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Lynette Woodard, the leading scorer in Div. I college basketball history, is well aware of Danny Manning’s coach success and is not the least bit surprised by it.
Although he would prefer for his team to be traveling there with him, Kansas basketball coach Bill Self will be in Arizona this weekend, when he will find out if he will be included in the Class of 2017 for the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame. During the past several days, in a series examining Self’s path to the Hall of Fame, the Journal-World explored a few of those qualities with some of the people who know him best. By Matt Tait
Make it two days in a row of making history for Kansas senior Frank Mason III, who on Friday was named the winner of this year's Oscar Robertson Trophy given out annually to college basketball's player of the year by the U.S. Basketball Writers Association. By Matt Tait
The words repetition and spring football essentially are synonymous these days around Anderson Family Football Complex. It’s the time of year when head coach David Beaty and his assistants install their plays, in doses of three practices. By the time the Jayhawks conclude training after 15 total sessions, they will have gone through the complete install five times over. By Benton Smith
Although he would prefer for his team to be traveling there with him, Kansas basketball coach Bill Self will be in Arizona this weekend, when he will find out if he will be included in the Class of 2017 for the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame. During the next several days, in a series examining Self’s path to the Hall of Fame, the Journal-World will explore a few of Self's best qualities with some of the people who know him best. By Tom Keegan
Frank Mason became on Thursday the 51st college basketball player named player of the year by the Associated Press, which has handed out the award 57 times. A check of the records shows that the first 50 recipients all went on to play in the NBA with varying degrees of success.
Already honored as the top player in college basketball during the 2016-17 season by several national publications, Kansas senior Frank Mason III on Thursday picked up one of the big boys. By Matt Tait
When head coach David Beaty and his assistants met ahead of spring football to discuss the areas where they needed to identify players who can help Kansas in 2017, it wasn’t hard to spot the position with the biggest question marks: cornerback. By Benton Smith
A loud contingent of Kansas fans were in the United Center on Wednesday night for the 40th annual McDonald’s All-America game, cheering on future Jayhawk forward Billy Preston. The highly touted prospect did not disappoint them.
Although he would prefer for his team to be traveling there with him, Kansas basketball coach Bill Self will be in Arizona this weekend, when he will find out if he will be included in the Class of 2017 for the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame. During the next several days, in a series examining Self’s path to the Hall of Fame, the Journal-World will explore a few of Self's best qualities with some of the people who know him best. By Matt Tait
Although they won't fly to Hawaii or the Bahamas for any competitions next season, the Kansas men's basketball team still will get an opportunity to play one game in the shadows of palm trees and the beach. By Matt Tait
A two-run, fourth-inning single by Owen Taylor were the only runs for Kansas’ baseball team in a 5-2 loss to Minnesota on Tuesday night at Hoglund Ballpark.
David Beaty and his assistants hadn’t sent their Kansas football players through drills and one-on-one situations or hit them with various install instructions in nearly two weeks, but the head coach said his Jayhawks didn’t look behind schedule when the team reconvened for practice Tuesday, following spring break. By Benton Smith
Although he would prefer for his team to be traveling there with him, Kansas basketball coach Bill Self will be in Arizona this weekend, when he will find out if he will be included in the Class of 2017 for the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame. During the next several days, in a series examining Self’s path to the Hall of Fame, the Journal-World will explore a few of Self's best qualities with some of the people who know him best.By Matt Tait
A few days after Kansas lost to Oregon in the Elite Eight, KU signee Billy Preston stood in the concourse of the United Center, where he is set to play Wednesday in the 40th annual McDonald’s All-American Game. KU’s defeat still feels like a fresh wound, but the 6-foot-10, 230-pound Preston was looking forward. He’s confident that the loss to Oregon can be the building block for an even brighter future in Lawrence. “It was a great season, we fought hard, that showed we had a lot of fight and heart inside of us,” said Preston. “With that being said, I want to bring that same competitiveness next year.” By Eli Kaberon
Frank Mason III was a last-minute recruit for Kansas. He turned into the Jayhawks' latest All-American. The senior guard was the only unanimous selection to the 2016-17 AP All-America team Tuesday, receiving all first-team votes from the same 65-member national media panel that selects the weekly AP Top 25.
Although he would prefer for his team to be traveling there with him, Kansas basketball coach Bill Self will be in Arizona this weekend, when he will find out if he will be included in the Class of 2017 for the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame. During the next several days, in a series examining Self’s path to the Hall of Fame, the Journal-World will explore a few of Self's best qualities with some of the people who know him best.By Matt Tait
His ability to maximize his opportunities in life probably had as much as anything to do with Frank Mason becoming such a popular figure in his four seasons as a Kansas basketball player.
Kansas senior Frank Mason III, who figures to earn many postseason accolades in the next week, joined freshman teammate Josh Jackson on the 10-member Wooden Award All-American Team, announced Monday night by the Los Angeles Athletic Club.
