU dominated Texas Tech and won going away. Forte was hitting 3 pointers from 5 feet behind the line; hopefully he has scored his share and will go on a drought tomorrow. Murphy played only 14 minutes but the rest of the starter played over 30 minutes each, but there were minutes that did not require a lot of effort, nothing that would affect tomorrow's game .

Mar 13: Andrew and the Miracles... - @drgnslayr

For some of us that go back a ways in Kansas basketball, we've been in this situation before.

We lost a very special player in Archie Marshall.

We were well on our way to having a disappointing season with a big pile of losses and expectations dashed.

Mar 13: Kietzman and the KU Conspiracy Theory - @wrwlumpy

Yesterday WHB brought back a Spinal Specialist for a second time to delve into Coach Self knowing more than he really was saying about Joel and went down the road to accusing him of being a coach who plays kids when they are hurt. This brought back memories of his 3 day rant wanting to portray Roy Williams as a person who disrespects the American Flag and all of the brave men and women who have fought and given their lives for this country - http://cjonline.com/stories/021502/spo_kuflag.shtm ↗

Mar 12: Making Up for Joel - @jaybate

So we are probably 1 and 1 in the B12 tourney.

The B12 Tourney is meaningless, except as 1 or 2 practice games for learning how to beat muscle without Joel, and more if he doesn't come back.

Pruning back the lion killer luv, Joel gave 12/10 plus rim protection.

Mar 11: Have Faith - @HighEliteMajor

Faith.

We hear the word every day. What does it mean?

Two definitions to choose from:

1) Confidence or trust in a person or thing.

Or

2) A belief that is not based in proof.

Mar 11: jaybate Basketball Intelligence Estimate (jBIE): Joel's Back Injury - @jaybate

SigInt (the brief camera shot of treating Joel's injury court side) tells jBIE's basketball spies a whole lot about Joel's back injury.

Observed treatment: Joel laid on his back and a team official treating Joel pulled his right leg over his left and appeared to stretch the lower back in a spiral/twisting motion.

Mar 10: Random Thoughts: Greg Marshall's Future & KU Defense - @MoonwalkMafia

Following VCU's impressive (and heartbreaking) run to the Final Four in 2011, many college basketball pundits questioned whether Shaka Smart would be leaving the mid-major ranks and jumping into the deep end with the big boys. Smart ultimately turned down offers from bigger programs to stay with what he had built.

Mar 10: Equipment Changes for Redemption Season - @drgnslayr

Our "Redemption Season" starts March 20th.

We need to makes some tweaks to several of our current players' equipment.

EQUIPMENT CHANGES CHECKLIST...

Mar 9: Does Wiggins become our point forward? -@Hawk8086

Some have brought up Carmelo. After thinking about it, given all of the concerns with Tharpe, does Self try running everything through Wiggins? At least most of the time? He looks inside for the big men first. He breaks down the defense and then either takes it to the hole, or dishes off? Tharpe, or whomever brings the ball up the court, but maybe Wiggins does that part of the time. I know his ball handling skills could be better, but is he the other option we're looking for? Ride him as far as he can take us. Is this completely crazy? Desperate times make us all think of desperate measures.

Mar 9: Wiggins 41 points and 2 Assists and Other Take Aways - @jaybate

~The WVU game was such a bitter pill on so many levels. Let me count the ways.

~The WVU game made starkly clear that even a Herculean, come-from-behind, scoring performance of 41 points by Andrew Wiggins cannot carry this team to a victory over a 65th ranked KENPOM team. How can this be? How can such an obviously exceptional talent putting on such an awesome individual performance (he scored efficiently, rebounded his own misses well, made steals, and blocked shots) not succeed? How could Andrew putting his team on his back not yield a W against a good, but not exceptional team?

Mar 9: Big 12 Teams - @TheDrunkenJhawk

Now that the Big 12 Season is over, I will post my superlatives:

1st Team:

Marcus Smart (I don't want to put him here, but I have no choice)...

Mar 8: 7 losses: Advantage or disadvantage? -@bskeet

Some say you need some losses to expose the chinks in the armor and allow you to neutralize approaches that are likely to lead to defeat. This school of thought suggests that it is possible to grow stronger from failures if you learn from the mistakes.

Some say you don't need to lose -- in fact losing is a sign of weakness to opponents. That a loss brings confidence to the enemy and doubt to oneself.

Mar 8: Is This Team Finally Ready for 'Self-Ball'? - @drgnslayr

Is this team finally ready for 'Self-ball'?

In recent weeks we have seen moments of solid defense. We almost played 40 minutes of defense versus Texas. We can't compare this team to any other Bill Self team because the NCAA decided to make lock-down defense a thing of the past. But we can still play a decent M2M with plenty of weak side team help.

Mar 8: Tarik vs.Tech: One More for the Road... -@jaybate

Black gave a clinic in the process of post play against a weak team. If he can do it again against the muscle of WVU, then we mAy have the missing piece to take the team beyond talent to a well-oiled machine. Either way, Joel needs to watch the tape to add the craft of post play to his growing knowledge of the techniques of post play. As Sade once sang, Tarik was a "smooth operator."

Mar 8: "Forensics: Self Saying Wigs Should Be B12 POY" - @jaybate

Bill Self threw Gary Bedore an interestingly timed bone today.

Seemingly out of nowhere, to this reader, since Gary Bedore did not provide the circumstance in which the question was asked, Gary asked Bill who Bill thought should be B12 POY.

Some Suggestions for a Big 12 Near Eastern Division - @jaybate

WVU needs an eastern division, so it doesn't have to keep playing schools out west in the Big 12 Natural Resource Conference. Here are some suggested adds for a Near East Division for WVU.

Crimean A&M--Russian carriers not only secure the area at Svastopol, but games could be played on them thus allowing easy pre game air connections right to the flight decks.

Mar 7: 30 years - @JRyman

No not my life span. But Thirty years of KU being something great.

1983-84 Second in Big 8

84-85 Second...

Mar 7: Myles Turner: You are one Lucky Man! - @drgnslayr

Myles Turner, you are one lucky man! You came to the right Jayhawk game to experience.

Even though we captured our 10th straight Big 12 regular season championship, this has not been a typical Jayhawk season. We are one of the youngest teams in the nation, and with that youth comes the need to educate; to learn what college basketball is all about, and further, to learn what Jayhawk basketball is all about.

Mar 7: FLOOR BURN AWARD: KU vs TT - March 5 - @drgnslayr

Tarik Black! Tarik Black! Tarik Black!

I can't stress it enough. Tarik Black's performance last night not only won the FLOOR BURN AWARD for this game, he may have won it for the entire year! That was the most-inspiring play of any Jayhawk all year!

Mar 7: Welcome to the OAD Merry-go-round! - @jaybate

It was about as strong of a signal as potential recruits could get short of an official announcement.

Wiggins, Embiid and Selden appear to be goners.

So: it's unofficially official: Self and KU are on the OAD Merry Go Round.

Mar 6: Tarik Black: Future Coach - @jaybate

Let's see. Tarick Black is playing his 4th season of college basketball, it's senior night, he got his BA before he set foot on campus, and he is going to have a Master's before he leaves after this one season? He plays a musical instrument and is 6-9 and 260? And he has a kind of positive outlook that the maestro of positive, Bill Self, admires? And he has the insight at this young age to say of Self, "Here, I’m playing for a coach who has a national championship, who has coached many great teams, that’s had similar players and just knows what to do, when to do it, and the message that needs to be portrayed at the moment"?

Also see today's News Digest, March 24, and News Digest for Yesterday, March 23, as well as Daily Threads for Yesterday, March 23

Also see our Daily Threads, March 24, and the News Digest for Yesterday, March 23, as well as Daily Threads for Yesterday, March 23

! ↗

Newell: Andrew Wiggins shoulders blame following KU basketball's 60-57 loss to Stanford in round of 32 ↗

ST. LOUIS — Andrew Wiggins didn’t blink.

In the minutes after Kansas’ 60-57 loss to Stanford on Sunday in the round of 32, the Kansas freshman guard tilted his head back and focused his eyes across the locker room on an empty spot on the wall.

Dodd: Stanford eliminates Kansas 60-57 ↗

ST. LOUIS — All across the locker room, amidst the stillness and the sadness, the Kansas Jayhawks’ freshmen sat in near silence.

Andrew Wiggins, a speck of blood near his heart, spoke softly. Wayne Selden slumped against the wall. Joel Embiid sat on a bench on the far side of the room, still wearing his Kansas sweatsuit.

Lutz: Jayhawks try to comprehend quick ouster ↗

ST. LOUIS – Television cameras are almost always an inconvenience for athletes following a difficult loss, but the saving grace for Kansas’ players following a 60-57 defeat against Stanford is that the cameras gave them somewhere to look.

Those players not receiving media attention at any given time had little recourse on an acceptable line of vision, especially since eye contact with each other was too difficult.

Bedore: Arch sadness: KU’s season ends in St. Louis, in round of 32 ↗

St. Louis — This is not the way Andrew Wiggins wanted his college basketball career to end, sitting in front of his locker room stall with tears welled in his eyes.

“It hurts. I feel I let my team down, my coaches, my fans, Kansas fans, everybody,” the 6-foot-8 freshman one-and-done sensation said after Kansas University’s 60-57 NCAA Tournament Round of 32 loss to Stanford on Sunday in Scottrade Center.

ESPN: Joel Embiid: No decision on NBA yet ↗

While fellow freshman Andrew Wiggins will leave after the season, Kansas teammate Joel Embiid told ESPN that he will talk to the Jayhawks coaching staff and also his mentor, fellow Cameroon native and NBA player Luc Mbah a Moute, before making a final decision concerning his NBA future.

ESPN: Jayhawks need to improve at point guard ↗

Wiggins is likely off to the NBA, and will be taken somewhere in the top three picks of the draft, most likely first or second. He’s an exceptional talent, but wasn’t quite prepared for the pressure of having to lead this Kansas group.

Suellentrop: Wichita State’s undefeated season ends in 78-76 loss to Kentucky ↗

ST. LOUIS — Three Shockers and coach Gregg Marshall sat on the interview platform and tried to explain the unexplainable. In the locker room, a similar scene. Wichita State did things no other college basketball team did for five months and did it in a way that made its fans proud.

Then it ended and March Madness will go on without the Shockers, unthinkable as that seems.

CJOnline Live Blog ↗

ESPN Box Score ↗

Also see our Daily Threads, March 24, and the News Digest for Yesterday, March 23, as well as Daily Threads for Yesterday, March 23

Found myself wondering how much Self is missing Dooley, Jankovich, Manning and Ballard.

@drgnslayr it's been fun watching the ecosystem of posters here. Everyone who posts contributes valuable minutes and I feel like I could recognize a lot of you immediately if I met you and heard you talk for 10 seconds about the Jayhawks. I told you this place wouldn't be much but it would get us through the winter. I was incorrect. You guys made the site great. And I agree completely that Self and company would not be worse off perusing the analysis here. Thanks for all your great posts @drgnslayr. They made my day on many occasions.

It was fun but it's true that it was hard to have any expectations of a title this year. It felt fairly certain with our uncorrected (/uncorrectable?) shortcomings, we were going to lose, it was just a matter of when. I'm hoping the Stanford Irrelevant get destroyed by Dayton just because I'm bitter and didn't appreciate the cut of their jib. Other than that, rooting for UVA, Wisconsin and Wichita State.

Yeah it was a lot of wasted space. Glad to hear you like it. I think a big reason people were asking how to post is because the basketball bucket was getting pushed so far down that they weren't ever navigating through it and consequently not seeing the new thread button.

Also see today's News Digest, March 23, and News Digest for Yesterday, March 22, as well as Daily Threads for Yesterday, March 22

Our Daily Threads for March 23:

Frankamp To Make Testosterone Gel Commercial - @drgnslayr

Conner Frankamp should receive a phone call this weekend from the CEO over at AndroGel to make a new television ad immediately.

It seems obvious, Conner must have bathed in this stuff yesterday, because he grew to 6'2" in height and grew several testicular inches in girth. Gee... that stuff must work!

FLOOR BURN AWARD: KU vs EKU - March 21 - @drgnslayr

I bet most of you already know who I'm going to pick.

I'm going for the tandem. I'm going for the two guys who started this season as the "cruise brothers" then earned the "bruise brothers" and are now working on owning the "not gonna lose brothers!"

Second Guessing and Backseat Driving - @drgnslayr

No one likes a backseat driver. Same can be said for those who hang their rep on second guessing. You can't go wrong in retrospect. But you can't be taken completely serious either. So I'm throwing this out there, for what it is worth... just a couple of cents.

I'm going back in time here to second guess Coach Self on a decision he made this year that may cost us now. I'm not calling him out in error... if he had known the future, I'm pretty sure he would be with me on this decision.

Let's Play a Half! Or Mozart Leading the Boston Pops - @jaybate

Chicago Cub legend Ernie Banks used to say, "let's play two."

KU's response is: "Let's play a half."

First things second: I really liked EKU. I liked everything about their offense and defense and trifectation. I liked how their coach spoke at half time, like Norman Dale. I liked how clean and hard their guys played. I liked how even though each of our guys was twice as good as each of their guys was, their "team" beat our "individual talents" for 30 minutes. I found myself rooting for them at times, because they had actually learned to play together long enough to become more than the sum of their parts. They ran the weave better than we did. They shot the three better. They passed better. They dribbled way better. They were better at every aspect of the game that one can teach.

Time to make the change - @icthawkfan316

So by now we've breathed a collective sigh of relief after escaping Eastern Kentucky. We're all still probably replaying the Traylor & Wiggins highlights in our heads. And most surprisingly, we're all smiling and shaking our heads at the performance of Connor Frankamp. Before getting into the meat of this let me just say kudos to coach Self for expanding his bench and continuing to give players like Frankamp & Greene minutes all year. They didn't get into every game, but they got into enough of them that they won't be overwhelmed if called upon this tournament.

Now if I may direct your attention to a quote from Eastern Kentucky forward Eric Stutz: "We went into the game knowing that we could turn their starting point guard over. That was our game plan." Look, I know the Colonels are a scrappy team full of pesky guards and their calling cards are raining 3s and creating turnovers, but let that quote sink in. 15 seed Eastern Kentucky from the Ohio Valley conference KNEW they would be able to turn over the junior starting point guard for number 2 seeded Kansas. What else do you really need to know? In classic Tharpe fashion, he turned it over on the second possession of the game, and generally looked uncomfortable all game long when trying to run the offense. In the second half, Self played him almost exclusively at the 2 with either Frankamp or Mason in the game with him.

Mar 22: Whew! - @vailhawk

Did we really win? My stomach is still turning!

Survive and advance!

Mar 22: ESPN/BATE: Headline/Counter-Headline--Day 1 - @jaybate

ESPN: L'ville dodges Manhattan scare Video | Schlabach BATE: Slick Rick gambles,wins with B game, but AmCon Soft

ESPN: North Dakota St. shocks OU in OT Video | Jennings BATE: Bi-brow b-game gamble bombs, 2 regrow unibrow

Mar 22: Awesome photos at KU Sports - @drgnslayr

I'm really primed after seeing these...

Mar 22: Things to Do to Get Ready for Round 1 - @jaybate

~Light incense and do anti-fouling chant for Tar.

~Throw three sunflower seeds over shoulder and appeal to the Tri-gods for Wayne to be hot from 3pt stripe.

~Hum "John Brown's Body" while asking the basketball god for Perry to have the fire of an abolitionist raiding party retaliating for Quantrill's torching of Lawrence...

Mar 21: Blog for tourney games - @RockChalkInTexas

Someone suggested so am starting this. What are your upset picks?

Mar 21: KU's Secret Weapon in Dome Ball - @jaybate

File this under seeing Gatorade bottles half full.

KU as I posted recently is not a very good trey ball shooting team.

KU is an average trey ball shooting team at best...

Mar 21: Difference Between "Really" and "Really, Really" - @drgnslayr

Part of what I really like about Coach Self is the way he talks. Really. I was born in Kansas, and Oklahoma is like "Kansas South" in many regards. Really. Like the way we express ourselves in really simplified and coded language. Really.

In an interview today, Coach Self was asked on the status of Joel Embiid and he gave a really Midwestern reply. Really. He really did parse his words in Midwestern code. Really. Because here in the Midwest, we really, really love the word "really" and we define it to our own needs.

Mar 20: Why Wiggins Won Me Over - @HighEliteMajor

As an unabashed anti-OAD guy, I have to admit that I like Andrew Wiggins. It didn’t start out well. Word was he was trying to negotiate out of coming to KU during the summer. Then there was the deluge of preseason publicity. It was easy to assume that Wiggins was buying into the hype.

Since then, though, it’s become easy to separate the OAD from the player. Wiggins, actually, is a breath of fresh air...

Mar 20: WSU v. Creighton: PO Ball on the Rise? - @jaybate

Is it a good year for private oligarchy (PO), or what? The Kochs and Buffets are highly seeded.

