Fresh off of their 79-72 victory over Creighton on Saturday in Fort Worth, Texas, Kansas Jayhawks Ochai Agbaji, Remy Martin and Jalen Wilson clearly liked the sound of what head coach Bill Self was getting at following the win.

“I’ll ask the guys what they want to do,” Self said when asked about how the next few days would unfold ahead of their trip to Chicago for the Sweet 16 next Friday. “If they want to have Monday off, or we could do a walk-through on Monday and then just practice Tuesday, Wednesday or whatever.”

At the mere mention of the idea of having Monday off — with no work on Sunday already a given — all three Kansas players began smiling and nodding.

Even Self got in on the act when he elaborated on the plan.

“I’m going to find a way to get them off their feet two days,” he said. “Even though they didn’t earn it today, I think that would be something that would probably benefit us right now, with our tired bodies.”

Before that last sentence, Self broke into a smile of his own, as if to say, “You guys know I’m right but I’m going to let it slide anyway since we won.”

The truth of the matter is that a little time off certainly will help.

David McCormack continues to manage his foot injury. Mitch Lightfoot’s still coming back from the knee sprain he suffered in the Big 12 tournament. And starters Agbaji, Christian Braun and Wilson have all logged high-stress, heavy-too minutes for the past month, if not longer.

And then there’s Remy Martin, who looks faster and better than ever but also dealt with a variety of injuries throughout the season. Keeping him — and all of them — as fresh as possible for next weekend is the obvious move.

It also figures to help increase the odds of this team reaching that postseason peak performance that Self and coaches across the country strive for every year.

“I still think this, that we’re still yet to be our best,” Self said after the win over Creighton. “I mean, I still believe we’ve got another gear or another step we can take.”

One of the more overlooked benefits of giving this team some time off before diving back into the NCAA Tournament grind — and by “off” we’re talking about physical rest time, not delaying preparation entirely — is how much that can help them mentally, as well.

These guys are as locked in as they have been all season, but these games are as intense as any they’ve ever played. Each possession carries the weight of the world and the highs and lows throughout each game bring waves of emotion unlike many they’ve experienced up to this point.

Staying confident, loose and free has helped the Jayhawks immensely to this point and that’s certainly their plan of attack from here, as well.

“Coming into this tournament, you never know who we’re going to play, you never know the style,” Wilson said Saturday. “We still have to stick to what we do best.”

Added Martin of the biggest key to having the proper mindset this time of the season: “I would say just being ourselves and tightening up on the little things. You know, the little things down the stretch are magnified, so I think just being ourselves, play freely and just, you know, on the defensive end, just lock in. Everything just needs to get tightened up.”

Agbaji agreed with both of his teammates and said not getting too ahead of themselves was the biggest key to both the physical and mental break the Jayhawks will enjoy these next two days.

“I would say (the biggest key is) just being present in the moment, not regretting anything when we’re out there on the court,” Agbaji said. “Knowing that it is on us to make these plays to be successful.”

Game time for Friday’s Sweet 16 matchup between top-seeded Kansas (30-6) and No. 4 seed Providence (27-5) has not yet been announced. The Jayhawks are expected to remain in Lawrence through Tuesday and travel to Chicago sometime Wednesday.