Ask David Beaty about new quarterback Peyton Bender this spring and odds are the Kansas football head coach won’t fire off too many words in response without bringing up returning QB Carter Stanley. Or vice versa. By Benton Smith
It will take more than the rain that fell on Lawrence on Sunday night to wash away the melancholy hovering since the Kansas basketball team’s 74-60, Saturday night loss to Oregon at Sprint Center.
Junior shortstop Matt McLaughlin is well aware Kansas’ offensive struggles this season. Entering Sunday’s game against Samford, the Kansas baseball team ranked last in the Big 12 in batting average, RBIs, and home runs. By Evan Riggs
As soon as the ball left her bat, Kansas junior catcher Harli Ridling began her trot around the bases. By Shane Jackson
The sun did, in fact, come up in Lawrence, Kansas, on Sunday morning, but its arrival was not the signaling of the beginning of Final Four preparations for the Kansas men’s basketball team. By Matt Tait
Entering Saturday’s Elite Eight game against Kansas at Sprint Center, the Jayhawks’ home away from home, Oregon basketball players were happy to play the role of the underdog. By Bobby Nightengale
Saturday’s 74-60, Elite Eight loss to Oregon at Sprint Center left a handful of Jayhawks to face questions about their futures. By Matt Tait
Almost as a forewarning of how he planned to dominate the paint Saturday night at Sprint Center, 6-foot-9 Oregon forward Jordan Bell denied a Josh Jackson layup and snagged an offensive rebound within the first minute of the Midwest Regional Final, against top-seeded Kansas. The junior’s energetic approach on both ends of the floor injected his upset-minded Ducks with the kind of punch it would take to knock the Jayhawks out of the NCAA Tournament. By Benton Smith
A man wearing a blue shirt that covered his black heart took the opportunity late during the quiet of a 74-60 Oregon victory to lean over the wall that separates the first row of seats from press row and unloaded with words that Devonte' Graham never should have had to hear after the season he had, and the tremendous three games he played to help Kansas get to the brink of the Final Four. By Tom Keegan
After steam-rolling their way through the first three games of this year’s NCAA Tournament at a record pace, top-seeded Kansas ran into a team equally as willing to run and just as confident Saturday night at Sprint Center. By Matt Tait
Moments before tip-off, David Dyer was unequivocal about the Jayhawks’ chances in their Elite Eight contest against the Oregon Ducks. “Ten out of ten,” Dyer said of his confidence level. The Kansas City, Kan. visitor had hardly gotten the words out of his mouth before University of Kansas freshman phenom Josh Jackson got his second foul. It ended up being that type of night in Downtown Lawrence, where any bar with a good set of T.V.s was full, but the downtown all evening was a bit like the Jayhawks — far from electric.
Masters of the comeback during the regular season, the top-seeded Kansas Jayhawks couldn’t dig themselves out of their first massive hole of the NCAA Tournament Saturday night at Sprint Center. The Pac-12 champion Oregon Ducks scored with ease for stretches, led by as many as 18 points in the second half and ended KU’s season one game away from the Final Four, with a 74-60 victory by the No. 3 seed in front of an angry, hostile, pro-Kansas crowd. By Benton Smith
By the end of Saturday night at Sprint Center, one team Richard Lucas loves will advance to the Final Four. And the other’s season will be over. The proud father of KU's Landen Lucas said Friday he’s certain the scene will feel a bit bizarre just before tip-off. It wasn’t all that long ago that his son wore Oregon colors just about every day and openly cheered for his dad’s alma mater. By Benton Smith
Saturday morning, when the Oregon Ducks go through their final walk-through for a 7:49 p.m., Elite Eight showdown with top-seeded Kansas at Sprint Center, the players on their scout team will look and act a lot different than the players they’ll face at game time. By Matt Tait
A look at some of the keys for top-seeded Kansas in Saturday's Midwest Regional championship game against No. 3 seed Oregon at Sprint Center. By Matt Tait
It was more of a fireside chat than an interrogation, but it carried with it one of the most important messages the Kansas men’s basketball team heard all season. By Matt Tait
At the beginning of the season, Kansas basketball players weren’t sure how much time they’d spend on the court in a four-guard lineup. Now the small-ball lineup is one of the reasons the Jayhawks are thriving in the NCAA Tournament. By Bobby Nightengale
The top-seeded Kansas Jayhawks won’t be the only team on the floor tonight at Sprint Center with memories of coming up short on the Elite Eight stage one year ago driving them to achieve something greater this time around. Third-seeded Oregon, too, finished just one victory short of the Final Four twelve months back. By Benton Smith
The way Frank Mason III, then a freshman, answered my question about whether he thought he would before his Kansas career ended duplicate his 50-point game in a high school summer All-Star game in Richmond, Va., was when I first realized this was an athlete armed with boundless confidence. By Tom Keegan