Even ancienne PO like Harvard and Stanford are in it!

Mar 20: This Fuels My Hate Fire - @nuleafjhawk

http://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/ncaab-the-dagger/seven-teams-that-can-win-the-ncaa-tournament--and-three-that-can-t-034218488.html ↗

Mar 20: To Play or Not To Play... that is the question... - drgnslayr

After our first game with Eastern Kentucky it will be time for Self to put on his fancy riverboat hat and long poker face and mumble these words, "I believe JoJo will be ready for our next game!"

He needs to say that from here on out, even if JoJo never plays another second of Jayhawk basketball this year.

Mar 19: Best Championship Team of the Past Decade - @DinarHawk

It seems that whenever this topic is discussed, most analysts consistently overlook the '08 team.

Florida back to back years, North Carolina in '09, and Kentucky in '12 are the ones that are mostly thought to be the best.

Mar 19: It's the most wonderful time of the year - @JRyman

It really is, the best time of the year. It's March madness, it's the pinnacle of college basketball.

Upsets, Cinderella's, fanatic finishes, 68 teams one goal.

I mean this is the time of year when a cocky Mislose team lost to a 15 seed. Duke too.

Mar 18: Keep the Doubters Coming! - @DinarHawk

I think it is good for this team that there are so many people in the media, including the folks on KWCH Sports Sunday, that are doubting whether or not this team can beat UNM without Embiid.

Mar 18: Opening Vegas odds... - @JayHawkFanToo

This how Vegas has the opening odds. I have listed only the teams with 50-1 odds or better. Look like Vegas likes KU....

Mar 17: KUBuckets Brackets on ESPN - @approxinfinity

I thought a KUBuckets bracket group on ESPN would be fun, so I'm going to start one once the brackets come out. I'll post the group info here when it's ready. Hope you guys are able to join!

Done! - Group is named KUBuckets. here's the link to it - http://games.espn.go.com/tournament-challenge-bracket/2014/en/group?groupID=370930 ↗

Mar 17: Self Loss To ISU Smart? - @jaybate

What would Bill Self have gained for KU's seeding by pulling out all the stops to beat ISU?

Before we even try to answer, let's consider what Self might have done differently against ISU in terms of pulling out all the stops?

He might have zone pressed intermittently during the first and second halves...

Mar 17: Did we draw the toughest bracket? - @konkeyDong

I gotta kind of think that the NCAA seeding committee doesn't want us to do anything this year. Florida, 'Cuse, VCU... Add in 'ville and that would complete my list of teams I think we match up the worst with.

Mar 17: Worst 3PT Team of Self Era? - @jaybate

As of the end of the B12 tournament, these are the 3pt shooting percentages of KU's perimeter players.

Wiggins 35%

Selden 34%

Tharpe 38%....

Mar 17: USA Today All-American lists - @REHawk

Wiggins 2nd team. Embiid and Smart Honorable Mention.

Mar 17: Very Good without Jo, Great with Jo - @jaybate

I feel juiced about the team, because...

• On no day of rest after an OT game, KU without its star center, with its star forward shooting 7-21 FG, and shooting 27% from trey ville, ALMOST BEAT A RANKED TEAM that played its best game of its season. This means KU is very good without Joel and ring grade with him.

• Perry Ellis had a great game with 30 and 8 against a ranked team proving he is out of his slump....

Mar 16: Our Best Chance To Win Six Games - @HighEliteMajor

How do we best attack the NCAA tournament? What is our best chance to win 6 games?

Coach Self relies upon strong man to man defense as his philosophical center point. This season, the team’s defensive inadequacies threaten that philosophy.

This team is now ranked 189th in points per game allowed. That has gone up since we lost Embiid, but even with Embiid, our points per game allowed ranking was significantly more than normal -- 51, 35, 69, 62, 106, and 21 in past years, with the #21 being the title season...

Mar 16: FLOOR BURN AWARD: KU vs ISU - March 14 - @drgnslayr

I feel bad for Perry Ellis, The Impaler. When a guy goes 11-12 from the field and hangs 30 points on the stat sheet, you expect him to be the player of the game on the winning team. Perry was the player of the game for both teams, unfortunately he didn't get to celebrate on the winning team.

Perry also snagged 7 rebounds and had an assist.

Mar 16: Rethinking SOS - @nuleafjhawk

For years I've harped ( to my wife, kids, pastor, cashier at Dillons ) that it is to our benefit to play the toughest teams we can all year long, here, there, anywhere.

I was wrong.

Mar 15: Why We Lost to Iowa State - @DinarHawk###

I have to admit, I agree somewhat with the Debbie downers over on KU Sports that not having Embiid hurt us in this game. Niang wouldn't have been able to do half the things he did with him in there.

That said, Black and Traylor did not play good post defense at all. Therefore, Niang did whatever he wanted.

There seemed to be an overall lack of energy, and Iowa State seemed faster to the ball than KU did.

Mar 15: Well, that wasn't good. - @Hawk8086

Offense was terrible in the 2nd half. Nobody could guard Niang. Wiggins wasn't hitting. Tharpe was invisible, for the most part. They were hot from 3. Did I miss anyting?

Mar 15: Who? Part Two - @JRyman

Who will step up tonight vs Iowa St?

Sure the easy pick is Andrew

I am going with Traylor, I think his quickness on D is going to help us out vs the spread floor of ISU.

Mar 14: Did Bill Self really call.... - @JRyman

At the post game on floor interview did Bill self call Holly Rowe "Babe". I swear he said, "thanks babe".

Maybe it was "thanks bye". But I'm not sure and that doesn't sound like a Self quote but either does babe.

Anyone?

Mar 14: They All Stepped Up.. - @jaybate

They ran the stuff and everyone stayed plugged in. And 14 TOs against that kind of pressure was solid.

Wigs walked the tight rope between over impact and under impact. He stayed plugged in beginning to end. He had 30 and 3 assists and was on AWACs radar screens for three or four get-ups. Still think he can and will get 30 with 5 assists, and when he does it, KU will super nova on someone. Regardless, his defense and boarding was what stood out the most to me. He just guarded the best he has guarded all season and didn't just grab boards with hops, but he got in and mixed it up on the glass on lots of plays. Still wish to heck he would look for two more dishes to anyone and two more post feeds for Tar, but he was plugged in beginning to end. But man did I love that defense he played, especially early in the game. His 5 TOs were excusable this game considering how well they were guarding him and how much we were asking him to work in traffic. 5 is high, but if we ask him to shoot 17 in traffic AND handle against that much pressure, and rebound, its probably the best we can hope for. And look at those 3 steals and a block!!!! Sweet.

Mar 14: Adjustments I'd like to see Self make for OSU and going forward without Embiid - @konkeyDong

Adjustments I'd like to see Self make for OSU and going forward without Embiid:

The question that's on everyone's mind, or at least should be, will be answered around 4pm this afternoon. Was the WVU game last Saturday an aberration, or was it the true KU-sans-Embiid exposed? My take is neither, but that doesn’t mean changes won’t have to be made. As @HighEliteMajor and others have pointed out, Self, as talented as he is, is about as flexible as a 2-ton i-beam.

Mar 14: Who? - @drgnslayr###

In your opinion... who will step up?

Mar 14: Today's over/under's - @JRyman

Margin if victory by KU. 7.5

Points by Andrew Wiggins. 21.5...

Mar 13: Making a run without JoJo - @icthawkfan316

So by now the disappointing news has sunk in for most of us regarding Embiid's back injury. While we may speculate as to if/when he will be back, it is in the best interest of the team to prepare as if he will not be back. After all, they've had a whole season's worth of preparation playing with him, so if he is available at some point, re-inserting him in the line-up will not necessitate any adjustments. So make plans to play without him.

Mar 13: Revisit last game of last season-EJ was hit first. - @JayhawkRock78

I was at the KU Michigan game last year, and watched in agony as we let it slip through our hands. By the time I got home, the EJ -McGary hit was everywhere. Since I DVR'd the game, I had a hint something preceded it, and boy it is there on tape. I am not defending EJ's low blow, but 12 months ago I wasn't posting.

Mar 13: KU gets OSU tomorrow... - @JayHawkFanToo

OSU dominated Texas Tech and won going away. Forte was hitting 3 pointers from 5 feet behind the line; hopefully he has scored his share and will go on a drought tomorrow. Murphy played only 14 minutes but the rest of the starter played over 30 minutes each, but there were minutes that did not require a lot of effort, nothing that would affect tomorrow's game .

Mar 13: Andrew and the Miracles... - @drgnslayr

For some of us that go back a ways in Kansas basketball, we've been in this situation before.

We lost a very special player in Archie Marshall.

We were well on our way to having a disappointing season with a big pile of losses and expectations dashed.

Mar 13: Kietzman and the KU Conspiracy Theory - @wrwlumpy

Yesterday WHB brought back a Spinal Specialist for a second time to delve into Coach Self knowing more than he really was saying about Joel and went down the road to accusing him of being a coach who plays kids when they are hurt. This brought back memories of his 3 day rant wanting to portray Roy Williams as a person who disrespects the American Flag and all of the brave men and women who have fought and given their lives for this country - http://cjonline.com/stories/021502/spo_kuflag.shtm ↗

Mar 12: Making Up for Joel - @jaybate

So we are probably 1 and 1 in the B12 tourney.

The B12 Tourney is meaningless, except as 1 or 2 practice games for learning how to beat muscle without Joel, and more if he doesn't come back.

Pruning back the lion killer luv, Joel gave 12/10 plus rim protection.

Mar 11: Have Faith - @HighEliteMajor

Faith.

We hear the word every day. What does it mean?

Two definitions to choose from:

1) Confidence or trust in a person or thing.

Or

2) A belief that is not based in proof.

Mar 11: jaybate Basketball Intelligence Estimate (jBIE): Joel's Back Injury - @jaybate

SigInt (the brief camera shot of treating Joel's injury court side) tells jBIE's basketball spies a whole lot about Joel's back injury.

Observed treatment: Joel laid on his back and a team official treating Joel pulled his right leg over his left and appeared to stretch the lower back in a spiral/twisting motion.

Mar 10: Random Thoughts: Greg Marshall's Future & KU Defense - @MoonwalkMafia

Following VCU's impressive (and heartbreaking) run to the Final Four in 2011, many college basketball pundits questioned whether Shaka Smart would be leaving the mid-major ranks and jumping into the deep end with the big boys. Smart ultimately turned down offers from bigger programs to stay with what he had built.

Mar 10: Equipment Changes for Redemption Season - @drgnslayr

Our "Redemption Season" starts March 20th.

We need to makes some tweaks to several of our current players' equipment.

EQUIPMENT CHANGES CHECKLIST...

Mar 9: Does Wiggins become our point forward? -@Hawk8086

Some have brought up Carmelo. After thinking about it, given all of the concerns with Tharpe, does Self try running everything through Wiggins? At least most of the time? He looks inside for the big men first. He breaks down the defense and then either takes it to the hole, or dishes off? Tharpe, or whomever brings the ball up the court, but maybe Wiggins does that part of the time. I know his ball handling skills could be better, but is he the other option we're looking for? Ride him as far as he can take us. Is this completely crazy? Desperate times make us all think of desperate measures.

Mar 9: Wiggins 41 points and 2 Assists and Other Take Aways - @jaybate

~The WVU game was such a bitter pill on so many levels. Let me count the ways.

~The WVU game made starkly clear that even a Herculean, come-from-behind, scoring performance of 41 points by Andrew Wiggins cannot carry this team to a victory over a 65th ranked KENPOM team. How can this be? How can such an obviously exceptional talent putting on such an awesome individual performance (he scored efficiently, rebounded his own misses well, made steals, and blocked shots) not succeed? How could Andrew putting his team on his back not yield a W against a good, but not exceptional team?

Mar 9: Big 12 Teams - @TheDrunkenJhawk

Now that the Big 12 Season is over, I will post my superlatives:

1st Team:

Marcus Smart (I don't want to put him here, but I have no choice)...

Mar 8: 7 losses: Advantage or disadvantage? -@bskeet

Some say you need some losses to expose the chinks in the armor and allow you to neutralize approaches that are likely to lead to defeat. This school of thought suggests that it is possible to grow stronger from failures if you learn from the mistakes.

Some say you don't need to lose -- in fact losing is a sign of weakness to opponents. That a loss brings confidence to the enemy and doubt to oneself.

Mar 8: Is This Team Finally Ready for 'Self-Ball'? - @drgnslayr

Is this team finally ready for 'Self-ball'?

In recent weeks we have seen moments of solid defense. We almost played 40 minutes of defense versus Texas. We can't compare this team to any other Bill Self team because the NCAA decided to make lock-down defense a thing of the past. But we can still play a decent M2M with plenty of weak side team help.

Mar 8: Tarik vs.Tech: One More for the Road... -@jaybate

Black gave a clinic in the process of post play against a weak team. If he can do it again against the muscle of WVU, then we mAy have the missing piece to take the team beyond talent to a well-oiled machine. Either way, Joel needs to watch the tape to add the craft of post play to his growing knowledge of the techniques of post play. As Sade once sang, Tarik was a "smooth operator."

Mar 8: "Forensics: Self Saying Wigs Should Be B12 POY" - @jaybate

Bill Self threw Gary Bedore an interestingly timed bone today.

Seemingly out of nowhere, to this reader, since Gary Bedore did not provide the circumstance in which the question was asked, Gary asked Bill who Bill thought should be B12 POY.

Some Suggestions for a Big 12 Near Eastern Division - @jaybate

WVU needs an eastern division, so it doesn't have to keep playing schools out west in the Big 12 Natural Resource Conference. Here are some suggested adds for a Near East Division for WVU.

Crimean A&M--Russian carriers not only secure the area at Svastopol, but games could be played on them thus allowing easy pre game air connections right to the flight decks.

Mar 7: 30 years - @JRyman

No not my life span. But Thirty years of KU being something great.

1983-84 Second in Big 8

84-85 Second...

Mar 7: Myles Turner: You are one Lucky Man! - @drgnslayr

Myles Turner, you are one lucky man! You came to the right Jayhawk game to experience.

Even though we captured our 10th straight Big 12 regular season championship, this has not been a typical Jayhawk season. We are one of the youngest teams in the nation, and with that youth comes the need to educate; to learn what college basketball is all about, and further, to learn what Jayhawk basketball is all about.

Mar 7: FLOOR BURN AWARD: KU vs TT - March 5 - @drgnslayr

Tarik Black! Tarik Black! Tarik Black!

I can't stress it enough. Tarik Black's performance last night not only won the FLOOR BURN AWARD for this game, he may have won it for the entire year! That was the most-inspiring play of any Jayhawk all year!

Mar 7: Welcome to the OAD Merry-go-round! - @jaybate

It was about as strong of a signal as potential recruits could get short of an official announcement.

Wiggins, Embiid and Selden appear to be goners.

So: it's unofficially official: Self and KU are on the OAD Merry Go Round.

Mar 6: Tarik Black: Future Coach - @jaybate

Let's see. Tarick Black is playing his 4th season of college basketball, it's senior night, he got his BA before he set foot on campus, and he is going to have a Master's before he leaves after this one season? He plays a musical instrument and is 6-9 and 260? And he has a kind of positive outlook that the maestro of positive, Bill Self, admires? And he has the insight at this young age to say of Self, "Here, I’m playing for a coach who has a national championship, who has coached many great teams, that’s had similar players and just knows what to do, when to do it, and the message that needs to be portrayed at the moment"?

Also see today's News Digest, March 23, and News Digest for Yesterday, March 22, as well as Daily Threads for Yesterday, March 22

Also see our Daily Threads, March 23, and the News Digest for Yesterday, March 22, as well as Daily Threads for Yesterday, March 22

NCAA Tournament 2014 Schedule: Times, Dates, Live Streaming and TV Info ↗

BRACKET: PDF ↗ | Check out the Leaders of the KU Buckets Group on ESPN ↗

! ↗

Family, basketball come together for Wiggins brothers during NCAA Tournament ↗

They grew up in a quiet suburb outside Toronto, a place where you had to work to care about the NCAA Tournament.

It’s not that all Canadians were averse to brackets or watching wall-to-wall basketball for a few days in March. Drama is drama, no matter what country you’re living in.

Newell: Foul-prone Tarik Black, Jamari Traylor to be tested in KU basketball's game against Stanford ↗

ST. LOUIS — Every day in practice, Kansas assistant coach Norm Roberts yells the same thing at senior forward Tarik Black: “Keep your hands high!”

It’s one of the most important lessons Black has learned during his 10 months at KU.

Dodd: Wiggins family made Sunflower State a good fit ↗

ST. LOUIS — They grew up in a quiet suburb outside Toronto, a place where you had to work to care about the NCAA Tournament.

