Kansas basketball coach Bill Self is used to both emphasizing and relying on defense to carry his Jayhawk teams where he wants them to go.
But through the first 10 games of the 2016-17 season, his current squad, stacked with offensive firepower, big time shooters and natural scorers, is challenging to make offense the focal point of this KU team.
That’s not to say that Self ever will allow scoring points to carry more weight than preventing them. As has been the case for years, the fact remains that if you don’t play defense, you don’t play for Self. But even Self said Saturday, following his team’s 89-72 victory over Nebraska at Allen Fieldhouse, there was an often overlooked reason some of those teams from the past developed the reputation as stout defensive squads.
“Most of our best defensive teams, the one reason why they were better defensively is because we weren’t as good offensively,” Self said. “When you score easily, sometimes you have a tendency to think everything’s OK.”
So far this season, the Jayhawks have scored easily. Not everywhere and not every night out. But the Jayhawks have been terrific in transition, deadly from three-point range and have five players averaging 9.1 points per game or better, including senior guard Frank Mason III, who leads the team at 20.5 points per game and has led the Jayhawks in scoring in eight of the 10 games they’ve played. Mason also has scored 18 points or more nine of 10 times this season.
“I’m not saying we’re unbelievable offensively,” Self said. “But we’ve scored easier this year than any team we’ve had in a long time.”
The Kansas offense currently ranks 12th in the country, averaging 87.9 points per game — compared to just 68.6 points for their opponents — and sits there despite shooting just .588 from the free throw line.
Kansas has missed 91 of the 221 free throws it has attempted this season. Even making just half of those misses, thus bringing the team free throw percentage to .792, would have pushed the Jayhawks’ scoring average to 92.4 points per game and moved them into fifth place nationally.
“There’s no excuse for our team missing free throws,” Self said, “because we have a gymnasium where we live with three goals on it just for guys to shoot free throws, so we’re going to have to do more…. It hasn’t yet, but it’s going to cost us if we can’t start making some shots.”
Freshman guard Josh Jackson, who is averaging 14.8 points per game, is one of the team’s biggest culprits. Jackson barely has made more free throws than he has missed (29-of-53, .547) and ranks second on the team in attempts.
“I missed a lot today,” said Jackson Saturday following 3-of-8 shooting against Nebraska. “More than I really would’ve liked to. It’s definitely a mental thing. After you miss a couple you really get to think about missing a lot and you really don’t want to miss.”
Unlike many statistics, free throw shooting really is a black and white proposition. Make or miss. There is no close or ‘atta boy for trying. But there is an added element to the team’s poor showing thus far that has disappointed Self and possibly prevented the Jayhawks from scoring more points elsewhere on the floor.
“That kills all momentum, when you can’t make free throws,” Self said.
And momentum can lead to more points, which Nebraska coach Tim Miles saw plenty of from the home team on Saturday afternoon.
“These guys are fast on tape,” Miles said. “Which is scary because everybody looks awful on tape.”