On a wildly entertaining display of fast-break basketball Thursday night at Sprint Center, Kansas showed why it has the best backcourt in America, Frank Mason III buried any debate as to the most deserving candidate for national player-of-the-year honors, and Devonte’ Graham established himself as one of the favorites to win them next year. By Tom Keegan
The Kansas men’s basketball team may very well have the national player of the year on its team in senior guard Frank Mason III, who scored 26 points on 9-of-11 shooting and added seven rebounds and seven assists in 35 minutes during Thursday’s Sweet 16 showdown with Purdue. By Matt Tait
Kansas basketball coach Bill Self, who has been on both sides of more than a few of these types of NCAA Tournament chess matches, stressed to his team all week that speed beats size. Perhaps it was just to provide his team with confidence. Maybe it was to knock Purdue down a peg. Maybe it was just the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth the way Self saw it. Either way, the top-seeded Jayhawks proved their coach right in a big way — and a bunch of ways — during Thursday’s explosive, 98-66, Sweet 16 victory. By Matt Tait
After KU’s 98-66 victory over Purdue in the Sweet 16 on Thursday at Sprint Center, Purdue head coach Matt Painter was asked whether he could see anybody stopping the Jayhawks. By Bobby Nightengale
The top seed in the Midwest is one victory away from the biggest stage in college basketball. Kansas put on a Sweet 16 show Thursday night at Sprint Center, flying by Purdue for a 98-66 victory. By Benton Smith
The Big Ten flavor to the top-seeded Kansas Jayhawks’ run through the NCAA Tournament’s Midwest Region ended Thursday night at Sprint Center, thanks to the Pac 12’s Oregon Ducks, who edged Michigan, 69-68, in the Sweet 16. By Benton Smith
The Kansas baseball team jumped on Creighton for two runs on three hits in the first inning, but the offense fizzled the rest of the way in its 7-3 loss to the Bluejays on Wednesday at Hoglund Ballpark.
At a point in the season when most teams are looking for any extra edge they can get, the Kansas men’s basketball team is just fine where it is. By Matt Tait
With their seasons on the line, both top-seeded Kansas and fourth-seeded Purdue will ride national player of the year candidates Frank Mason III and Caleb Swanigan into a Sweet 16 clash Thursday night in Kansas City, Mo. By Matt Tait
Most of the ballots were mailed and the majority of the votes will be counted by the time Frank Mason and Caleb Swanigan face off against each other Thursday night in the Sweet 16. By Bobby Nightengale
Gene Keady’s coaching offspring will be represented on both benches for the second NCAA Midwest regional played tonight in Sprint Center. By Tom Keegan
A look at some of the keys for top-seeded Kansas in Thursday's Sweet 16 showdown with fourth-seeded Purdue at Sprint Center in Kansas City, Mo. By Matt Tait
When the Midwest Region’s fourth-seeded Purdue Boilermakers took the floor at Sprint Center Wednesday afternoon for practice, they received what freshman guard Carsen Edwards deemed a nice reception. No discernible boos. Just some cheers from a small contingent of Purdue supporters. Edwards and his teammates know not to expect the same when they return to the arena Thursday night for their Sweet 16 matchup with top-seeded Kansas. By Benton Smith
The buildup for this Sweet 16 game that pits Purdue against Kansas has the feel of a college football bowl week, all the talk centering on the big bodies of the Big Ten clashing with the sleek speed of the Big 12, tanks vs. sports cars. By Tom Keegan
When Purdue sophomore forward Caleb Swanigan steps onto a basketball court his individual production has become a foregone conclusion. The 6-foot-9, 250-pound Big Ten Player of the Year goes by his lifelong alias of “Biggie,” but one could accurately also call him Mr. Double-Double. His surname or nickname could be heard on a near-constant loop inside locker rooms at Sprint Center Wednesday, as he, his teammates and Purdue’s upcoming opponents, the Kansas Jayhawks, spoke at length about their Sweet 16 showdown. By Benton Smith
The first reward of the Kansas men’s basketball team’s ability to land the No. 1 seed in the Midwest region in nearby Kansas City, Mo., in this year’s NCAA Tournament figures to show up loud and clear Wednesday afternoon.
Typically enthusiastic any time he gets to talk about his Jayhawks, third-year Kansas football coach David Beaty came across predictably excited this past week at the start of spring practices. While the Jayhawks’ exuberant leader entered spring ball curious to check in on the development of returning players, he paid closest attention on the first day to mid-year additions, to see what they had to offer. By Benton Smith
At this time of year, a team’s mentality can mean everything. And Kansas men’s basketball coach Bill Self said Tuesday that he was pleased with where his Jayhawks sit in that department heading into preparations for Thursday’s Sweet 16 showdown with Purdue. By Matt Tait
The NCAA tournament has a way of bringing on flashbacks of regular-season moments that stood out as different, went back under the radar, and resurface in March to enable a team to survive and advance. By Tom Keegan
Just before 4 p.m. Tuesday, less than an hour after leaving Lawrence, the Kansas men’s basketball team arrived at the Westin Crown Center, its headquarters for the second weekend of this year’s NCAA Tournament. By Matt Tait
Only one double-digit seed (Xavier) survived the first week of the NCAA tournament, but that doesn’t mean surprising developments didn’t surface.