It’s not that all Canadians were averse to brackets or watching wall-to-wall basketball for a few days in March. Drama is drama, no matter what country you’re living in

Ward: Wichita State-Kentucky showdown has just about everyone talking ↗

ST. LOUIS — The men, one in a yellow T-shirt, the other in a blue sweater, stood rambling about basketball over low-ball glasses filled with brown liquor and melting ice cubes.

With increasingly slurred words, the men tossed superlatives at Wichita State and Kentucky, calling the bartender over for another round as Friday night turned into Saturday morning in a small hotel bar a few blocks from Scottrade Center.

Rivals: Opposing view: KU vs. Stanford ↗

Stanford runs a triangle, and they're at their best when the inside and outside game work in tandem. Though he's prone to foul trouble, Stefan Nastic is a very efficient interior scorer. When he's effective in the post, Dwight Powell converts his drives and opportunities around the basket, and Chasson Randle and Anthony Brown are hitting from deep, Stanford's a difficult team to guard.

What is Andrew Wiggins ceiling? ↗

Is Wiggins still the NBA draft's top prospect?

Chad Ford: Andrew Wiggins began the college season as the consensus No. 1 pick in the 2014 draft among NBA scouts and general managers. After an up-and-down start to his college career at Kansas, it looks like he'll end the season exactly where he began -- No. 1 on our Big Board.

Please add stories here

Also see our Daily Threads, March 23, and the News Digest for Yesterday, March 22, as well as Daily Threads for Yesterday, March 22

@Wishawk that format only embeds YouTube videos

@icthawkfan316 plus Frankamp and Mason will gain tourney experience that will be invaluable to next year's run.

@wissoxfan83 Glad to see your Badgers rolling. I picked them to beat Zona in a few of my brackets.

@drgnslayr After the VCU loss, there are no more perfect brackets (on ESPN anyway - until that game, there were a few).

@Crimsonorblue22 He's out of balance.

He's trying to impose his will on the game, or conversely, after screwing up because he's trying to impose his will, then trying to marginalize his influence on the next moment. He needs to just be mentally present, all senses aware, and intuitively recognize the situations and what needs to be done. For all the things that we criticize of his recent performances, I'm sure he's knows all of the specific things he's done wrong and is trying to blacklist bad behaviors. He needs to switch to a nice clean, short whitelist of good behaviors and throw out all the junk he's got piled high in his head, whatever it is.

That being said, I'd imagine seeing Conner play so well is at least a comfort. Conner played significantly better than anyone has backing up Naadir at point in a while, and so that's got to give Naadir some confidence that simple sound basketball plays do in fact get the job done, and that it's also not all on him to do it.

Also see today's News Digest, March 22, and News Digest for Yesterday, March 21, as well as Daily Threads for Yesterday, March 21

Our Daily Threads for March 22:

Whew! - @vailhawk

Did we really win? My stomach is still turning!

Survive and advance!

ESPN/BATE: Headline/Counter-Headline--Day 1 - @jaybate

ESPN: L'ville dodges Manhattan scare Video | Schlabach BATE: Slick Rick gambles,wins with B game, but AmCon Soft

ESPN: North Dakota St. shocks OU in OT Video | Jennings BATE: Bi-brow b-game gamble bombs, 2 regrow unibrow

Awesome photos at KU Sports - @drgnslayr

I'm really primed after seeing these...

Things to Do to Get Ready for Round 1 - @jaybate

~Light incense and do anti-fouling chant for Tar.

~Throw three sunflower seeds over shoulder and appeal to the Tri-gods for Wayne to be hot from 3pt stripe.

~Hum "John Brown's Body" while asking the basketball god for Perry to have the fire of an abolitionist raiding party retaliating for Quantrill's torching of Lawrence...

Mar 21: Blog for tourney games - @RockChalkInTexas

Someone suggested so am starting this. What are your upset picks?

Mar 21: KU's Secret Weapon in Dome Ball - @jaybate

File this under seeing Gatorade bottles half full.

KU as I posted recently is not a very good trey ball shooting team.

KU is an average trey ball shooting team at best...

Mar 21: Difference Between "Really" and "Really, Really" - @drgnslayr

Part of what I really like about Coach Self is the way he talks. Really. I was born in Kansas, and Oklahoma is like "Kansas South" in many regards. Really. Like the way we express ourselves in really simplified and coded language. Really.

In an interview today, Coach Self was asked on the status of Joel Embiid and he gave a really Midwestern reply. Really. He really did parse his words in Midwestern code. Really. Because here in the Midwest, we really, really love the word "really" and we define it to our own needs.

Mar 20: Why Wiggins Won Me Over - @HighEliteMajor

As an unabashed anti-OAD guy, I have to admit that I like Andrew Wiggins. It didn’t start out well. Word was he was trying to negotiate out of coming to KU during the summer. Then there was the deluge of preseason publicity. It was easy to assume that Wiggins was buying into the hype.

Since then, though, it’s become easy to separate the OAD from the player. Wiggins, actually, is a breath of fresh air...

Mar 20: WSU v. Creighton: PO Ball on the Rise? - @jaybate

Is it a good year for private oligarchy (PO), or what? The Kochs and Buffets are highly seeded.

Even ancienne PO like Harvard and Stanford are in it!

Mar 20: This Fuels My Hate Fire - @nuleafjhawk

http://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/ncaab-the-dagger/seven-teams-that-can-win-the-ncaa-tournament--and-three-that-can-t-034218488.html ↗

Mar 20: To Play or Not To Play... that is the question... - drgnslayr

After our first game with Eastern Kentucky it will be time for Self to put on his fancy riverboat hat and long poker face and mumble these words, "I believe JoJo will be ready for our next game!"

He needs to say that from here on out, even if JoJo never plays another second of Jayhawk basketball this year.

Mar 19: Best Championship Team of the Past Decade - @DinarHawk

It seems that whenever this topic is discussed, most analysts consistently overlook the '08 team.

Florida back to back years, North Carolina in '09, and Kentucky in '12 are the ones that are mostly thought to be the best.

Mar 19: It's the most wonderful time of the year - @JRyman

It really is, the best time of the year. It's March madness, it's the pinnacle of college basketball.

Upsets, Cinderella's, fanatic finishes, 68 teams one goal.

I mean this is the time of year when a cocky Mislose team lost to a 15 seed. Duke too.

Mar 18: Keep the Doubters Coming! - @DinarHawk

I think it is good for this team that there are so many people in the media, including the folks on KWCH Sports Sunday, that are doubting whether or not this team can beat UNM without Embiid.

Mar 18: Opening Vegas odds... - @JayHawkFanToo

This how Vegas has the opening odds. I have listed only the teams with 50-1 odds or better. Look like Vegas likes KU....

Mar 17: KUBuckets Brackets on ESPN - @approxinfinity

I thought a KUBuckets bracket group on ESPN would be fun, so I'm going to start one once the brackets come out. I'll post the group info here when it's ready. Hope you guys are able to join!

Done! - Group is named KUBuckets. here's the link to it - http://games.espn.go.com/tournament-challenge-bracket/2014/en/group?groupID=370930 ↗

Mar 17: Self Loss To ISU Smart? - @jaybate

What would Bill Self have gained for KU's seeding by pulling out all the stops to beat ISU?

Before we even try to answer, let's consider what Self might have done differently against ISU in terms of pulling out all the stops?

He might have zone pressed intermittently during the first and second halves...

Mar 17: Did we draw the toughest bracket? - @konkeyDong

I gotta kind of think that the NCAA seeding committee doesn't want us to do anything this year. Florida, 'Cuse, VCU... Add in 'ville and that would complete my list of teams I think we match up the worst with.

Mar 17: Worst 3PT Team of Self Era? - @jaybate

As of the end of the B12 tournament, these are the 3pt shooting percentages of KU's perimeter players.

Wiggins 35%

Selden 34%

Tharpe 38%....

Mar 17: USA Today All-American lists - @REHawk

Wiggins 2nd team. Embiid and Smart Honorable Mention.

Mar 17: Very Good without Jo, Great with Jo - @jaybate

I feel juiced about the team, because...

• On no day of rest after an OT game, KU without its star center, with its star forward shooting 7-21 FG, and shooting 27% from trey ville, ALMOST BEAT A RANKED TEAM that played its best game of its season. This means KU is very good without Joel and ring grade with him.

• Perry Ellis had a great game with 30 and 8 against a ranked team proving he is out of his slump....

Mar 16: Our Best Chance To Win Six Games - @HighEliteMajor

How do we best attack the NCAA tournament? What is our best chance to win 6 games?

Coach Self relies upon strong man to man defense as his philosophical center point. This season, the team’s defensive inadequacies threaten that philosophy.

This team is now ranked 189th in points per game allowed. That has gone up since we lost Embiid, but even with Embiid, our points per game allowed ranking was significantly more than normal -- 51, 35, 69, 62, 106, and 21 in past years, with the #21 being the title season...

Mar 16: FLOOR BURN AWARD: KU vs ISU - March 14 - @drgnslayr

I feel bad for Perry Ellis, The Impaler. When a guy goes 11-12 from the field and hangs 30 points on the stat sheet, you expect him to be the player of the game on the winning team. Perry was the player of the game for both teams, unfortunately he didn't get to celebrate on the winning team.

Perry also snagged 7 rebounds and had an assist.

Mar 16: Rethinking SOS - @nuleafjhawk

For years I've harped ( to my wife, kids, pastor, cashier at Dillons ) that it is to our benefit to play the toughest teams we can all year long, here, there, anywhere.

I was wrong.

Mar 15: Why We Lost to Iowa State - @DinarHawk###

I have to admit, I agree somewhat with the Debbie downers over on KU Sports that not having Embiid hurt us in this game. Niang wouldn't have been able to do half the things he did with him in there.

That said, Black and Traylor did not play good post defense at all. Therefore, Niang did whatever he wanted.

There seemed to be an overall lack of energy, and Iowa State seemed faster to the ball than KU did.

Mar 15: Well, that wasn't good. - @Hawk8086

Offense was terrible in the 2nd half. Nobody could guard Niang. Wiggins wasn't hitting. Tharpe was invisible, for the most part. They were hot from 3. Did I miss anyting?

Mar 15: Who? Part Two - @JRyman

Who will step up tonight vs Iowa St?

Sure the easy pick is Andrew

I am going with Traylor, I think his quickness on D is going to help us out vs the spread floor of ISU.

Mar 14: Did Bill Self really call.... - @JRyman

At the post game on floor interview did Bill self call Holly Rowe "Babe". I swear he said, "thanks babe".

Maybe it was "thanks bye". But I'm not sure and that doesn't sound like a Self quote but either does babe.

Anyone?

Mar 14: They All Stepped Up.. - @jaybate

They ran the stuff and everyone stayed plugged in. And 14 TOs against that kind of pressure was solid.

Wigs walked the tight rope between over impact and under impact. He stayed plugged in beginning to end. He had 30 and 3 assists and was on AWACs radar screens for three or four get-ups. Still think he can and will get 30 with 5 assists, and when he does it, KU will super nova on someone. Regardless, his defense and boarding was what stood out the most to me. He just guarded the best he has guarded all season and didn't just grab boards with hops, but he got in and mixed it up on the glass on lots of plays. Still wish to heck he would look for two more dishes to anyone and two more post feeds for Tar, but he was plugged in beginning to end. But man did I love that defense he played, especially early in the game. His 5 TOs were excusable this game considering how well they were guarding him and how much we were asking him to work in traffic. 5 is high, but if we ask him to shoot 17 in traffic AND handle against that much pressure, and rebound, its probably the best we can hope for. And look at those 3 steals and a block!!!! Sweet.

Mar 14: Adjustments I'd like to see Self make for OSU and going forward without Embiid - @konkeyDong

Adjustments I'd like to see Self make for OSU and going forward without Embiid:

The question that's on everyone's mind, or at least should be, will be answered around 4pm this afternoon. Was the WVU game last Saturday an aberration, or was it the true KU-sans-Embiid exposed? My take is neither, but that doesn’t mean changes won’t have to be made. As @HighEliteMajor and others have pointed out, Self, as talented as he is, is about as flexible as a 2-ton i-beam.

Mar 14: Who? - @drgnslayr###

In your opinion... who will step up?

Mar 14: Today's over/under's - @JRyman

Margin if victory by KU. 7.5

Points by Andrew Wiggins. 21.5...

Mar 13: Making a run without JoJo - @icthawkfan316

So by now the disappointing news has sunk in for most of us regarding Embiid's back injury. While we may speculate as to if/when he will be back, it is in the best interest of the team to prepare as if he will not be back. After all, they've had a whole season's worth of preparation playing with him, so if he is available at some point, re-inserting him in the line-up will not necessitate any adjustments. So make plans to play without him.

Mar 13: Revisit last game of last season-EJ was hit first. - @JayhawkRock78

I was at the KU Michigan game last year, and watched in agony as we let it slip through our hands. By the time I got home, the EJ -McGary hit was everywhere. Since I DVR'd the game, I had a hint something preceded it, and boy it is there on tape. I am not defending EJ's low blow, but 12 months ago I wasn't posting.

Mar 13: KU gets OSU tomorrow... - @JayHawkFanToo

OSU dominated Texas Tech and won going away. Forte was hitting 3 pointers from 5 feet behind the line; hopefully he has scored his share and will go on a drought tomorrow. Murphy played only 14 minutes but the rest of the starter played over 30 minutes each, but there were minutes that did not require a lot of effort, nothing that would affect tomorrow's game .

Mar 13: Andrew and the Miracles... - @drgnslayr

For some of us that go back a ways in Kansas basketball, we've been in this situation before.

We lost a very special player in Archie Marshall.

We were well on our way to having a disappointing season with a big pile of losses and expectations dashed.

Mar 13: Kietzman and the KU Conspiracy Theory - @wrwlumpy

Yesterday WHB brought back a Spinal Specialist for a second time to delve into Coach Self knowing more than he really was saying about Joel and went down the road to accusing him of being a coach who plays kids when they are hurt. This brought back memories of his 3 day rant wanting to portray Roy Williams as a person who disrespects the American Flag and all of the brave men and women who have fought and given their lives for this country - http://cjonline.com/stories/021502/spo_kuflag.shtm ↗

Mar 12: Making Up for Joel - @jaybate

So we are probably 1 and 1 in the B12 tourney.

The B12 Tourney is meaningless, except as 1 or 2 practice games for learning how to beat muscle without Joel, and more if he doesn't come back.

Pruning back the lion killer luv, Joel gave 12/10 plus rim protection.

Mar 11: Have Faith - @HighEliteMajor

Faith.

We hear the word every day. What does it mean?

Two definitions to choose from:

1) Confidence or trust in a person or thing.

Or

2) A belief that is not based in proof.

Mar 11: jaybate Basketball Intelligence Estimate (jBIE): Joel's Back Injury - @jaybate

SigInt (the brief camera shot of treating Joel's injury court side) tells jBIE's basketball spies a whole lot about Joel's back injury.

Observed treatment: Joel laid on his back and a team official treating Joel pulled his right leg over his left and appeared to stretch the lower back in a spiral/twisting motion.

Mar 10: Random Thoughts: Greg Marshall's Future & KU Defense - @MoonwalkMafia

Following VCU's impressive (and heartbreaking) run to the Final Four in 2011, many college basketball pundits questioned whether Shaka Smart would be leaving the mid-major ranks and jumping into the deep end with the big boys. Smart ultimately turned down offers from bigger programs to stay with what he had built.

Mar 10: Equipment Changes for Redemption Season - @drgnslayr

Our "Redemption Season" starts March 20th.

We need to makes some tweaks to several of our current players' equipment.

EQUIPMENT CHANGES CHECKLIST...

Mar 9: Does Wiggins become our point forward? -@Hawk8086

Some have brought up Carmelo. After thinking about it, given all of the concerns with Tharpe, does Self try running everything through Wiggins? At least most of the time? He looks inside for the big men first. He breaks down the defense and then either takes it to the hole, or dishes off? Tharpe, or whomever brings the ball up the court, but maybe Wiggins does that part of the time. I know his ball handling skills could be better, but is he the other option we're looking for? Ride him as far as he can take us. Is this completely crazy? Desperate times make us all think of desperate measures.

Mar 9: Wiggins 41 points and 2 Assists and Other Take Aways - @jaybate

~The WVU game was such a bitter pill on so many levels. Let me count the ways.

~The WVU game made starkly clear that even a Herculean, come-from-behind, scoring performance of 41 points by Andrew Wiggins cannot carry this team to a victory over a 65th ranked KENPOM team. How can this be? How can such an obviously exceptional talent putting on such an awesome individual performance (he scored efficiently, rebounded his own misses well, made steals, and blocked shots) not succeed? How could Andrew putting his team on his back not yield a W against a good, but not exceptional team?

Mar 9: Big 12 Teams - @TheDrunkenJhawk

Now that the Big 12 Season is over, I will post my superlatives:

1st Team:

Marcus Smart (I don't want to put him here, but I have no choice)...

