“It is pretty uncommon now. Pretty much all the talented players leave early,” KU guard Russell Robinson said. “It’s giving the smaller schools more opportunities to make runs late in the tournament.

“We’re one of the teams with some seniors, guys who have been around, who have figured out the ropes. Having seniors bodes well for late-game situations. Hopefully it’ll be big for us this year.”

Tradition-rich, perennial-top-10 team KU, a squad that had no seniors on the roster a year ago, enters the 2007-08 season with five scholarship seniors – and a sixth senior in walk-on Brad Witherspoon.

KU coach Bill Self has seniors covering all the positions, so many seniors he could field a team of them: Robinson, Jeremy Case and Rodrick Stewart in the backcourt and on the wing, Sasha Kaun and Darnell Jackson on the inside, with Witherspoon ready, willing and able to enter off the bench.

Nick Krug

“Anytime you have a chance to have five, six seniors, I think you have to take advantage of it, and that’s definitely what we’re going to try to do,” freshman guard Tyrel Reed said.

He said it has been a blessing having so many seniors on the team.

“There’s a lot of leadership,” the Burlington native said. “There’s always someone to help you out, no matter what. If you are learning a play or playing pick-up, they have been through it. They’ve been here four years. I like having a lot of seniors.”

As do KU’s other freshmen.

“It’s great. I’ve learned a lot from Darnell, Sasha, Case and all those guys. It really molds a team together,” freshman center Cole Aldrich said. “When you have some old veterans, they can say, ‘Hey, this is what we need to do.’ If we need to get a basket in a crucial time, we can rely on one of our old guys to get that basket.

Thad Allender

“Those guys are 23, 24 years old. I’m only 18. It’s great to have somebody helping you.”

Freshman walk-on Conner Teahan of Leawood now gets to play alongside seniors who have helped KU to 81 victories against 20 losses while winning three Big 12 regular-season titles the last three years.

“They are all leaders and fun guys to be around and all great players,” Teahan said. “They are in the locker room having a great time. On the court, they take everything seriously. They set the tone for everybody else.

“It’s good to have veterans. They know what they are doing and can show you the way, especially this group of guys.”

Case actually is in his fifth year at KU, Stewart his third after transferring from USC and Witherspoon his second after joining the team following walk-on tryouts. Robinson, Jackson and Kaun are four-year players.

Nick Krug

“This year we bring everybody back except JuJu (Julian Wright). We are all a year older and have five (scholarship) seniors on the team. It’ll be a great opportunity for us to get big things accomplished,” senior pivot Kaun, a native of Tomsk, Russia, said.

“The way things are going nowadays, people come to college one, two years and are gone to the pros. We’ve been fortunate enough all the guys stayed. We lost some down the road, C.J. (Giles) and Alex (Galindo, transfers) from my class, but we still have five graduating this year. It’s definitely exciting. I’m really pumped for this year.”

KU last had a batch of seniors back in 2004-05, when the Jayhawks went 23-7 and won the league title but lost the first round of the NCAAs.

“It’s pretty rare. The last time here was with Keith (Langford), Wayne (Simien), Mike (Lee) and Aaron (Miles), all those guys,” said Case, who hails from McAlester, Okla. Robinson is from New York City, Jackson from Oklahoma City, Stewart from Seattle and Witherspoon from Humboldt.

“Hopefully this isn’t the last time, but it will be pretty unusual in the future just because players are getting better and want to go to the NBA so bad they don’t want to stay four years. I’m happy we have so many. I think it does help a team out,” Case added.

Bill Self is happy have experienced seniors to lean on in games and in practice.

“The best thing you can have is great senior leadership, and the worst thing you can have is unhappy seniors,” Self said. “You would rather not have any seniors at all if they are not good leaders. I think we are blessed this year. We have seniors that are good leaders, guys with a chance to win four straight Big 12 crowns, win three straight Big 12 tournament crowns.

“They know at Kansas we are measured at a high level. They want to be recognized as one of the winningest classes. It’s hard to do that if you win Big 12 titles, but you don’t go to the Final Four. They know that. I’m not saying it’s ‘Final Four or bust,’ but I’m saying in their minds that is what we’re striving for.”

KU could have some seniors next year if Brandon Rush and Mario Chalmers decide to stick around. Rush, however, is considered a lock to leave for the NBA, with Chalmers possibly doing the same. If they enter the draft, Brennan Bechard and Matt Kleinmann would be the only seniors next season.

“If I was a senior … we talk about this some … if as an underclassman you jeopardize that senior going out in style, he has every right to be all over you,” Self said. “For the seniors, this is it.”

“It” as in the final go-round. Each practice and game are to be cherished, something the players will never get back.

“It will be great to have a Senior Day,” Robinson said, remembering KU had no Senior Day a year ago. “It will be a great experience, one I’ll probably remember the rest of my life. I look forward to it, but am not in any rush for it to happen. I’m just going to enjoy this year.”