An opponent of each team during the 2016-17 season, Nebraska basketball coach Tim Miles on Monday broke down top-seeded Kansas’ upcoming match-up with fourth-seeded Purdue, set for approximately 8:39 p.m. Thursday in the Sweet 16 in Kansas City, Mo. By Matt Tait
Three months after a 16-year-old girl was reportedly raped at the University of Kansas men’s basketball team dorm, the case remains under police investigation with no new details being released.
Freshman Madison Sykes hit a walk-off three-run home run, and Kansas’ softball team rallied past Southeast Missouri State, 6-5, on Sunday at Arrocha Ballpark.
Kansas sophomore Nina Khmelnitckaia won her fourth consecutive singles match, and the Jayhawks’ women’s tennis team defeated North Texas, 6-1, on Sunday in Denton, Texas.
Jackson Goddard allowed one hit in 7 1/3 innings, Owen Taylor hit a tiebreaking home run in the ninth inning, and Kansas defeated TCU, 4-3, in Big 12 baseball Sunday in Fort Worth, Texas.
The Kansas Jayhawks are coming home, and when they get there, a date with Purdue in the nearby NCAA Tournament will be waiting. By Matt Tait
After Kansas advanced to the Sweet 16 with a 90-70 second-round victory at BOK Center, Michigan State coach Tom Izzo said the Spartans lost to the better team. By Bobby Nightengale
When Kansas guard Frank Mason and Michigan State forward Miles Bridges stood chest-to-chest exchanging boxer’s glares early in the game, nobody in attendance would dispute program listings that showed Bridges with an 8-inch, 40-pound advantage. By Tom Keegan
Saturday afternoon, inside a locker room that one day later would turn into the scene of a bunch of smiles and satisfaction, Kansas freshman Josh Jackson was asked by a handful of Michigan State reporters why he chose Kansas over MSU. By Matt Tait
Kansas City, here they come. The Midwest’s No. 1 seed, the Kansas Jayhawks, took care of business Sunday at BOK Center, running away from Michigan State late in a 90-70 victory, that sends KU to Sprint Center for a Sweet 16 matchup with Purdue. By Benton Smith
TCU starter Jared Janczak retired Kansas’ first 22 batters in a 5-1 victory over the Jayhawks on Saturday night at Fort Worth, Texas.
Tulsa rallied for three runs in the seventh inning and edged Kansas, 4-3, in college softball Saturday at Arrocha Ballpark
Kansas’ doubles team of Anastasia Rychagova and Maria Toran Ribes won their fifth straight match, and KU’s women’s tennis team blanked Columbia, 4-0, on Saturday in Denton, Texas.
Kansas sophomore forward Carlton Bragg produced six points and five rebounds in 13 minutes off the bench in Friday’s 100-62, first-round NCAA tournament victory against UC Davis. If he can produce in similar fashion against tougher competition on a consistent basis, that can only help Kansas to survive and advance.
Now that the recruiting battle that Michigan State coach Tom Izzo lost to Bill Self of Kansas for the pleasure of coaching Josh Jackson for his one year has faded from view in the rear-view mirror, Izzo felt comfortable Saturday afternoon revealing his failed strategy.
A look at some of the keys for top-seeded Kansas in Sunday's second-round clash with No. 9 seed Michigan State in Tulsa, Okla. By Matt Tait
They have more than 1,100 wins between them and are regarded as two of the finest coaches in college basketball history. But the one thing that Kansas coach Bill Self and Michigan State coach Tom Izzo have that might mean the most is a genuine friendship. By Matt Tait
Ten months after learning about the sly and sweet story of a set of twins being named in his honor, Kansas senior Landen Lucas got the chance to meet them Saturday in the lobby of the team hotel before the Jayhawks’ practice. By Matt Tait
On a night when the Kansas men’s basketball team reached the century mark for just the second time this season, all anybody wanted to talk about was the Jayhawks’ defense. By Matt Tait
It doesn’t take much to spark the No. 1-seeded Kansas basketball team, and perhaps, all it took was one whistle Friday. By Bobby Nightengale
For the second year in a row, the Jayhawks’ second-round foe will be a team that has reached a Final Four more recently than Kansas, as No. 9 seed Michigan State knocked off No. 8 Miami, 78-58, in Friday's final game at BOK Center. Last season, KU knocked off UConn in the second round in Des Moines, Iowa. By Matt Tait
Sviatoslav Mykhailiuk had the ball in the left corner and the pro-Kansas crowd in his ears midway through the second half of Friday night’s NCAA tournament opener for the Jayhawks. By Tom Keegan
The UC Davis Aggies did all they could to hang around and compete with Kansas on Friday night at BOK Center. But then the Jayhawks unleashed a barrage of plays, some believable, others not, that reminded everyone watching why KU spent most of the season ranked in the Top 5. By Matt Tait
Sure, Kansas played a tad rusty after an eight-day layoff leading up to its NCAA Tournament opener. But the Jayhawks again looked the part of the No. 1 seed in the Midwest before halftime, with star freshman Josh Jackson back in the lineup. With KU’s dynamic four-guard backcourt of Jackson, Frank Mason III, Devonte’ Graham and Svi Mykhailiuk back intact, the Jayhawks drubbed the overmatched Aggies, 100-62, to move on to the tourney’s second round. By Benton Smith
Exactly 11 years ago Friday, Jim Les coached a team past Kansas in the first round of the NCAA Tournament. By Bobby Nightengale
Life has been good for the Kansas softball team in the friendly confines of Arrocha Ballpark this season. After going 3-0 last weekend in the Jayhawk Invitational, Kansas kept on rolling in its home ballpark with a 5-3 win over UMKC on Thursday in its first of five games in the Rock Chalk Challenge.