Mar 8: 7 losses: Advantage or disadvantage? -@bskeet

Some say you need some losses to expose the chinks in the armor and allow you to neutralize approaches that are likely to lead to defeat. This school of thought suggests that it is possible to grow stronger from failures if you learn from the mistakes.

Some say you don't need to lose -- in fact losing is a sign of weakness to opponents. That a loss brings confidence to the enemy and doubt to oneself.

Mar 8: Is This Team Finally Ready for 'Self-Ball'? - @drgnslayr

Is this team finally ready for 'Self-ball'?

In recent weeks we have seen moments of solid defense. We almost played 40 minutes of defense versus Texas. We can't compare this team to any other Bill Self team because the NCAA decided to make lock-down defense a thing of the past. But we can still play a decent M2M with plenty of weak side team help.

Mar 8: Tarik vs.Tech: One More for the Road... -@jaybate

Black gave a clinic in the process of post play against a weak team. If he can do it again against the muscle of WVU, then we mAy have the missing piece to take the team beyond talent to a well-oiled machine. Either way, Joel needs to watch the tape to add the craft of post play to his growing knowledge of the techniques of post play. As Sade once sang, Tarik was a "smooth operator."

Mar 8: "Forensics: Self Saying Wigs Should Be B12 POY" - @jaybate

Bill Self threw Gary Bedore an interestingly timed bone today.

Seemingly out of nowhere, to this reader, since Gary Bedore did not provide the circumstance in which the question was asked, Gary asked Bill who Bill thought should be B12 POY.

Some Suggestions for a Big 12 Near Eastern Division - @jaybate

WVU needs an eastern division, so it doesn't have to keep playing schools out west in the Big 12 Natural Resource Conference. Here are some suggested adds for a Near East Division for WVU.

Crimean A&M--Russian carriers not only secure the area at Svastopol, but games could be played on them thus allowing easy pre game air connections right to the flight decks.

Mar 7: 30 years - @JRyman

No not my life span. But Thirty years of KU being something great.

1983-84 Second in Big 8

84-85 Second...

Mar 7: Myles Turner: You are one Lucky Man! - @drgnslayr

Myles Turner, you are one lucky man! You came to the right Jayhawk game to experience.

Even though we captured our 10th straight Big 12 regular season championship, this has not been a typical Jayhawk season. We are one of the youngest teams in the nation, and with that youth comes the need to educate; to learn what college basketball is all about, and further, to learn what Jayhawk basketball is all about.

Mar 7: FLOOR BURN AWARD: KU vs TT - March 5 - @drgnslayr

Tarik Black! Tarik Black! Tarik Black!

I can't stress it enough. Tarik Black's performance last night not only won the FLOOR BURN AWARD for this game, he may have won it for the entire year! That was the most-inspiring play of any Jayhawk all year!

Mar 7: Welcome to the OAD Merry-go-round! - @jaybate

It was about as strong of a signal as potential recruits could get short of an official announcement.

Wiggins, Embiid and Selden appear to be goners.

So: it's unofficially official: Self and KU are on the OAD Merry Go Round.

Mar 6: Tarik Black: Future Coach - @jaybate

Let's see. Tarick Black is playing his 4th season of college basketball, it's senior night, he got his BA before he set foot on campus, and he is going to have a Master's before he leaves after this one season? He plays a musical instrument and is 6-9 and 260? And he has a kind of positive outlook that the maestro of positive, Bill Self, admires? And he has the insight at this young age to say of Self, "Here, I’m playing for a coach who has a national championship, who has coached many great teams, that’s had similar players and just knows what to do, when to do it, and the message that needs to be portrayed at the moment"?

Also see today's News Digest, March 22, and News Digest for Yesterday, March 21, as well as Daily Threads for Yesterday, March 21

Also see our Daily Threads, March 22, and the News Digest for Yesterday, March 21, as well as Daily Threads for Yesterday, March 21

NCAA Tournament 2014 Schedule: Times, Dates, Live Streaming and TV Info ↗

BRACKET: PDF ↗ | Check out the Leaders of the KU Buckets Group on ESPN ↗

! ↗

Bedore: Unleashed energy: Sub Jamari Traylor’s double-double pushes Kansas to next round ↗

St. Louis — Kansas University senior Tarik Black was the first Jayhawk to greet his big buddy, sophomore Jamari Traylor, after the final horn sounded in KU’s 80-69 victory over Eastern Kentucky on Friday in an NCAA Tournament opener in Scottrade Center.

“I just told him, ‘Thank you for the win. Thank you for extending my senior season.’ That’s what I told him, because he was a major reason I have another game to play and my season is not over, my college career is not over,” Black said after a game in which the 6-foot-8 Traylor scored a career high 17 points and grabbed a career-best 14 rebounds in 22 minutes.

Newell: KU basketball notebook: Teammates wowed by Andrew Wiggins' dunk; KU makes no 3s ↗

ST. LOUIS — Kansas guard Andrew Wiggins rose up to receive an alley-oop pass from Frank Mason with 6:09 left in the first half, catching it before extending his arms as far as he could toward the rim for a highlight-reel dunk.

The slam left his teammates amazed afterward.

Keegan: Column: Mistake-free play of Conner Frankamp just what KU needed ↗

St. Louis — Wichita State fans wearing gold didn’t have to check their programs to learn the identity of the little guy wearing the white No. 23 jersey entering the game off the bench.

Conner Frankamp scored more points in high school than anybody in the history of basketball-rich Wichita. Shockers fans didn’t forget that and cheered him on Friday in the Scottrade Center while they waited for their team to take the floor in the next game.

** Andrew Wiggins moves to top of KU freshman scoring list ↗**

Andrew Wiggins is the highest scoring freshman in Kansas University basketball history. Wiggins, a 6-8, 200-pounder from Ontario, Canada, totaled 19 points off 7-of-13 shooting in KU’s 80-69 NCAA Tournament opening victory over Eastern Kentucky on Friday in Scottrade Center.

Dodd: Kansas beats Eastern Kentucky 80-69 in NCAA opener ↗

ST. LOUIS — Inside the Scottrade Center, the temperature was rising. The upset watch was turned up to 10. Tensions were rising.

For the second straight season, Kansas was in a first-round dogfight with a low-seeded directional school from the state of Kentucky. Eastern Kentucky kept splashing in three-pointers, the sort of recipe that can lead to all-time upsets in the madness of March.

ESPN Box Score ↗

CJOnline Live Blog ↗

Also see our Daily Threads, March 22, and the News Digest for Yesterday, March 21, as well as Daily Threads for Yesterday, March 21

@drgnslayr you could download tor browser or download a browser plugin to proxy your ip and try it..

Glad Frankamp didn't redshirt! What a cool performance! Lyle who?

@VailHawk Did you...

• Eviscerate @ESPN'sTourneyChallengeSite?

EDIT: nm it's back up! It was down.

Also see today's News Digest, March 21, and News Digest for Yesterday, March 20, as well as Daily Threads for Yesterday, March 20

Our Daily Threads for March 21:

Blog for tourney games - @RockChalkInTexas

Someone suggested so am starting this. What are your upset picks?

KU's Secret Weapon in Dome Ball - @jaybate

File this under seeing Gatorade bottles half full.

KU as I posted recently is not a very good trey ball shooting team.

KU is an average trey ball shooting team at best...

Difference Between "Really" and "Really, Really" - @drgnslayr

Part of what I really like about Coach Self is the way he talks. Really. I was born in Kansas, and Oklahoma is like "Kansas South" in many regards. Really. Like the way we express ourselves in really simplified and coded language. Really.

In an interview today, Coach Self was asked on the status of Joel Embiid and he gave a really Midwestern reply. Really. He really did parse his words in Midwestern code. Really. Because here in the Midwest, we really, really love the word "really" and we define it to our own needs.

Mar 20: Why Wiggins Won Me Over - @HighEliteMajor

As an unabashed anti-OAD guy, I have to admit that I like Andrew Wiggins. It didn’t start out well. Word was he was trying to negotiate out of coming to KU during the summer. Then there was the deluge of preseason publicity. It was easy to assume that Wiggins was buying into the hype.

Since then, though, it’s become easy to separate the OAD from the player. Wiggins, actually, is a breath of fresh air...

Mar 20: WSU v. Creighton: PO Ball on the Rise? - @jaybate

Is it a good year for private oligarchy (PO), or what? The Kochs and Buffets are highly seeded.

Even ancienne PO like Harvard and Stanford are in it!

Mar 20: This Fuels My Hate Fire - @nuleafjhawk

http://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/ncaab-the-dagger/seven-teams-that-can-win-the-ncaa-tournament--and-three-that-can-t-034218488.html ↗

Mar 20: To Play or Not To Play... that is the question... - drgnslayr

After our first game with Eastern Kentucky it will be time for Self to put on his fancy riverboat hat and long poker face and mumble these words, "I believe JoJo will be ready for our next game!"

He needs to say that from here on out, even if JoJo never plays another second of Jayhawk basketball this year.

Mar 19: Best Championship Team of the Past Decade - @DinarHawk

It seems that whenever this topic is discussed, most analysts consistently overlook the '08 team.

Florida back to back years, North Carolina in '09, and Kentucky in '12 are the ones that are mostly thought to be the best.

Mar 19: It's the most wonderful time of the year - @JRyman

It really is, the best time of the year. It's March madness, it's the pinnacle of college basketball.

Upsets, Cinderella's, fanatic finishes, 68 teams one goal.

I mean this is the time of year when a cocky Mislose team lost to a 15 seed. Duke too.

Mar 18: Keep the Doubters Coming! - @DinarHawk

I think it is good for this team that there are so many people in the media, including the folks on KWCH Sports Sunday, that are doubting whether or not this team can beat UNM without Embiid.

Mar 18: Opening Vegas odds... - @JayHawkFanToo

This how Vegas has the opening odds. I have listed only the teams with 50-1 odds or better. Look like Vegas likes KU....

Mar 17: KUBuckets Brackets on ESPN - @approxinfinity

I thought a KUBuckets bracket group on ESPN would be fun, so I'm going to start one once the brackets come out. I'll post the group info here when it's ready. Hope you guys are able to join!

Done! - Group is named KUBuckets. here's the link to it - http://games.espn.go.com/tournament-challenge-bracket/2014/en/group?groupID=370930 ↗

Mar 17: Self Loss To ISU Smart? - @jaybate

What would Bill Self have gained for KU's seeding by pulling out all the stops to beat ISU?

Before we even try to answer, let's consider what Self might have done differently against ISU in terms of pulling out all the stops?

He might have zone pressed intermittently during the first and second halves...

Mar 17: Did we draw the toughest bracket? - @konkeyDong

I gotta kind of think that the NCAA seeding committee doesn't want us to do anything this year. Florida, 'Cuse, VCU... Add in 'ville and that would complete my list of teams I think we match up the worst with.

Mar 17: Worst 3PT Team of Self Era? - @jaybate

As of the end of the B12 tournament, these are the 3pt shooting percentages of KU's perimeter players.

Wiggins 35%

Selden 34%

Tharpe 38%....

Mar 17: USA Today All-American lists - @REHawk

Wiggins 2nd team. Embiid and Smart Honorable Mention.

Mar 17: Very Good without Jo, Great with Jo - @jaybate

I feel juiced about the team, because...

• On no day of rest after an OT game, KU without its star center, with its star forward shooting 7-21 FG, and shooting 27% from trey ville, ALMOST BEAT A RANKED TEAM that played its best game of its season. This means KU is very good without Joel and ring grade with him.

• Perry Ellis had a great game with 30 and 8 against a ranked team proving he is out of his slump....

Mar 16: Our Best Chance To Win Six Games - @HighEliteMajor

How do we best attack the NCAA tournament? What is our best chance to win 6 games?

Coach Self relies upon strong man to man defense as his philosophical center point. This season, the team’s defensive inadequacies threaten that philosophy.

This team is now ranked 189th in points per game allowed. That has gone up since we lost Embiid, but even with Embiid, our points per game allowed ranking was significantly more than normal -- 51, 35, 69, 62, 106, and 21 in past years, with the #21 being the title season...

Mar 16: FLOOR BURN AWARD: KU vs ISU - March 14 - @drgnslayr

I feel bad for Perry Ellis, The Impaler. When a guy goes 11-12 from the field and hangs 30 points on the stat sheet, you expect him to be the player of the game on the winning team. Perry was the player of the game for both teams, unfortunately he didn't get to celebrate on the winning team.

Perry also snagged 7 rebounds and had an assist.

Mar 16: Rethinking SOS - @nuleafjhawk

For years I've harped ( to my wife, kids, pastor, cashier at Dillons ) that it is to our benefit to play the toughest teams we can all year long, here, there, anywhere.

I was wrong.

Mar 15: Why We Lost to Iowa State - @DinarHawk###

I have to admit, I agree somewhat with the Debbie downers over on KU Sports that not having Embiid hurt us in this game. Niang wouldn't have been able to do half the things he did with him in there.

That said, Black and Traylor did not play good post defense at all. Therefore, Niang did whatever he wanted.

There seemed to be an overall lack of energy, and Iowa State seemed faster to the ball than KU did.

Mar 15: Well, that wasn't good. - @Hawk8086

Offense was terrible in the 2nd half. Nobody could guard Niang. Wiggins wasn't hitting. Tharpe was invisible, for the most part. They were hot from 3. Did I miss anyting?

Mar 15: Who? Part Two - @JRyman

Who will step up tonight vs Iowa St?

Sure the easy pick is Andrew

I am going with Traylor, I think his quickness on D is going to help us out vs the spread floor of ISU.

Mar 14: Did Bill Self really call.... - @JRyman

At the post game on floor interview did Bill self call Holly Rowe "Babe". I swear he said, "thanks babe".

Maybe it was "thanks bye". But I'm not sure and that doesn't sound like a Self quote but either does babe.

Anyone?

Mar 14: They All Stepped Up.. - @jaybate

They ran the stuff and everyone stayed plugged in. And 14 TOs against that kind of pressure was solid.

Wigs walked the tight rope between over impact and under impact. He stayed plugged in beginning to end. He had 30 and 3 assists and was on AWACs radar screens for three or four get-ups. Still think he can and will get 30 with 5 assists, and when he does it, KU will super nova on someone. Regardless, his defense and boarding was what stood out the most to me. He just guarded the best he has guarded all season and didn't just grab boards with hops, but he got in and mixed it up on the glass on lots of plays. Still wish to heck he would look for two more dishes to anyone and two more post feeds for Tar, but he was plugged in beginning to end. But man did I love that defense he played, especially early in the game. His 5 TOs were excusable this game considering how well they were guarding him and how much we were asking him to work in traffic. 5 is high, but if we ask him to shoot 17 in traffic AND handle against that much pressure, and rebound, its probably the best we can hope for. And look at those 3 steals and a block!!!! Sweet.

Mar 14: Adjustments I'd like to see Self make for OSU and going forward without Embiid - @konkeyDong

Adjustments I'd like to see Self make for OSU and going forward without Embiid:

The question that's on everyone's mind, or at least should be, will be answered around 4pm this afternoon. Was the WVU game last Saturday an aberration, or was it the true KU-sans-Embiid exposed? My take is neither, but that doesn’t mean changes won’t have to be made. As @HighEliteMajor and others have pointed out, Self, as talented as he is, is about as flexible as a 2-ton i-beam.

Mar 14: Who? - @drgnslayr###

In your opinion... who will step up?

Mar 14: Today's over/under's - @JRyman

Margin if victory by KU. 7.5

Points by Andrew Wiggins. 21.5...

Mar 13: Making a run without JoJo - @icthawkfan316

So by now the disappointing news has sunk in for most of us regarding Embiid's back injury. While we may speculate as to if/when he will be back, it is in the best interest of the team to prepare as if he will not be back. After all, they've had a whole season's worth of preparation playing with him, so if he is available at some point, re-inserting him in the line-up will not necessitate any adjustments. So make plans to play without him.

Mar 13: Revisit last game of last season-EJ was hit first. - @JayhawkRock78

I was at the KU Michigan game last year, and watched in agony as we let it slip through our hands. By the time I got home, the EJ -McGary hit was everywhere. Since I DVR'd the game, I had a hint something preceded it, and boy it is there on tape. I am not defending EJ's low blow, but 12 months ago I wasn't posting.

Mar 13: KU gets OSU tomorrow... - @JayHawkFanToo

OSU dominated Texas Tech and won going away. Forte was hitting 3 pointers from 5 feet behind the line; hopefully he has scored his share and will go on a drought tomorrow. Murphy played only 14 minutes but the rest of the starter played over 30 minutes each, but there were minutes that did not require a lot of effort, nothing that would affect tomorrow's game .

Mar 13: Andrew and the Miracles... - @drgnslayr

For some of us that go back a ways in Kansas basketball, we've been in this situation before.

We lost a very special player in Archie Marshall.

We were well on our way to having a disappointing season with a big pile of losses and expectations dashed.

Mar 13: Kietzman and the KU Conspiracy Theory - @wrwlumpy

Yesterday WHB brought back a Spinal Specialist for a second time to delve into Coach Self knowing more than he really was saying about Joel and went down the road to accusing him of being a coach who plays kids when they are hurt. This brought back memories of his 3 day rant wanting to portray Roy Williams as a person who disrespects the American Flag and all of the brave men and women who have fought and given their lives for this country - http://cjonline.com/stories/021502/spo_kuflag.shtm ↗

Mar 12: Making Up for Joel - @jaybate

So we are probably 1 and 1 in the B12 tourney.

The B12 Tourney is meaningless, except as 1 or 2 practice games for learning how to beat muscle without Joel, and more if he doesn't come back.

Pruning back the lion killer luv, Joel gave 12/10 plus rim protection.

Mar 11: Have Faith - @HighEliteMajor

Faith.

We hear the word every day. What does it mean?

Two definitions to choose from:

1) Confidence or trust in a person or thing.

Or

2) A belief that is not based in proof.

Mar 11: jaybate Basketball Intelligence Estimate (jBIE): Joel's Back Injury - @jaybate

SigInt (the brief camera shot of treating Joel's injury court side) tells jBIE's basketball spies a whole lot about Joel's back injury.

Observed treatment: Joel laid on his back and a team official treating Joel pulled his right leg over his left and appeared to stretch the lower back in a spiral/twisting motion.

Mar 10: Random Thoughts: Greg Marshall's Future & KU Defense - @MoonwalkMafia

Following VCU's impressive (and heartbreaking) run to the Final Four in 2011, many college basketball pundits questioned whether Shaka Smart would be leaving the mid-major ranks and jumping into the deep end with the big boys. Smart ultimately turned down offers from bigger programs to stay with what he had built.

Mar 10: Equipment Changes for Redemption Season - @drgnslayr

Our "Redemption Season" starts March 20th.

We need to makes some tweaks to several of our current players' equipment.

EQUIPMENT CHANGES CHECKLIST...

Mar 9: Does Wiggins become our point forward? -@Hawk8086

Some have brought up Carmelo. After thinking about it, given all of the concerns with Tharpe, does Self try running everything through Wiggins? At least most of the time? He looks inside for the big men first. He breaks down the defense and then either takes it to the hole, or dishes off? Tharpe, or whomever brings the ball up the court, but maybe Wiggins does that part of the time. I know his ball handling skills could be better, but is he the other option we're looking for? Ride him as far as he can take us. Is this completely crazy? Desperate times make us all think of desperate measures.

Mar 9: Wiggins 41 points and 2 Assists and Other Take Aways - @jaybate

~The WVU game was such a bitter pill on so many levels. Let me count the ways.

~The WVU game made starkly clear that even a Herculean, come-from-behind, scoring performance of 41 points by Andrew Wiggins cannot carry this team to a victory over a 65th ranked KENPOM team. How can this be? How can such an obviously exceptional talent putting on such an awesome individual performance (he scored efficiently, rebounded his own misses well, made steals, and blocked shots) not succeed? How could Andrew putting his team on his back not yield a W against a good, but not exceptional team?

Mar 9: Big 12 Teams - @TheDrunkenJhawk

Now that the Big 12 Season is over, I will post my superlatives:

1st Team:

Marcus Smart (I don't want to put him here, but I have no choice)...

Mar 8: 7 losses: Advantage or disadvantage? -@bskeet

Some say you need some losses to expose the chinks in the armor and allow you to neutralize approaches that are likely to lead to defeat. This school of thought suggests that it is possible to grow stronger from failures if you learn from the mistakes.

Some say you don't need to lose -- in fact losing is a sign of weakness to opponents. That a loss brings confidence to the enemy and doubt to oneself.

Mar 8: Is This Team Finally Ready for 'Self-Ball'? - @drgnslayr

Is this team finally ready for 'Self-ball'?

In recent weeks we have seen moments of solid defense. We almost played 40 minutes of defense versus Texas. We can't compare this team to any other Bill Self team because the NCAA decided to make lock-down defense a thing of the past. But we can still play a decent M2M with plenty of weak side team help.

Mar 8: Tarik vs.Tech: One More for the Road... -@jaybate

Black gave a clinic in the process of post play against a weak team. If he can do it again against the muscle of WVU, then we mAy have the missing piece to take the team beyond talent to a well-oiled machine. Either way, Joel needs to watch the tape to add the craft of post play to his growing knowledge of the techniques of post play. As Sade once sang, Tarik was a "smooth operator."

Mar 8: "Forensics: Self Saying Wigs Should Be B12 POY" - @jaybate

Bill Self threw Gary Bedore an interestingly timed bone today.

Seemingly out of nowhere, to this reader, since Gary Bedore did not provide the circumstance in which the question was asked, Gary asked Bill who Bill thought should be B12 POY.

Some Suggestions for a Big 12 Near Eastern Division - @jaybate

WVU needs an eastern division, so it doesn't have to keep playing schools out west in the Big 12 Natural Resource Conference. Here are some suggested adds for a Near East Division for WVU.

Crimean A&M--Russian carriers not only secure the area at Svastopol, but games could be played on them thus allowing easy pre game air connections right to the flight decks.

Mar 7: 30 years - @JRyman

No not my life span. But Thirty years of KU being something great.

1983-84 Second in Big 8

84-85 Second...

Mar 7: Myles Turner: You are one Lucky Man! - @drgnslayr

Myles Turner, you are one lucky man! You came to the right Jayhawk game to experience.

Even though we captured our 10th straight Big 12 regular season championship, this has not been a typical Jayhawk season. We are one of the youngest teams in the nation, and with that youth comes the need to educate; to learn what college basketball is all about, and further, to learn what Jayhawk basketball is all about.

Mar 7: FLOOR BURN AWARD: KU vs TT - March 5 - @drgnslayr

Tarik Black! Tarik Black! Tarik Black!

I can't stress it enough. Tarik Black's performance last night not only won the FLOOR BURN AWARD for this game, he may have won it for the entire year! That was the most-inspiring play of any Jayhawk all year!

Mar 7: Welcome to the OAD Merry-go-round! - @jaybate

It was about as strong of a signal as potential recruits could get short of an official announcement.

Wiggins, Embiid and Selden appear to be goners.

So: it's unofficially official: Self and KU are on the OAD Merry Go Round.

Mar 6: Tarik Black: Future Coach - @jaybate

Let's see. Tarick Black is playing his 4th season of college basketball, it's senior night, he got his BA before he set foot on campus, and he is going to have a Master's before he leaves after this one season? He plays a musical instrument and is 6-9 and 260? And he has a kind of positive outlook that the maestro of positive, Bill Self, admires? And he has the insight at this young age to say of Self, "Here, I’m playing for a coach who has a national championship, who has coached many great teams, that’s had similar players and just knows what to do, when to do it, and the message that needs to be portrayed at the moment"?

Also see today's News Digest, March 21, and News Digest for Yesterday, March 20, as well as Daily Threads for Yesterday, March 20

Also see our Daily Threads, March 21, and the News Digest for Yesterday, March 20, as well as Daily Threads for Yesterday, March 20

NCAA Tournament 2014 Schedule: Times, Dates, Live Streaming and TV Info ↗

BRACKET: PDF ↗ | Join KU Buckets Group on ESPN ↗

KU 2014 Tournament Guide ↗

Dodd: KU's Tharpe heeds brother's advice: Shoot the ball to the ceiling ↗

ST. LOUIS — He’d say it all the time. When the shots weren’t falling, when the legs looked heavy, when his little brother needed a reminder.

Tishaun Jenkins would pull Naadir Tharpe, his youngest brother, to the side and say the same six words.

Shoot the ball to the ceiling.

Newell: KU basketball makes the most of limited time to prepare for unfamiliar opponent in Eastern Kentucky University ↗

Perry Ellis knows a lot about Marcus Lewis … even if he can’t tell you his name.

To Ellis, Lewis is simply No. 12, otherwise known as the Eastern Kentucky player he will be matched up against defensively when the Jayhawks open the NCAA Tournament against the 15th-seeded Colonels at 3:10 p.m. Friday.

Dodd: South Regional notes: Wiggins brothers get to catch up ↗

ST. LOUIS — There was plenty of familiarity in the Scottrade Center locker rooms Thursday. Between the Kansas and Wichita State practices, the Wiggins brothers met in the Shockers’ locker room.

Although their teams will play in the same arena today, the only way the Wiggins brothers could face off in the NCAA Tournament is if both advance to the national championship game.

Kansas coach Bill Self said that’s probably a break for their parents, Mitchell and Marita.

Dodd: Battle for Kansas between KU, WSU, KSU is more like a hoops Cold War ↗

WICHITA — In a back corner of The Beacon, a weathered brick diner on Douglas Avenue, they drink dark, black coffee and chatter about the local undefeated basketball team.

This is the kind of greasy spoon where they serve omelettes with one-word descriptions and the breakfast menu is available all day. Today’s debate is about old as the restaurant’s recipe for country fried potatoes.

Local sports briefs: Brownback declares Kansas 'cradle of basketball' ↗

BROWNBACK DECLARES KANSAS ‘CRADLE OF BASKETBALL’: Gov. Sam Brownback has issued a proclamation describing Kansas as the “Cradle of Basketball” and praising the three teams from the state playing in the NCAA Tournament.

Biancardi: Who was hurt the most in missing JaQuan Lyle ↗

When looking at the final four schools involved for JaQuan Lyle -- Oregon, Memphis, Oklahoma State and Kansas -- the one that lost out the most was Oklahoma State, as I believe it needed him more than the other schools.

Smith: Live from St. Louis: Media day at Scottrade Center ↗

NCAA round of 64 preview: (2) Kansas vs. (15) Eastern Kentucky ↗

BOTTOM LINE: After playing the nation’s toughest schedule, the Jayhawks finished 12-8 against NCAA Tournament teams during the season. If they take care of the ball, Kansas should breeze.

Please add stories here

Also see our Daily Threads, March 21, and the News Digest for Yesterday, March 20, as well as Daily Threads for Yesterday, March 20

bears repeating... @bskeet, you da man!

Also see today's News Digest, March 20, and News Digest for Yesterday, March 19, as well as Daily Threads for Yesterday, March 19

Our Daily Threads for March 20:

Why Wiggins Won Me Over - @HighEliteMajor

As an unabashed anti-OAD guy, I have to admit that I like Andrew Wiggins. It didn’t start out well. Word was he was trying to negotiate out of coming to KU during the summer. Then there was the deluge of preseason publicity. It was easy to assume that Wiggins was buying into the hype.

Since then, though, it’s become easy to separate the OAD from the player. Wiggins, actually, is a breath of fresh air...

WSU v. Creighton: PO Ball on the Rise? - @jaybate

Is it a good year for private oligarchy (PO), or what? The Kochs and Buffets are highly seeded.

Even ancienne PO like Harvard and Stanford are in it!

This Fuels My Hate Fire - @nuleafjhawk

http://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/ncaab-the-dagger/seven-teams-that-can-win-the-ncaa-tournament--and-three-that-can-t-034218488.html ↗

To Play or Not To Play... that is the question... - drgnslayr

After our first game with Eastern Kentucky it will be time for Self to put on his fancy riverboat hat and long poker face and mumble these words, "I believe JoJo will be ready for our next game!"

He needs to say that from here on out, even if JoJo never plays another second of Jayhawk basketball this year.

Mar 19: Best Championship Team of the Past Decade - @DinarHawk

It seems that whenever this topic is discussed, most analysts consistently overlook the '08 team.

Florida back to back years, North Carolina in '09, and Kentucky in '12 are the ones that are mostly thought to be the best.

Mar 19: It's the most wonderful time of the year - @JRyman

It really is, the best time of the year. It's March madness, it's the pinnacle of college basketball.

Upsets, Cinderella's, fanatic finishes, 68 teams one goal.

I mean this is the time of year when a cocky Mislose team lost to a 15 seed. Duke too.

Mar 18: Keep the Doubters Coming! - @DinarHawk

I think it is good for this team that there are so many people in the media, including the folks on KWCH Sports Sunday, that are doubting whether or not this team can beat UNM without Embiid.

Mar 18: Opening Vegas odds... - @JayHawkFanToo

This how Vegas has the opening odds. I have listed only the teams with 50-1 odds or better. Look like Vegas likes KU....

Mar 17: KUBuckets Brackets on ESPN - @approxinfinity

I thought a KUBuckets bracket group on ESPN would be fun, so I'm going to start one once the brackets come out. I'll post the group info here when it's ready. Hope you guys are able to join!

Done! - Group is named KUBuckets. here's the link to it - http://games.espn.go.com/tournament-challenge-bracket/2014/en/group?groupID=370930 ↗

Mar 17: Self Loss To ISU Smart? - @jaybate

What would Bill Self have gained for KU's seeding by pulling out all the stops to beat ISU?

Before we even try to answer, let's consider what Self might have done differently against ISU in terms of pulling out all the stops?

He might have zone pressed intermittently during the first and second halves...

Mar 17: Did we draw the toughest bracket? - @konkeyDong

I gotta kind of think that the NCAA seeding committee doesn't want us to do anything this year. Florida, 'Cuse, VCU... Add in 'ville and that would complete my list of teams I think we match up the worst with.

Mar 17: Worst 3PT Team of Self Era? - @jaybate

As of the end of the B12 tournament, these are the 3pt shooting percentages of KU's perimeter players.

Wiggins 35%

Selden 34%

Tharpe 38%....

Mar 17: USA Today All-American lists - @REHawk

Wiggins 2nd team. Embiid and Smart Honorable Mention.

Mar 17: Very Good without Jo, Great with Jo - @jaybate

I feel juiced about the team, because...

• On no day of rest after an OT game, KU without its star center, with its star forward shooting 7-21 FG, and shooting 27% from trey ville, ALMOST BEAT A RANKED TEAM that played its best game of its season. This means KU is very good without Joel and ring grade with him.

• Perry Ellis had a great game with 30 and 8 against a ranked team proving he is out of his slump....

Mar 16: Our Best Chance To Win Six Games - @HighEliteMajor

How do we best attack the NCAA tournament? What is our best chance to win 6 games?

Coach Self relies upon strong man to man defense as his philosophical center point. This season, the team’s defensive inadequacies threaten that philosophy.

This team is now ranked 189th in points per game allowed. That has gone up since we lost Embiid, but even with Embiid, our points per game allowed ranking was significantly more than normal -- 51, 35, 69, 62, 106, and 21 in past years, with the #21 being the title season...

Mar 16: FLOOR BURN AWARD: KU vs ISU - March 14 - @drgnslayr

I feel bad for Perry Ellis, The Impaler. When a guy goes 11-12 from the field and hangs 30 points on the stat sheet, you expect him to be the player of the game on the winning team. Perry was the player of the game for both teams, unfortunately he didn't get to celebrate on the winning team.

Perry also snagged 7 rebounds and had an assist.

Mar 16: Rethinking SOS - @nuleafjhawk

For years I've harped ( to my wife, kids, pastor, cashier at Dillons ) that it is to our benefit to play the toughest teams we can all year long, here, there, anywhere.

I was wrong.

Mar 15: Why We Lost to Iowa State - @DinarHawk###

I have to admit, I agree somewhat with the Debbie downers over on KU Sports that not having Embiid hurt us in this game. Niang wouldn't have been able to do half the things he did with him in there.

That said, Black and Traylor did not play good post defense at all. Therefore, Niang did whatever he wanted.

There seemed to be an overall lack of energy, and Iowa State seemed faster to the ball than KU did.

Mar 15: Well, that wasn't good. - @Hawk8086

Offense was terrible in the 2nd half. Nobody could guard Niang. Wiggins wasn't hitting. Tharpe was invisible, for the most part. They were hot from 3. Did I miss anyting?

Mar 15: Who? Part Two - @JRyman

Who will step up tonight vs Iowa St?

Sure the easy pick is Andrew

I am going with Traylor, I think his quickness on D is going to help us out vs the spread floor of ISU.

Mar 14: Did Bill Self really call.... - @JRyman

At the post game on floor interview did Bill self call Holly Rowe "Babe". I swear he said, "thanks babe".

Maybe it was "thanks bye". But I'm not sure and that doesn't sound like a Self quote but either does babe.

Anyone?

Mar 14: They All Stepped Up.. - @jaybate

They ran the stuff and everyone stayed plugged in. And 14 TOs against that kind of pressure was solid.

Wigs walked the tight rope between over impact and under impact. He stayed plugged in beginning to end. He had 30 and 3 assists and was on AWACs radar screens for three or four get-ups. Still think he can and will get 30 with 5 assists, and when he does it, KU will super nova on someone. Regardless, his defense and boarding was what stood out the most to me. He just guarded the best he has guarded all season and didn't just grab boards with hops, but he got in and mixed it up on the glass on lots of plays. Still wish to heck he would look for two more dishes to anyone and two more post feeds for Tar, but he was plugged in beginning to end. But man did I love that defense he played, especially early in the game. His 5 TOs were excusable this game considering how well they were guarding him and how much we were asking him to work in traffic. 5 is high, but if we ask him to shoot 17 in traffic AND handle against that much pressure, and rebound, its probably the best we can hope for. And look at those 3 steals and a block!!!! Sweet.