Kansas basketball coach Bill Self said Thursday that he did not expect guard Josh Jackson to elevate his game in an attempt to atone for recent mistakes that cost Jackson a game and the Jayhawks a victory heading into the NCAA Tournament. But don't be surprised if that's exactly what he gets. By Matt Tait
Veteran leadership is so important in March, yet so seldom explained as well as Josh Jackson captured it Thursday afternoon from a seat at his locker.
SMU junior forward Semi Ojeleye played a full season and six games of another for Duke, playing home games at charming, historic Cameron Indoor Stadium.
A look at some of the keys for top-seeded and third-ranked Kansas in Friday's opening round of the NCAA Tournament against No. 16 seed UC Davis at BOK Center in Tulsa, Oklahoma. By Matt Tait
Former teammates at Lawrence's Free State High, reserves Tyler Self and Georgi Funtarov will become foes for Friday's NCAA Tournament game between Kansas and UC-Davis. By Benton Smith
Kansas coach Bill Self on Thursday was named a finalist for the annual Werner Ladder Naismith Men's College Coach of the Year award. By Matt Tait
A newly released court document in the incident between KU basketball star Josh Jackson and women’s basketball player McKenzie Calvert includes allegations that Jackson said he was going to “beat” the female athlete.
So far, Jackson’s free-throw shooting has equated to Cindy Crawford’s mole, but he’s not far from solving the problem, according to Townsend, who has had a hand in Jackson’s vastly improved 3-point shooting.
The first NCAA Tournament appearance in UC-Davis men’s basketball history will last at least two games. The Aggies won their March Madness debut Wednesday night, at the First Four, in Dayton, Ohio. Their 67-63 victory over North Carolina Central set up a Friday meeting in Tulsa, Okla., versus the Midwest’s No. 1 seed, Kansas.
At 4:55 p.m. on a sunny and mild Wednesday afternoon in the heart of Oklahoma, two buses carrying the Kansas men’s basketball team and its travel party pulled up to the northeast entrance of the team hotel, 13 miles east of Downtown Tulsa, marking the official beginning of KU’s 2017 NCAA Tournament run. By Matt Tait
The Kansas Board of Regents on Wednesday voted unanimously to name a new University of Kansas baseball facility in honor of longtime KU supporter Rich Jantz.
Kansas Athletics officials said Tuesday they want to meet with the father of a KU women’s basketball player who alleges she has been mistreated by the university, but the father thus far has not agreed to a meeting.
An assistant coach to four different Kansas head coaches in 17 seasons, defensive coordinator Clint Bowen can attest as well as anybody to how tough it is to compete against a Big 12 schedule. That realty probably helps to explain why Bowen tends not to spread hype about the football program for which he has worked for most of his adult life.
The Kansas football team’s offense has a new coordinator for 2017, but that doesn’t mean the Jayhawks hit the restart button on the Air Raid system head coach David Beaty implemented prior to Doug Meacham’s arrival. By Benton Smith
Winning 600-plus games, 13 consecutive conference championships and reaching the Elite Eight or beyond in eight of your 22 seasons as a college basketball coach will get you to the brink of the Hall of Fame.
Is it possible by the end of KU’s spring schedule in late April Beaty will have a clear No. 1 QB in sophomore Carter Stanley or junior college transfer Peyton Bender? By Benton Smith
Fish Smithson couldn’t sleep Sunday night. The safety’s three-season Kansas football career ended nearly four months ago and almost everything he had done since was leading up to Monday morning and a couple hours full of measurements and stop watches at KU’s annual pro day. By Benton Smith
Josh Jackson arrived at Kansas amid inevitable comparisons to Andrew Wiggins. Their similar size (6-foot-8), ranking (No. 1 by Rivals) and excuse-me-while-I-kiss-the-sky dunking histories made it impossible not to compare them, not to wonder which would leave a louder one-year mark on Kansas basketball.