Mar 14: Adjustments I'd like to see Self make for OSU and going forward without Embiid - @konkeyDong

Adjustments I'd like to see Self make for OSU and going forward without Embiid:

The question that's on everyone's mind, or at least should be, will be answered around 4pm this afternoon. Was the WVU game last Saturday an aberration, or was it the true KU-sans-Embiid exposed? My take is neither, but that doesn’t mean changes won’t have to be made. As @HighEliteMajor and others have pointed out, Self, as talented as he is, is about as flexible as a 2-ton i-beam.

Mar 14: Who? - @drgnslayr###

In your opinion... who will step up?

Mar 14: Today's over/under's - @JRyman

Margin if victory by KU. 7.5

Points by Andrew Wiggins. 21.5...

Mar 13: Making a run without JoJo - @icthawkfan316

So by now the disappointing news has sunk in for most of us regarding Embiid's back injury. While we may speculate as to if/when he will be back, it is in the best interest of the team to prepare as if he will not be back. After all, they've had a whole season's worth of preparation playing with him, so if he is available at some point, re-inserting him in the line-up will not necessitate any adjustments. So make plans to play without him.

Mar 13: Revisit last game of last season-EJ was hit first. - @JayhawkRock78

I was at the KU Michigan game last year, and watched in agony as we let it slip through our hands. By the time I got home, the EJ -McGary hit was everywhere. Since I DVR'd the game, I had a hint something preceded it, and boy it is there on tape. I am not defending EJ's low blow, but 12 months ago I wasn't posting.

Mar 13: KU gets OSU tomorrow... - @JayHawkFanToo

OSU dominated Texas Tech and won going away. Forte was hitting 3 pointers from 5 feet behind the line; hopefully he has scored his share and will go on a drought tomorrow. Murphy played only 14 minutes but the rest of the starter played over 30 minutes each, but there were minutes that did not require a lot of effort, nothing that would affect tomorrow's game .

Mar 13: Andrew and the Miracles... - @drgnslayr

For some of us that go back a ways in Kansas basketball, we've been in this situation before.

We lost a very special player in Archie Marshall.

We were well on our way to having a disappointing season with a big pile of losses and expectations dashed.

Mar 13: Kietzman and the KU Conspiracy Theory - @wrwlumpy

Yesterday WHB brought back a Spinal Specialist for a second time to delve into Coach Self knowing more than he really was saying about Joel and went down the road to accusing him of being a coach who plays kids when they are hurt. This brought back memories of his 3 day rant wanting to portray Roy Williams as a person who disrespects the American Flag and all of the brave men and women who have fought and given their lives for this country - http://cjonline.com/stories/021502/spo_kuflag.shtm ↗

Mar 12: Making Up for Joel - @jaybate

So we are probably 1 and 1 in the B12 tourney.

The B12 Tourney is meaningless, except as 1 or 2 practice games for learning how to beat muscle without Joel, and more if he doesn't come back.

Pruning back the lion killer luv, Joel gave 12/10 plus rim protection.

Mar 11: Have Faith - @HighEliteMajor

Faith.

We hear the word every day. What does it mean?

Two definitions to choose from:

1) Confidence or trust in a person or thing.

Or

2) A belief that is not based in proof.

Mar 11: jaybate Basketball Intelligence Estimate (jBIE): Joel's Back Injury - @jaybate

SigInt (the brief camera shot of treating Joel's injury court side) tells jBIE's basketball spies a whole lot about Joel's back injury.

Observed treatment: Joel laid on his back and a team official treating Joel pulled his right leg over his left and appeared to stretch the lower back in a spiral/twisting motion.

Mar 10: Random Thoughts: Greg Marshall's Future & KU Defense - @MoonwalkMafia

Following VCU's impressive (and heartbreaking) run to the Final Four in 2011, many college basketball pundits questioned whether Shaka Smart would be leaving the mid-major ranks and jumping into the deep end with the big boys. Smart ultimately turned down offers from bigger programs to stay with what he had built.

Mar 10: Equipment Changes for Redemption Season - @drgnslayr

Our "Redemption Season" starts March 20th.

We need to makes some tweaks to several of our current players' equipment.

EQUIPMENT CHANGES CHECKLIST...

Mar 9: Does Wiggins become our point forward? -@Hawk8086

Some have brought up Carmelo. After thinking about it, given all of the concerns with Tharpe, does Self try running everything through Wiggins? At least most of the time? He looks inside for the big men first. He breaks down the defense and then either takes it to the hole, or dishes off? Tharpe, or whomever brings the ball up the court, but maybe Wiggins does that part of the time. I know his ball handling skills could be better, but is he the other option we're looking for? Ride him as far as he can take us. Is this completely crazy? Desperate times make us all think of desperate measures.

Mar 9: Wiggins 41 points and 2 Assists and Other Take Aways - @jaybate

~The WVU game was such a bitter pill on so many levels. Let me count the ways.

~The WVU game made starkly clear that even a Herculean, come-from-behind, scoring performance of 41 points by Andrew Wiggins cannot carry this team to a victory over a 65th ranked KENPOM team. How can this be? How can such an obviously exceptional talent putting on such an awesome individual performance (he scored efficiently, rebounded his own misses well, made steals, and blocked shots) not succeed? How could Andrew putting his team on his back not yield a W against a good, but not exceptional team?

Mar 9: Big 12 Teams - @TheDrunkenJhawk

Now that the Big 12 Season is over, I will post my superlatives:

1st Team:

Marcus Smart (I don't want to put him here, but I have no choice)...

Mar 8: 7 losses: Advantage or disadvantage? -@bskeet

Some say you need some losses to expose the chinks in the armor and allow you to neutralize approaches that are likely to lead to defeat. This school of thought suggests that it is possible to grow stronger from failures if you learn from the mistakes.

Some say you don't need to lose -- in fact losing is a sign of weakness to opponents. That a loss brings confidence to the enemy and doubt to oneself.

Mar 8: Is This Team Finally Ready for 'Self-Ball'? - @drgnslayr

Is this team finally ready for 'Self-ball'?

In recent weeks we have seen moments of solid defense. We almost played 40 minutes of defense versus Texas. We can't compare this team to any other Bill Self team because the NCAA decided to make lock-down defense a thing of the past. But we can still play a decent M2M with plenty of weak side team help.

Mar 8: Tarik vs.Tech: One More for the Road... -@jaybate

Black gave a clinic in the process of post play against a weak team. If he can do it again against the muscle of WVU, then we mAy have the missing piece to take the team beyond talent to a well-oiled machine. Either way, Joel needs to watch the tape to add the craft of post play to his growing knowledge of the techniques of post play. As Sade once sang, Tarik was a "smooth operator."

Mar 8: "Forensics: Self Saying Wigs Should Be B12 POY" - @jaybate

Bill Self threw Gary Bedore an interestingly timed bone today.

Seemingly out of nowhere, to this reader, since Gary Bedore did not provide the circumstance in which the question was asked, Gary asked Bill who Bill thought should be B12 POY.

Some Suggestions for a Big 12 Near Eastern Division - @jaybate

WVU needs an eastern division, so it doesn't have to keep playing schools out west in the Big 12 Natural Resource Conference. Here are some suggested adds for a Near East Division for WVU.

Crimean A&M--Russian carriers not only secure the area at Svastopol, but games could be played on them thus allowing easy pre game air connections right to the flight decks.

Mar 7: 30 years - @JRyman

No not my life span. But Thirty years of KU being something great.

1983-84 Second in Big 8

84-85 Second...

Mar 7: Myles Turner: You are one Lucky Man! - @drgnslayr

Myles Turner, you are one lucky man! You came to the right Jayhawk game to experience.

Even though we captured our 10th straight Big 12 regular season championship, this has not been a typical Jayhawk season. We are one of the youngest teams in the nation, and with that youth comes the need to educate; to learn what college basketball is all about, and further, to learn what Jayhawk basketball is all about.

Mar 7: FLOOR BURN AWARD: KU vs TT - March 5 - @drgnslayr

Tarik Black! Tarik Black! Tarik Black!

I can't stress it enough. Tarik Black's performance last night not only won the FLOOR BURN AWARD for this game, he may have won it for the entire year! That was the most-inspiring play of any Jayhawk all year!

Mar 7: Welcome to the OAD Merry-go-round! - @jaybate

It was about as strong of a signal as potential recruits could get short of an official announcement.

Wiggins, Embiid and Selden appear to be goners.

So: it's unofficially official: Self and KU are on the OAD Merry Go Round.

Mar 6: Tarik Black: Future Coach - @jaybate

Let's see. Tarick Black is playing his 4th season of college basketball, it's senior night, he got his BA before he set foot on campus, and he is going to have a Master's before he leaves after this one season? He plays a musical instrument and is 6-9 and 260? And he has a kind of positive outlook that the maestro of positive, Bill Self, admires? And he has the insight at this young age to say of Self, "Here, I’m playing for a coach who has a national championship, who has coached many great teams, that’s had similar players and just knows what to do, when to do it, and the message that needs to be portrayed at the moment"?

Also see today's News Digest, March 20, and News Digest for Yesterday, March 19, as well as Daily Threads for Yesterday, March 19

Also see our Daily Threads, March 20, and the News Digest for Yesterday, March 19, as well as Daily Threads for Yesterday, March 19

NCAA Tournament 2014 Schedule: Times, Dates, Live Streaming and TV Info ↗

BRACKET: PDF ↗ | Join KU Buckets Group on ESPN ↗

FiveThirtyEight: NCAA Tournament Predictions ↗: Check this out before you make your final bracket this morning!!!

!Wiggins ↗

KU’s Andrew Wiggins makes throwing down lob passes look easy ↗

Teammates love freshman Andrew Wiggins for many reasons, not the least of which is his innate ability to catch pretty much any alley-oop pass thrown his way and turn it into points.

Pattani: 'Modified' BPI lifts Florida, Michigan State ↗

Another noteworthy injury situation for a top team involves the back issues that have plagued Kansas center and projected NBA lottery pick Joel Embiid. This has forced Embiid to miss five recent games, giving a small but still interesting sample from which to evaluate the Jayhawks’ performance without their biggest interior presence.

Bill Self: ‘This should be a fun weekend for everybody’ ↗

Minutes after the Kansas University men's basketball team arrived in St. Louis, Mo., Wednesday evening, coach Bill Self answered questions from reporters in the lobby of the team's downtown hotel. Self said freshman center Joel Embiid won't play this weekend. "I'm not saying there couldn't be some miraculous act occur," the coach said, "but we're certainly not planning on that nor expecting it."

Barring 'miraculous act,' Embiid's weekend return ruled out ↗

Kansas center Joel Embiid is all but out for this weekend's NCAA Tournament games, coach Bill Self confirmed to reporters Wednesday afternoon. "He's not going to play this week.

Newell: Andrew Wiggins has an offensive weakness ... and it's easily correctable ↗

Over the next few days, Kansas fans are inevitably going to hear how freshman guard Andrew Wiggins needs to be aggressive offensively with Joel Embiid not likely to play this weekend.

There's a difference between being aggressive in a reckless way and aggressive in a smart way, though.

Dodd: Kansas coach Bill Self confirms Joel Embiid won't play in St. Louis ↗

ST. LOUIS — Kansas freshman center Joel Embiid will not play in the opening weekend of the NCAA Tournament, coach Bill Self confirmed Wednesday after arriving at the team hotel.

KU 2014 Tournament Guide ↗

Smith: Live from St. Louis: Media day at Scottrade Center ↗

Please add stories here

Also see our Daily Threads, March 20, and the News Digest for Yesterday, March 19, as well as Daily Threads for Yesterday, March 19

Also see today's News Digest, March 19, and News Digest for Yesterday, March 18, as well as Daily Threads for Yesterday, March 18

Our Daily Threads for March 19:

Best Championship Team of the Past Decade - @DinarHawk

It seems that whenever this topic is discussed, most analysts consistently overlook the '08 team.

Florida back to back years, North Carolina in '09, and Kentucky in '12 are the ones that are mostly thought to be the best.

It's the most wonderful time of the year - @JRyman

It really is, the best time of the year. It's March madness, it's the pinnacle of college basketball.

Upsets, Cinderella's, fanatic finishes, 68 teams one goal.

I mean this is the time of year when a cocky Mislose team lost to a 15 seed. Duke too.

Mar 18: Keep the Doubters Coming! - @DinarHawk

I think it is good for this team that there are so many people in the media, including the folks on KWCH Sports Sunday, that are doubting whether or not this team can beat UNM without Embiid.

Mar 18: Opening Vegas odds... - @JayHawkFanToo

This how Vegas has the opening odds. I have listed only the teams with 50-1 odds or better. Look like Vegas likes KU....

Mar 17: KUBuckets Brackets on ESPN - @approxinfinity

I thought a KUBuckets bracket group on ESPN would be fun, so I'm going to start one once the brackets come out. I'll post the group info here when it's ready. Hope you guys are able to join!

Done! - Group is named KUBuckets. here's the link to it - http://games.espn.go.com/tournament-challenge-bracket/2014/en/group?groupID=370930 ↗

Mar 17: Self Loss To ISU Smart? - @jaybate

What would Bill Self have gained for KU's seeding by pulling out all the stops to beat ISU?

Before we even try to answer, let's consider what Self might have done differently against ISU in terms of pulling out all the stops?

He might have zone pressed intermittently during the first and second halves...

Mar 17: Did we draw the toughest bracket? - @konkeyDong

I gotta kind of think that the NCAA seeding committee doesn't want us to do anything this year. Florida, 'Cuse, VCU... Add in 'ville and that would complete my list of teams I think we match up the worst with.

Mar 17: Worst 3PT Team of Self Era? - @jaybate

As of the end of the B12 tournament, these are the 3pt shooting percentages of KU's perimeter players.

Wiggins 35%

Selden 34%

Tharpe 38%....

Mar 17: USA Today All-American lists - @REHawk

Wiggins 2nd team. Embiid and Smart Honorable Mention.

Mar 17: Very Good without Jo, Great with Jo - @jaybate

I feel juiced about the team, because...

• On no day of rest after an OT game, KU without its star center, with its star forward shooting 7-21 FG, and shooting 27% from trey ville, ALMOST BEAT A RANKED TEAM that played its best game of its season. This means KU is very good without Joel and ring grade with him.

• Perry Ellis had a great game with 30 and 8 against a ranked team proving he is out of his slump....

Mar 16: Our Best Chance To Win Six Games - @HighEliteMajor

How do we best attack the NCAA tournament? What is our best chance to win 6 games?

Coach Self relies upon strong man to man defense as his philosophical center point. This season, the team’s defensive inadequacies threaten that philosophy.

This team is now ranked 189th in points per game allowed. That has gone up since we lost Embiid, but even with Embiid, our points per game allowed ranking was significantly more than normal -- 51, 35, 69, 62, 106, and 21 in past years, with the #21 being the title season...

Mar 16: FLOOR BURN AWARD: KU vs ISU - March 14 - @drgnslayr

I feel bad for Perry Ellis, The Impaler. When a guy goes 11-12 from the field and hangs 30 points on the stat sheet, you expect him to be the player of the game on the winning team. Perry was the player of the game for both teams, unfortunately he didn't get to celebrate on the winning team.

Perry also snagged 7 rebounds and had an assist.

Mar 16: Rethinking SOS - @nuleafjhawk

For years I've harped ( to my wife, kids, pastor, cashier at Dillons ) that it is to our benefit to play the toughest teams we can all year long, here, there, anywhere.

I was wrong.

Mar 15: Why We Lost to Iowa State - @DinarHawk###

I have to admit, I agree somewhat with the Debbie downers over on KU Sports that not having Embiid hurt us in this game. Niang wouldn't have been able to do half the things he did with him in there.

That said, Black and Traylor did not play good post defense at all. Therefore, Niang did whatever he wanted.

There seemed to be an overall lack of energy, and Iowa State seemed faster to the ball than KU did.

Mar 15: Well, that wasn't good. - @Hawk8086

Offense was terrible in the 2nd half. Nobody could guard Niang. Wiggins wasn't hitting. Tharpe was invisible, for the most part. They were hot from 3. Did I miss anyting?

Mar 15: Who? Part Two - @JRyman

Who will step up tonight vs Iowa St?

Sure the easy pick is Andrew

I am going with Traylor, I think his quickness on D is going to help us out vs the spread floor of ISU.

Mar 14: Did Bill Self really call.... - @JRyman

At the post game on floor interview did Bill self call Holly Rowe "Babe". I swear he said, "thanks babe".

Maybe it was "thanks bye". But I'm not sure and that doesn't sound like a Self quote but either does babe.

Anyone?

Mar 14: They All Stepped Up.. - @jaybate

They ran the stuff and everyone stayed plugged in. And 14 TOs against that kind of pressure was solid.

Wigs walked the tight rope between over impact and under impact. He stayed plugged in beginning to end. He had 30 and 3 assists and was on AWACs radar screens for three or four get-ups. Still think he can and will get 30 with 5 assists, and when he does it, KU will super nova on someone. Regardless, his defense and boarding was what stood out the most to me. He just guarded the best he has guarded all season and didn't just grab boards with hops, but he got in and mixed it up on the glass on lots of plays. Still wish to heck he would look for two more dishes to anyone and two more post feeds for Tar, but he was plugged in beginning to end. But man did I love that defense he played, especially early in the game. His 5 TOs were excusable this game considering how well they were guarding him and how much we were asking him to work in traffic. 5 is high, but if we ask him to shoot 17 in traffic AND handle against that much pressure, and rebound, its probably the best we can hope for. And look at those 3 steals and a block!!!! Sweet.

Mar 14: Adjustments I'd like to see Self make for OSU and going forward without Embiid - @konkeyDong

Adjustments I'd like to see Self make for OSU and going forward without Embiid:

The question that's on everyone's mind, or at least should be, will be answered around 4pm this afternoon. Was the WVU game last Saturday an aberration, or was it the true KU-sans-Embiid exposed? My take is neither, but that doesn’t mean changes won’t have to be made. As @HighEliteMajor and others have pointed out, Self, as talented as he is, is about as flexible as a 2-ton i-beam.

Mar 14: Who? - @drgnslayr###

In your opinion... who will step up?

Mar 14: Today's over/under's - @JRyman

Margin if victory by KU. 7.5

Points by Andrew Wiggins. 21.5...

Mar 13: Making a run without JoJo - @icthawkfan316

So by now the disappointing news has sunk in for most of us regarding Embiid's back injury. While we may speculate as to if/when he will be back, it is in the best interest of the team to prepare as if he will not be back. After all, they've had a whole season's worth of preparation playing with him, so if he is available at some point, re-inserting him in the line-up will not necessitate any adjustments. So make plans to play without him.

Mar 13: Revisit last game of last season-EJ was hit first. - @JayhawkRock78

I was at the KU Michigan game last year, and watched in agony as we let it slip through our hands. By the time I got home, the EJ -McGary hit was everywhere. Since I DVR'd the game, I had a hint something preceded it, and boy it is there on tape. I am not defending EJ's low blow, but 12 months ago I wasn't posting.

Mar 13: KU gets OSU tomorrow... - @JayHawkFanToo

OSU dominated Texas Tech and won going away. Forte was hitting 3 pointers from 5 feet behind the line; hopefully he has scored his share and will go on a drought tomorrow. Murphy played only 14 minutes but the rest of the starter played over 30 minutes each, but there were minutes that did not require a lot of effort, nothing that would affect tomorrow's game .

Mar 13: Andrew and the Miracles... - @drgnslayr

For some of us that go back a ways in Kansas basketball, we've been in this situation before.

We lost a very special player in Archie Marshall.

We were well on our way to having a disappointing season with a big pile of losses and expectations dashed.

Mar 13: Kietzman and the KU Conspiracy Theory - @wrwlumpy

Yesterday WHB brought back a Spinal Specialist for a second time to delve into Coach Self knowing more than he really was saying about Joel and went down the road to accusing him of being a coach who plays kids when they are hurt. This brought back memories of his 3 day rant wanting to portray Roy Williams as a person who disrespects the American Flag and all of the brave men and women who have fought and given their lives for this country - http://cjonline.com/stories/021502/spo_kuflag.shtm ↗

Mar 12: Making Up for Joel - @jaybate

So we are probably 1 and 1 in the B12 tourney.

The B12 Tourney is meaningless, except as 1 or 2 practice games for learning how to beat muscle without Joel, and more if he doesn't come back.

Pruning back the lion killer luv, Joel gave 12/10 plus rim protection.

Mar 11: Have Faith - @HighEliteMajor

Faith.

We hear the word every day. What does it mean?

Two definitions to choose from:

1) Confidence or trust in a person or thing.

Or

2) A belief that is not based in proof.

Mar 11: jaybate Basketball Intelligence Estimate (jBIE): Joel's Back Injury - @jaybate

SigInt (the brief camera shot of treating Joel's injury court side) tells jBIE's basketball spies a whole lot about Joel's back injury.

Observed treatment: Joel laid on his back and a team official treating Joel pulled his right leg over his left and appeared to stretch the lower back in a spiral/twisting motion.

Mar 10: Random Thoughts: Greg Marshall's Future & KU Defense - @MoonwalkMafia

Following VCU's impressive (and heartbreaking) run to the Final Four in 2011, many college basketball pundits questioned whether Shaka Smart would be leaving the mid-major ranks and jumping into the deep end with the big boys. Smart ultimately turned down offers from bigger programs to stay with what he had built.

Mar 10: Equipment Changes for Redemption Season - @drgnslayr

Our "Redemption Season" starts March 20th.

We need to makes some tweaks to several of our current players' equipment.

EQUIPMENT CHANGES CHECKLIST...

Mar 9: Does Wiggins become our point forward? -@Hawk8086

Some have brought up Carmelo. After thinking about it, given all of the concerns with Tharpe, does Self try running everything through Wiggins? At least most of the time? He looks inside for the big men first. He breaks down the defense and then either takes it to the hole, or dishes off? Tharpe, or whomever brings the ball up the court, but maybe Wiggins does that part of the time. I know his ball handling skills could be better, but is he the other option we're looking for? Ride him as far as he can take us. Is this completely crazy? Desperate times make us all think of desperate measures.

Mar 9: Wiggins 41 points and 2 Assists and Other Take Aways - @jaybate

~The WVU game was such a bitter pill on so many levels. Let me count the ways.

~The WVU game made starkly clear that even a Herculean, come-from-behind, scoring performance of 41 points by Andrew Wiggins cannot carry this team to a victory over a 65th ranked KENPOM team. How can this be? How can such an obviously exceptional talent putting on such an awesome individual performance (he scored efficiently, rebounded his own misses well, made steals, and blocked shots) not succeed? How could Andrew putting his team on his back not yield a W against a good, but not exceptional team?

Mar 9: Big 12 Teams - @TheDrunkenJhawk

Now that the Big 12 Season is over, I will post my superlatives:

1st Team:

Marcus Smart (I don't want to put him here, but I have no choice)...

Mar 8: 7 losses: Advantage or disadvantage? -@bskeet

Some say you need some losses to expose the chinks in the armor and allow you to neutralize approaches that are likely to lead to defeat. This school of thought suggests that it is possible to grow stronger from failures if you learn from the mistakes.

Some say you don't need to lose -- in fact losing is a sign of weakness to opponents. That a loss brings confidence to the enemy and doubt to oneself.

Mar 8: Is This Team Finally Ready for 'Self-Ball'? - @drgnslayr

Is this team finally ready for 'Self-ball'?

In recent weeks we have seen moments of solid defense. We almost played 40 minutes of defense versus Texas. We can't compare this team to any other Bill Self team because the NCAA decided to make lock-down defense a thing of the past. But we can still play a decent M2M with plenty of weak side team help.

Mar 8: Tarik vs.Tech: One More for the Road... -@jaybate

Black gave a clinic in the process of post play against a weak team. If he can do it again against the muscle of WVU, then we mAy have the missing piece to take the team beyond talent to a well-oiled machine. Either way, Joel needs to watch the tape to add the craft of post play to his growing knowledge of the techniques of post play. As Sade once sang, Tarik was a "smooth operator."

Mar 8: "Forensics: Self Saying Wigs Should Be B12 POY" - @jaybate

Bill Self threw Gary Bedore an interestingly timed bone today.

Seemingly out of nowhere, to this reader, since Gary Bedore did not provide the circumstance in which the question was asked, Gary asked Bill who Bill thought should be B12 POY.

Some Suggestions for a Big 12 Near Eastern Division - @jaybate

WVU needs an eastern division, so it doesn't have to keep playing schools out west in the Big 12 Natural Resource Conference. Here are some suggested adds for a Near East Division for WVU.

Crimean A&M--Russian carriers not only secure the area at Svastopol, but games could be played on them thus allowing easy pre game air connections right to the flight decks.

Mar 7: 30 years - @JRyman

No not my life span. But Thirty years of KU being something great.

1983-84 Second in Big 8

84-85 Second...

Mar 7: Myles Turner: You are one Lucky Man! - @drgnslayr

Myles Turner, you are one lucky man! You came to the right Jayhawk game to experience.

Even though we captured our 10th straight Big 12 regular season championship, this has not been a typical Jayhawk season. We are one of the youngest teams in the nation, and with that youth comes the need to educate; to learn what college basketball is all about, and further, to learn what Jayhawk basketball is all about.

Mar 7: FLOOR BURN AWARD: KU vs TT - March 5 - @drgnslayr

Tarik Black! Tarik Black! Tarik Black!

I can't stress it enough. Tarik Black's performance last night not only won the FLOOR BURN AWARD for this game, he may have won it for the entire year! That was the most-inspiring play of any Jayhawk all year!

Mar 7: Welcome to the OAD Merry-go-round! - @jaybate

It was about as strong of a signal as potential recruits could get short of an official announcement.

Wiggins, Embiid and Selden appear to be goners.

So: it's unofficially official: Self and KU are on the OAD Merry Go Round.

Mar 6: Tarik Black: Future Coach - @jaybate

Let's see. Tarick Black is playing his 4th season of college basketball, it's senior night, he got his BA before he set foot on campus, and he is going to have a Master's before he leaves after this one season? He plays a musical instrument and is 6-9 and 260? And he has a kind of positive outlook that the maestro of positive, Bill Self, admires? And he has the insight at this young age to say of Self, "Here, I’m playing for a coach who has a national championship, who has coached many great teams, that’s had similar players and just knows what to do, when to do it, and the message that needs to be portrayed at the moment"?

Also see today's News Digest, March 19, and News Digest for Yesterday, March 18, as well as Daily Threads for Yesterday, March 18

Also see our Daily Threads, March 19, and the News Digest for Yesterday, March 18, as well as Daily Threads for Yesterday, March 18

NCAA Tournament 2014 Schedule: Times, Dates, Live Streaming and TV Info ↗

BRACKET: PDF ↗ | Join KU Buckets Group on ESPN ↗

!KU Bench ↗

KU basketball small lineup offers Bill Self options without Joel Embiid ↗

It was the final 10 minutes of practice when Kansas coach Bill Self gave freshman Brannen Greene some quick instruction on “pick-and-pop” offense.

In short, it was this: Go set screens for the ball-handler, then bounce out to the 3-point line and be ready for a pass.

KU freshmen: Big 12 tourney good prep for NCAAs ↗

It lasted only a couple of days and ended two victories shy of expectations, but the recent Big 12 basketball tournament was a crucial experience for at least five players on Kansas University’s roster. Last week, freshmen Conner Frankamp, Brannen Greene, Frank Mason, Wayne Selden and Andrew Wiggins received their first taste of the win-or-go-home environment the Jayhawks will face this week in the NCAA Tournament.

Self: ‘It’s been a fun year’ with young Jayhawk team ↗

There are plenty of statistics available for those who wish to proclaim Kansas University’s basketball program the most dominant in the country during the entire 11-year Bill Self era.

Perhaps most impressive is the fact the Jayhawks have won 10 consecutive regular-season Big 12 titles and 10 of 11 overall. Self’s first KU team placed second in the conference.

Haskin: Bracketology a waste? Too much fun to be had ↗

MVC associate commissioner Mike Kern provided this breakdown for credentialed media and the teams they designated for coverage:

Eastern Kentucky 17, Kansas 63, Kansas State 32, Kentucky 76, New Mexico 16, Stanford 11, Wichita State 53. No information was available yet for the play-in winner that will face WSU.

Freshman Science: All eyes on Embiid ↗

The health of Kansas center Joel Embiid will have a major impact on the South region and possibly the Final Four. Take a look inside the numbers to see just how crucial Embiid's presence is to the Jayhawks.

SportsScience: Andrew Wiggins ↗

ESPN Sport Science examines what sets Andrew Wiggins apart from everyone else in college hoops.

Please add stories here

Also see our Daily Threads, March 19, and the News Digest for Yesterday, March 18, as well as Daily Threads for Yesterday, March 18

@JRyman the days before March madness get lost just like the days before Christmas. Instead of buying presents I am trying to watch the last game of every team in the dance on espn3. Our brackets are our bright and shiny offerings waiting to be picked up and given life by the Dance like a child's torero. Will your bracket be precious? Will it protect itself and mitigate it's early losses? Will it continue to have life until the end or will it be horribly broken and discarded the day it is unwrapped?

Also see today's News Digest, March 18, and News Digest for Yesterday, March 17, as well as Daily Threads for Yesterday, March 17

Our Daily Threads for March 18:

Keep the Doubters Coming! - @DinarHawk

I think it is good for this team that there are so many people in the media, including the folks on KWCH Sports Sunday, that are doubting whether or not this team can beat UNM without Embiid.

Opening Vegas odds... - @JayHawkFanToo

This how Vegas has the opening odds. I have listed only the teams with 50-1 odds or better. Look like Vegas likes KU....

Mar 17: KUBuckets Brackets on ESPN - @approxinfinity

I thought a KUBuckets bracket group on ESPN would be fun, so I'm going to start one once the brackets come out. I'll post the group info here when it's ready. Hope you guys are able to join!

Done! - Group is named KUBuckets. here's the link to it - http://games.espn.go.com/tournament-challenge-bracket/2014/en/group?groupID=370930 ↗

Mar 17: Self Loss To ISU Smart? - @jaybate

What would Bill Self have gained for KU's seeding by pulling out all the stops to beat ISU?

Before we even try to answer, let's consider what Self might have done differently against ISU in terms of pulling out all the stops?

He might have zone pressed intermittently during the first and second halves...

Mar 17: Did we draw the toughest bracket? - @konkeyDong

I gotta kind of think that the NCAA seeding committee doesn't want us to do anything this year. Florida, 'Cuse, VCU... Add in 'ville and that would complete my list of teams I think we match up the worst with.

Mar 17: Worst 3PT Team of Self Era? - @jaybate

As of the end of the B12 tournament, these are the 3pt shooting percentages of KU's perimeter players.

Wiggins 35%

Selden 34%

Tharpe 38%....

Mar 17: USA Today All-American lists - @REHawk

Wiggins 2nd team. Embiid and Smart Honorable Mention.

Mar 17: Very Good without Jo, Great with Jo - @jaybate

I feel juiced about the team, because...

• On no day of rest after an OT game, KU without its star center, with its star forward shooting 7-21 FG, and shooting 27% from trey ville, ALMOST BEAT A RANKED TEAM that played its best game of its season. This means KU is very good without Joel and ring grade with him.

• Perry Ellis had a great game with 30 and 8 against a ranked team proving he is out of his slump....

Mar 16: Our Best Chance To Win Six Games - @HighEliteMajor

How do we best attack the NCAA tournament? What is our best chance to win 6 games?

Coach Self relies upon strong man to man defense as his philosophical center point. This season, the team’s defensive inadequacies threaten that philosophy.

This team is now ranked 189th in points per game allowed. That has gone up since we lost Embiid, but even with Embiid, our points per game allowed ranking was significantly more than normal -- 51, 35, 69, 62, 106, and 21 in past years, with the #21 being the title season...

Mar 16: FLOOR BURN AWARD: KU vs ISU - March 14 - @drgnslayr

I feel bad for Perry Ellis, The Impaler. When a guy goes 11-12 from the field and hangs 30 points on the stat sheet, you expect him to be the player of the game on the winning team. Perry was the player of the game for both teams, unfortunately he didn't get to celebrate on the winning team.

Perry also snagged 7 rebounds and had an assist.

Mar 16: Rethinking SOS - @nuleafjhawk

For years I've harped ( to my wife, kids, pastor, cashier at Dillons ) that it is to our benefit to play the toughest teams we can all year long, here, there, anywhere.

I was wrong.

Mar 15: Why We Lost to Iowa State - @DinarHawk###

I have to admit, I agree somewhat with the Debbie downers over on KU Sports that not having Embiid hurt us in this game. Niang wouldn't have been able to do half the things he did with him in there.

That said, Black and Traylor did not play good post defense at all. Therefore, Niang did whatever he wanted.

There seemed to be an overall lack of energy, and Iowa State seemed faster to the ball than KU did.

Mar 15: Well, that wasn't good. - @Hawk8086

Offense was terrible in the 2nd half. Nobody could guard Niang. Wiggins wasn't hitting. Tharpe was invisible, for the most part. They were hot from 3. Did I miss anyting?