Rested and ready for one final run at the Final Four before his career ends, Kansas forward Landen Lucas is leaving no stone unturned. By Matt Tait
The U.S. Basketball Writers Associaton on Monday named KU senior Frank Mason III as one of five first-team All-Americans and a finalist for the Oscar Robertson national player of the year award. By Matt Tait
With freshman guard Josh Jackson set to return from a one-game suspension, Kansas men’s basketball coach Bill Self was asked on Monday morning’s Big 12 coaches teleconference if he, for any reason, had seen or known of anything at all that might keep Jackson from playing for the Jayhawks moving forward. “Hell no,” Self said. “OK? That answered your question.”By Matt Tait
A look back at KU's NCAA record streak of 28 consecutive NCAA Tournament appearances, dating back to Roy Williams' first season as the head coach at KU. By Matt Tait
Thirteen reasons why the 2016-17 Kansas men's basketball team can make it all the way this March and cut down the nets in Arizona at the Final Four. By Matt Tait
A week before Selection Sunday, I selected 13 teams I think have a shot to win it all.
Searching for NCAA tournament patterns ranks high among futile activities because as soon as it seems one is emerging, it fades to black.
Sophomore pitcher Alexis Reid tossed her ninth complete game of the season, and Kansas’ softball team defeated Iowa, 6-2, on Sunday at Arrocha Ballpark for its second victory of the day in the Jayhawk Invitational.
Kansas’ women’s golf team finished 13th among 13 teams in the Suntrust Gator Women’s Invitational on Sunday in Gainesville, Fla.
Kansas senior Tess Bernard-Feigenbaum earned a victory at No. 2 singles, and KU sophomore Nina Khmelnitckia won at No. 4 singles, but the Jayhawks fell to Texas Tech, 4-2, in Big 12 women’s tennis Sunday at Jayhawk Tennis Center.
Sophomore starter Jackson Goddard unleashed a roar and pounded his chest as he walked back to the dugout. His catcher, freshman Jaxx Groshans, was the first to greet Goddard with an approving high-five. The rest of the Kansas baseball team bombarded him with a flurry of fist bumps and other congratulatory responses.
So many interesting angles popped off the page of the Midwest regional when the brackets came out on Selection Sunday.
Within an hour of learning that Wake Forest had made the 2017 NCAA Tournament and would face Kansas State in a First Four match-up this week in Dayton, Ohio, to earn one of four No. 11 seeds in the 64-team bracket, Kansas coach Bill Self had already exchanged text messages with Wake head coach and former Self assistant Danny Manning. By Matt Tait
Every March since he took over the program, Kansas basketball coach Bill Self and his staff have been able to begin preparation for their opening NCAA Tournament matchup as soon as they learned their seeding and region on Selection Sunday. Not this year. By Benton Smith
An earlier-than-expected loss to TCU in last weekend’s Big 12 tournament in Kansas City, Mo., did nothing to derail the Kansas men’s basketball team’s ideal path in the upcoming NCAA Tournament. By Matt Tait
The Big 12 Conference was considered one of the best conferences in the nation throughout the season and it was rewarded with six teams in the NCAA Tournament. By Bobby Nightengale
A season that began with high hopes, huge non-conference showdowns and a quest for a 13th consecutive Big 12 Conference title, moved into the postseason on Sunday with the Kansas men’s basketball team earning the No. 1 seed in the Midwest Region of the 2017 NCAA Tournament. By Matt Tait
Third-year Kansas football coach David Beaty and his players still have close to six months to get through before the 2017 season officially begins, but it feels much closer than that as of this weekend, with spring practices beginning on Monday. Here are five things to watch as KU enters spring football, a crucial portion of the offseason. By Benton Smith
Kansas’ women’s golf team was 11th among 13 teams after two rounds of the Suntrust Gator Women’s Invitational on Saturday in Gainesville, Fla.
Kansas junior Barden Adams took fifth place in the triple jump, and KU freshman Gleb Dudarev was sixth in the weight throw at the NCAA Indoor on Saturday at College Station, Texas.
Five key questions for the Kansas men’s basketball team entering the 2017 postseason, which begins next week in a to-be-determined location and ends whenever a team does to Kansas what only four squads were able to do all season or the Jayhawks cut down the nets in Arizona. By Matt Tait
Taylor Turski and Blake Weiman combined to pitch eight shutout innings, and Kansas baseball team defeated Houston Baptist, 2-1, in the first game of a doubleheader Friday at Hoglund Ballpark.
Harli Ridling homered, doubled and drove in five runs, and Kansas’ softball team defeated Wisconsin-Green Bay, 12-0, in its home opener Friday at Arrocha Ballpark.
While resting up, recharging and moving forward with a new mindset all figure to be benefits of the Jayhawks’ unexpected weekend off, the one aspect of improvement this team will focus on most between now and the opening tip in next week’s NCAA Tournament will be the one that let them down the most on Thursday — defense. By Matt Tait
The wooden basketball court floor inside McCarthy Hall sustained some water damage this week after a fire sprinkler head turned on inside the building.