Mar 15: Who? Part Two - @JRyman

Who will step up tonight vs Iowa St?

Sure the easy pick is Andrew

I am going with Traylor, I think his quickness on D is going to help us out vs the spread floor of ISU.

Mar 14: Did Bill Self really call.... - @JRyman

At the post game on floor interview did Bill self call Holly Rowe "Babe". I swear he said, "thanks babe".

Maybe it was "thanks bye". But I'm not sure and that doesn't sound like a Self quote but either does babe.

Anyone?

Mar 14: They All Stepped Up.. - @jaybate

They ran the stuff and everyone stayed plugged in. And 14 TOs against that kind of pressure was solid.

Wigs walked the tight rope between over impact and under impact. He stayed plugged in beginning to end. He had 30 and 3 assists and was on AWACs radar screens for three or four get-ups. Still think he can and will get 30 with 5 assists, and when he does it, KU will super nova on someone. Regardless, his defense and boarding was what stood out the most to me. He just guarded the best he has guarded all season and didn't just grab boards with hops, but he got in and mixed it up on the glass on lots of plays. Still wish to heck he would look for two more dishes to anyone and two more post feeds for Tar, but he was plugged in beginning to end. But man did I love that defense he played, especially early in the game. His 5 TOs were excusable this game considering how well they were guarding him and how much we were asking him to work in traffic. 5 is high, but if we ask him to shoot 17 in traffic AND handle against that much pressure, and rebound, its probably the best we can hope for. And look at those 3 steals and a block!!!! Sweet.

Mar 14: Adjustments I'd like to see Self make for OSU and going forward without Embiid - @konkeyDong

Adjustments I'd like to see Self make for OSU and going forward without Embiid:

The question that's on everyone's mind, or at least should be, will be answered around 4pm this afternoon. Was the WVU game last Saturday an aberration, or was it the true KU-sans-Embiid exposed? My take is neither, but that doesn’t mean changes won’t have to be made. As @HighEliteMajor and others have pointed out, Self, as talented as he is, is about as flexible as a 2-ton i-beam.

Mar 14: Who? - @drgnslayr###

In your opinion... who will step up?

Mar 14: Today's over/under's - @JRyman

Margin if victory by KU. 7.5

Points by Andrew Wiggins. 21.5...

Mar 13: Making a run without JoJo - @icthawkfan316

So by now the disappointing news has sunk in for most of us regarding Embiid's back injury. While we may speculate as to if/when he will be back, it is in the best interest of the team to prepare as if he will not be back. After all, they've had a whole season's worth of preparation playing with him, so if he is available at some point, re-inserting him in the line-up will not necessitate any adjustments. So make plans to play without him.

Mar 13: Revisit last game of last season-EJ was hit first. - @JayhawkRock78

I was at the KU Michigan game last year, and watched in agony as we let it slip through our hands. By the time I got home, the EJ -McGary hit was everywhere. Since I DVR'd the game, I had a hint something preceded it, and boy it is there on tape. I am not defending EJ's low blow, but 12 months ago I wasn't posting.

Mar 13: KU gets OSU tomorrow... - @JayHawkFanToo

OSU dominated Texas Tech and won going away. Forte was hitting 3 pointers from 5 feet behind the line; hopefully he has scored his share and will go on a drought tomorrow. Murphy played only 14 minutes but the rest of the starter played over 30 minutes each, but there were minutes that did not require a lot of effort, nothing that would affect tomorrow's game .

Mar 13: Andrew and the Miracles... - @drgnslayr

For some of us that go back a ways in Kansas basketball, we've been in this situation before.

We lost a very special player in Archie Marshall.

We were well on our way to having a disappointing season with a big pile of losses and expectations dashed.

Mar 13: Kietzman and the KU Conspiracy Theory - @wrwlumpy

Yesterday WHB brought back a Spinal Specialist for a second time to delve into Coach Self knowing more than he really was saying about Joel and went down the road to accusing him of being a coach who plays kids when they are hurt. This brought back memories of his 3 day rant wanting to portray Roy Williams as a person who disrespects the American Flag and all of the brave men and women who have fought and given their lives for this country - http://cjonline.com/stories/021502/spo_kuflag.shtm ↗

Mar 12: Making Up for Joel - @jaybate

So we are probably 1 and 1 in the B12 tourney.

The B12 Tourney is meaningless, except as 1 or 2 practice games for learning how to beat muscle without Joel, and more if he doesn't come back.

Pruning back the lion killer luv, Joel gave 12/10 plus rim protection.

Mar 11: Have Faith - @HighEliteMajor

Faith.

We hear the word every day. What does it mean?

Two definitions to choose from:

1) Confidence or trust in a person or thing.

Or

2) A belief that is not based in proof.

Mar 11: jaybate Basketball Intelligence Estimate (jBIE): Joel's Back Injury - @jaybate

SigInt (the brief camera shot of treating Joel's injury court side) tells jBIE's basketball spies a whole lot about Joel's back injury.

Observed treatment: Joel laid on his back and a team official treating Joel pulled his right leg over his left and appeared to stretch the lower back in a spiral/twisting motion.

Mar 10: Random Thoughts: Greg Marshall's Future & KU Defense - @MoonwalkMafia

Following VCU's impressive (and heartbreaking) run to the Final Four in 2011, many college basketball pundits questioned whether Shaka Smart would be leaving the mid-major ranks and jumping into the deep end with the big boys. Smart ultimately turned down offers from bigger programs to stay with what he had built.

Mar 10: Equipment Changes for Redemption Season - @drgnslayr

Our "Redemption Season" starts March 20th.

We need to makes some tweaks to several of our current players' equipment.

EQUIPMENT CHANGES CHECKLIST...

Mar 9: Does Wiggins become our point forward? -@Hawk8086

Some have brought up Carmelo. After thinking about it, given all of the concerns with Tharpe, does Self try running everything through Wiggins? At least most of the time? He looks inside for the big men first. He breaks down the defense and then either takes it to the hole, or dishes off? Tharpe, or whomever brings the ball up the court, but maybe Wiggins does that part of the time. I know his ball handling skills could be better, but is he the other option we're looking for? Ride him as far as he can take us. Is this completely crazy? Desperate times make us all think of desperate measures.

Mar 9: Wiggins 41 points and 2 Assists and Other Take Aways - @jaybate

~The WVU game was such a bitter pill on so many levels. Let me count the ways.

~The WVU game made starkly clear that even a Herculean, come-from-behind, scoring performance of 41 points by Andrew Wiggins cannot carry this team to a victory over a 65th ranked KENPOM team. How can this be? How can such an obviously exceptional talent putting on such an awesome individual performance (he scored efficiently, rebounded his own misses well, made steals, and blocked shots) not succeed? How could Andrew putting his team on his back not yield a W against a good, but not exceptional team?

Mar 9: Big 12 Teams - @TheDrunkenJhawk

Now that the Big 12 Season is over, I will post my superlatives:

1st Team:

Marcus Smart (I don't want to put him here, but I have no choice)...

Mar 8: 7 losses: Advantage or disadvantage? -@bskeet

Some say you need some losses to expose the chinks in the armor and allow you to neutralize approaches that are likely to lead to defeat. This school of thought suggests that it is possible to grow stronger from failures if you learn from the mistakes.

Some say you don't need to lose -- in fact losing is a sign of weakness to opponents. That a loss brings confidence to the enemy and doubt to oneself.

Mar 8: Is This Team Finally Ready for 'Self-Ball'? - @drgnslayr

Is this team finally ready for 'Self-ball'?

In recent weeks we have seen moments of solid defense. We almost played 40 minutes of defense versus Texas. We can't compare this team to any other Bill Self team because the NCAA decided to make lock-down defense a thing of the past. But we can still play a decent M2M with plenty of weak side team help.

Mar 8: Tarik vs.Tech: One More for the Road... -@jaybate

Black gave a clinic in the process of post play against a weak team. If he can do it again against the muscle of WVU, then we mAy have the missing piece to take the team beyond talent to a well-oiled machine. Either way, Joel needs to watch the tape to add the craft of post play to his growing knowledge of the techniques of post play. As Sade once sang, Tarik was a "smooth operator."

Mar 8: "Forensics: Self Saying Wigs Should Be B12 POY" - @jaybate

Bill Self threw Gary Bedore an interestingly timed bone today.

Seemingly out of nowhere, to this reader, since Gary Bedore did not provide the circumstance in which the question was asked, Gary asked Bill who Bill thought should be B12 POY.

Some Suggestions for a Big 12 Near Eastern Division - @jaybate

WVU needs an eastern division, so it doesn't have to keep playing schools out west in the Big 12 Natural Resource Conference. Here are some suggested adds for a Near East Division for WVU.

Crimean A&M--Russian carriers not only secure the area at Svastopol, but games could be played on them thus allowing easy pre game air connections right to the flight decks.

Mar 7: 30 years - @JRyman

No not my life span. But Thirty years of KU being something great.

1983-84 Second in Big 8

84-85 Second...

Mar 7: Myles Turner: You are one Lucky Man! - @drgnslayr

Myles Turner, you are one lucky man! You came to the right Jayhawk game to experience.

Even though we captured our 10th straight Big 12 regular season championship, this has not been a typical Jayhawk season. We are one of the youngest teams in the nation, and with that youth comes the need to educate; to learn what college basketball is all about, and further, to learn what Jayhawk basketball is all about.

Mar 7: FLOOR BURN AWARD: KU vs TT - March 5 - @drgnslayr

Tarik Black! Tarik Black! Tarik Black!

I can't stress it enough. Tarik Black's performance last night not only won the FLOOR BURN AWARD for this game, he may have won it for the entire year! That was the most-inspiring play of any Jayhawk all year!

Mar 7: Welcome to the OAD Merry-go-round! - @jaybate

It was about as strong of a signal as potential recruits could get short of an official announcement.

Wiggins, Embiid and Selden appear to be goners.

So: it's unofficially official: Self and KU are on the OAD Merry Go Round.

Mar 6: Tarik Black: Future Coach - @jaybate

Let's see. Tarick Black is playing his 4th season of college basketball, it's senior night, he got his BA before he set foot on campus, and he is going to have a Master's before he leaves after this one season? He plays a musical instrument and is 6-9 and 260? And he has a kind of positive outlook that the maestro of positive, Bill Self, admires? And he has the insight at this young age to say of Self, "Here, I’m playing for a coach who has a national championship, who has coached many great teams, that’s had similar players and just knows what to do, when to do it, and the message that needs to be portrayed at the moment"?

Also see today's News Digest, March 18, and News Digest for Yesterday, March 17, as well as Daily Threads for Yesterday, March 17

Also see our Daily Threads, March 18, and the News Digest for Yesterday, March 17, as well as Daily Threads for Yesterday, March 17

NCAA Tournament 2014 Schedule: Times, Dates, Live Streaming and TV Info ↗

BRACKET: PDF ↗ | Join KU Buckets Group on ESPN ↗

!Top Basketball teams values ↗

Forbes: College Basketball's Most Valuable Teams 2014: #2 Kansas worth $33m ↗

In 2008 Kansas ranked eighth with a value of $16 million, which was below that year’s average value for a top-20 team. But Kansas is now worth $33 million, thanks largely to $13 million in ticket sales and, like Louisville (#1), massive contribution revenue: The Kansas athletic department collected $33 million in such donations. And Bill Self’s Jayhawks have been stellar on the court, too, generating more money for their conference from NCAA Tournament play than any other team in the nation.

Full List: College Basketball's Most Valuable Teams ↗

Eastern Kentucky eager for KU 'challenge' ↗

Eastern Kentucky men’s basketball coach Jeff Neubauer and his players had very little reaction to seeing Kansas University on the line above theirs when the 68-team NCAA Tournament bracket was revealed Sunday afternoon. “We knew we were going to draw a great team,” said Neubauer, now in his ninth season in charge of the Ohio Valley Conference tournament champions. “We knew we were gonna draw a Duke or Michigan or Kansas. And we just happened to draw one of the greatest programs in the history of college basketball, so our team is looking forward to the challenge, and we’ll see if we’re ready for this test.”

Self pleased with KU's No. 2 seed despite tough NCAA regional draw ↗

Kansas University basketball coach Bill Self can make a case for the NCAA Tournament’s South Regional being the toughest of all four in the upcoming Big Dance. "But you just want to win two games this weekend. That’s the focus,” Self said after it was revealed his No. 2-seeded Jayhawks would meet No. 15 seed Eastern Kentucky in a South Regional opener at 3:10 p.m. Friday in St. Louis.

KU basketball's Conner Frankamp, Perry Ellis keeping tabs on hometown Wichita State ↗

Because he’s a Wichita native, it’s only natural for friends to razz Conner Frankamp about Wichita State’s 34-0 record this year, and how he perhaps should have picked his hometown school.

“I get that quite a bit now, just because they’re doing so good,” the Kansas freshman guard said. “But I wouldn’t want to be anywhere else except here.”

Heartland a hotbed for hoops ↗

All three of the Sunflower State’s programs are back in the NCAA Tournament this year, and all are ninth seeds or better, led by No. 1 seed Wichita State. There are three schools from Oklahoma in the dance. Two from Nebraska. Two more made it from Iowa. Saint Louis is in the field, too.

ESPN Sports Science: Andrew Wiggins ↗

ESPN Sport Science examines what sets Andrew Wiggins apart from everyone else in college hoops.

Keegan: Column: Without Embiid, possible UNM rematch would be toss-up ↗

One game, more than any other, demonstrated how much having 7-foot freshman center Joel Embiid on the floor changes the Kansas University basketball team for the better: Dec. 14 in Sprint Center against New Mexico, a possible NCAA Tournament opponent in St. Louis if KU survives Eastern Kentucky.

NY Times: Kansas Has Star on the Court and Maybe One in Reserve ↗

There are times when Andrew Wiggins, the versatile freshman guard for Kansas, will scowl, smile and laugh, displaying the usual emotions of a 19-year-old navigating his first collegiate postseason.

Globe and Mail: Is Canada’s Andrew Wiggins too nice to be an NBA superstar? ↗

Before the game, there are rituals.
They begin with a hymn, fans at Allen Fieldhouse draping their arms around each other, and then comes an incantation, drawn out like a Gregorian chant: “Rock. Chalk. Jayhawk. K.U.”
The noise builds ahead of tipoff on a Saturday evening in February in Lawrence. In this church of U.S. college basketball, a video extols history – James Naismith, Wilt Chamberlain, national championships – and celebrates the promise of the present.

AP: Study: Eight teams fail to meet standard; KU perfect ↗

Orlando, Fla. — An annual study of the schools in the men’s NCAA tournament shows a slight increase in teams that fall below graduation rate standards.

The University of Central Florida’s Institute for Diversity and Ethics in Sport said in its report Monday that eight teams that made the 2014 men’s bracket fall below the NCAA-mandated Academic Progress Rate score of 930, equivalent to a 50 percent graduation rate. Last year six teams didn’t reach that benchmark.

Pattani: Filling out a bracket with BPI's insight ↗

While ESPN’s Basketball Power Index wasn’t designed to be purely predictive, there has been interest in using BPI to help with picking NCAA Tournament brackets. It’s one thing to just look at the BPI rankings and pick the higher-ranked team to win each matchup. If you do that this year, you end up with a pretty chalky bracket with all four No. 1 seeds making the Final Four and Arizona over Florida in the title game.

A more nuanced way to look at things, however, is to determine the percentage chance of each team getting to each round. This can help not only by taking into account the effects of opponent strength round-by-round (beyond just “better BPI”), but it also helps illuminate what might be considered smart upset picks and undervalued or overvalued teams.

Dodd: KU knows it has to win while awaiting Embiid ↗

If you believe in the aura of advanced statistics — the formulas and algorithms that dominate the modern sports landscape — the loss of a promising freshman center can be overcome.

Please add stories here

Also see our Daily Threads, March 18, and the News Digest for Yesterday, March 17, as well as Daily Threads for Yesterday, March 17

@VailHawk Instigator!

@JayHawkFanToo right now we are woefully behind by several versions on Nodebb. I have tried to upgrade on a test server with our real dats but hit a data issue that failed the upgrade and I will have to consider either trying to fix and migrate our data if possible or start clean in the off season. Once we get up to date I think we should evaluate the feature set from there. As for contacting me just email me at approxinfinity@gmail.com

@wissoxfan83 Awesome! [You trashed Vail like Bode Miller](

It doesn't have to be in for play-in games, thankfully.

@Crimsonorblue22 - If you already have an espn account with your email address, you'll have to login as that one, or create a new account, yep. If you can't remember password, I see they do have a sign in - forgot - password link.

@JayhawkRock78 what you do is create a bracket and then add it to the Kubuckets group. Should work!

@bskeet should be fun! Looks like a good year for Buffet to put a bill on the table for the perfect bracket!

edit: I had initially said Pickens. Thanks for the correction JayHawkFanToo. I guess I'm a classist!

@bskeet You are the man, skeet!