The Kansas quarterfinal exit from the Big 12 basketball tournament Thursday underscored the importance of freshman Josh Jackson staying out of foul trouble and parking lots. By Tom Keegan
Forced to play without freshman All-American Josh Jackson for the first time in 32 tries this season, the Kansas men’s basketball team looked even thinner than normal, was out of sorts at times and struggled mightily at others in an 85-82 loss to eighth-seeded TCU in the Big 12 championship quarterfinals at Sprint Center. By Matt Tait
The easy answer was that top-seeded Kansas lost Thursday’s Big 12 quarterfinal to TCU at Sprint Center because the No. 1-ranked Jayhawks played without suspended guard Josh Jackson. By Matt Tait
As soon as TCU senior Brandon Parrish saw Kansas guard Devonte Graham’s 3-pointer at the buzzer bounce off of the rim, he punched the air and let out a scream. By Bobby Nightengale
The Kansas basketball team’s postseason began in a fashion the Jayhawks had mastered in the previous months: overcoming a dangerous deficit. For the ninth time this season, the nation’s No. 1-ranked team found itself in a double-digit hole, but for just the second time this season, KU came up short, losing 85-82 to TCU. By Benton Smith
Three days before the start of spring practice, Kansas football players and coaches had basketball on their minds — at least for a little while — Thursday at the Power & Light District. By Benton Smith
From 2004 to 2013, Jamie Dixon helped Pitt basketball become somewhat synonymous with the grueling Big East Tournament, reaching the finals four times and winning it in 2008. It’s a tradition the first-year TCU coach would like to bring with him to the Big 12’s postseason showcase. By Benton Smith
Representing the top seed in the Big 12 tournament at Sprint Center, Kansas coaches and players knew their quarterfinal would come against a team the Jayhawks swept in the regular season. Now they know exactly who they will have to knock off in the quarterfinals to advance. TCU, the event’s No. 8 seed, handled ninth-seeded Oklahoma, 82-63, Wednesday night, setting up a third meeting this season with KU.
Typically, those day-before-a-tournament-game practices that are open to the media amount to little more than extended shooting sessions. But Wednesday afternoon, inside Sprint Center, the Kansas men’s basketball team had work to do. By Matt Tait
Another off-court legal issue came to light Wednesday as the Kansas basketball program prepared for the start of the 2017 postseason. Kansas coach Bill Self on Wednesday morning announced that freshman guard Josh Jackson would miss Thursday’s Big 12 quarterfinal at Sprint Center to serve a one-game suspension for his role in a traffic incident in early February. By Matt Tait and Conrad Swanson
Arrivederci, Lawrence. The Kansas Jayhawks are headed to Italy.
Kansas coasted its 13th straight regular-season Big 12 championship in what has become a rite of spring, running roughshod over what is touted as one of the toughest leagues in the country.
Bill Self’s coaching tree never has looked more lush than it will on Selection Sunday.
While many expected junior guard Devonte' Graham to take his scoring punch to the next level this season, the Raleigh, N.C., native was much more well-rounded from start to finish and provides Kansas an incredible luxury heading into the postseason. By Matt Tait
For only the second time while winning 13 consecutive Big 12 titles, the Kansas Jayhawks have both The Associated Press conference player and coach of the year in the same season.
Kansas senior Frank Mason III on Sunday night received the first of what figures to be at least a handful of national player of the year nods, this one coming from BleacherReport.com. By mid-day Monday, Mason had racked up another, from NBC Sports, and also was included on several All-American teams voted on by various other national publications. By Matt Tait
Bill Hougland, a starter for the Kansas 1952 national championship team and a two-time Olympic gold medalist, died Monday. By Tom Keegan
With postseason play about to begin for what the Jayhawks expect to be an extended March run, the University of Kansas athletics department and adidas on Monday revealed another uniform option for KU to tie in with the madness ahead.
Kansas junior Daniel Sutton tied for eighth place, and KU’s men’s golf team tied for fourth place at the Desert Mountain Intercollegiate on Sunday in Scottsdale, Ariz.
James Madison handed Kansas’ softball team its third straight loss, 5-0 in the Citrus Classic II on Sunday in Orlando, Fla.
Kansas freshman Benjamin Sems walked right up to head baseball coach Ritch Price and apologized to him after Sunday’s series finale at Hoglund Ballpark.
With the regular season and a 13th consecutive Big 12 Conference title now behind them, the Kansas men’s basketball team is ready to shift gears into full postseason mode. By Matt Tait
It’s worth wondering if NBA scouts watching the college basketball game played at an NBA pace Saturday in Gallagher-Iba Arena left the building believing the same thing I did: Picking anybody but Kansas freshman Josh Jackson with the first selection is simply too risky a proposition to undertake because it could make whichever team passed on him look really, really bad in time.
Thirteen proved to be quite lucky this season for the Kansas men’s basketball team, which not only racked up a 13th-consecutive Big 12 Conference regular season title but did so on the strength of some extra hardware. By Matt Tait
Kansas’ men’s golf team was tied for second place after 36 holes in the Desert Mountain Intercollegiate on Saturday in Scottsdale, Ariz.
Ritch Price became Kansas baseball’s all-time winningest coach when the Jayhawks defeated Northwestern State, 11-7, on Saturday at Hoglund Ballpark.
In decades of coaching basketball — at the high school, college, pro and international levels, including championship wins — John McLendon never got a technical foul. The approximately 5-foot-6-inch African-American gentleman known to some as “Little Coach” was softspoken, deeply humble and never cursed. But that demeanor belied a grit that drove McLendon to be one of the most groundbreaking coaches in basketball history.
Snake-bitten in his home state by his alma mater more times than he’d care to remember, Kansas coach Bill Self walked out of Gallagher-Iba Arena on Saturday with his first victory there since 2013, 90-85 over Oklahoma State. By Matt Tait
To win this one, Kansas needed more than senior Frank Mason III effectively locking up national player-of-the-year honors and Josh Jackson again showing just how much a freshman so driven and talented can improve in every area of his game over the course of a season. This one wasn’t going to be won without a serious contribution from KU’s once-maligned bench. By Tom Keegan
In the final act of his regular-season audition for national player of the year, Kansas senior Frank Mason III turned in one of those games that could not be ignored. Twenty-seven points. Nine assists. Eight rebounds. One victory. By Matt Tait
In his four years at Kansas, point guard Frank Mason III has accomplished much for the Jayhawks. But he never had experienced a win at Oklahoma State. Until Saturday night. Displaying the type of toughness and ability to come through with crucial plays that have defined his stellar senior year, Mason led No. 1 KU to a 90-85 victory by doing it all. By Benton Smith
The Kansas women’s basketball team made a late charge in the fourth quarter, but it fell short and the Jayhawks’ season ended Friday night in Chesapeake Energy Arena.
After not playing for the sixth time in eight games in Friday night’s season finale, a 79-75 loss to Oklahoma State in the Big 12 women’s basketball tournament, Kansas sophomore guard McKenzie Calvert discussed with two reporters a Dec. 9 incident that led to KU men’s player Josh Jackson being charged with misdemeanor criminal damage to her car.
Kansas’ Mandy Roberts earned two victories in relief, pitching three shutout innings in a 4-3 victory over Purdue and three more shutout innings in a 5-4 win over Mercer as KU’s softball team won twice in the Citrus Classic II on Friday in Orlando, Fla. =
Kansas’ baseball team collected 15 hits in an 8-2 victory over Northwestern State on Friday at Hoglund Ballpark, and KU coach Ritch Price tied Floyd Temple as KU’s all-time winningest baseball coach.
A look at some of the keys for top-ranked Kansas in Saturday's regular season finale at Oklahoma State. By Matt Tait
Kansas basketball coach Bill Self said this week that his Jayhawks probably would be pretty upset with him if he limited their minutes in Saturday’s regular season finale at Oklahoma State. Senior forward Landen Lucas said Self would be correct. By Matt Tait
It’s not as if it hasn’t entered Kansas basketball coach Bill Self’s mind to start Lagerald Vick and bring Svi Mykhailiuk off the bench, but he likes what Vick’s doing for the team in his current role too much to pull the trigger on that switch.
The Atlanta Tipoff Club on Friday morning announced that Self, now in his 14th season at KU, had been named one of 10 semifinalists for the 2017 Werner Ladder Naismith Men's College Coach of the Year honor. By Matt Tait
The Kansas women's basketball team will face Oklahoma State tonight in the Big 12 Tournament.
Kansas women’s basketball coach Brandon Schneider made a big splash when Jessica Washington and McKenzie Calvert, big names among those familiar with hotshot women’s basketball recruits, announced they were transferring from North Carolina and USC. So far, Schneider is batting .500.
Kansas guard Svi Mykhailiuk’s recent shooting slump, while certainly not helping the Jayhawks any, has not exactly hurt them either. By Matt Tait
Kansas football players will finally get to graduate from the strength-and-conditioning and seven-on-seven portion of the offseason in less than two weeks, when third-year head coach David Beaty and his staff put the Jayhawks through their first spring practice, on Sunday, March 12. By Benton Smith
KU senior Frank Mason III and freshman Josh Jackson were two of 10 players named semifinalists for this year’s James A. Naismith Award, given annually to the nation’s most outstanding college basketball player.
Philadelphia center Joel Embiid’s season is over because of left knee problems, including a torn meniscus that is worse than the 76ers first thought.
In the mix for multiple national player of the year honors, a virtual lock for the Big 12 player of the year hardware and the heart and soul of a top-ranked Kansas team that has visions of hanging KU’s sixth national championship banner, KU senior Frank Mason III would not be where he was today without paying careful attention to building, maintaining and nurturing his body.By Matt Tait
The Kansas women’s basketball team’s 2-16 record in conference play didn’t dissuade the Big 12’s coaches from choosing the Jayhawks’ top player, junior guard Jessica Washington, as the conference’s Newcomer of the Year.
Kansas and Arizona State will play a home and home men’s basketball series in 2017 and 2018, KU officials confirmed to the Journal-World on Wednesday. By Matt Tait