On Tuesday night, No. 6 Kansas (23-6; 12-4) lost at TCU (19-9; 8-8), 74-64. Four players, Jalen Wilson (13), Ochai Agbaji (13), David McCormack (11), and Christian Braun (10) scored in double-figures for the Jayhawks on a night when Bill Self's squad led for just 8:41. I just finished up watching the game for the second time and I got the same feeling this morning that I got last night while watching the game live. There was just never a feeling that Kansas was going to find a way to win the game in the second half. For a variety of reasons, the Jayhawks simply couldn’t get over the hump in Fort Worth.
Now, I think we all agree that this is a talented Kansas team, but it's not the type of talent that allows them to play through a ton of mistakes and still emerge victorious. When this team is clicking all on cylinders and when shots are falling and when they are dominating the glass and taking care of the basketball, this team is capable of beating any team in college basketball.
However, when this team struggles to score and doesn’t rebound and doesn’t take care of the basketball and doesn’t defend, this team is capable of losing to any team in college basketball.
Kansas, not long ago, was in a great position to win the Big 12 regular-season championship outright, but that’s no longer the case. Assuming Baylor takes care of business at home against Iowa State on Saturday, Kansas MUST win its next two games to earn at least a share of the Big 12 regular-season championship.
Kansas returns home to face TCU on Thursday and will wrap up the regular season at home against Texas on Saturday. At this stage in the season, and the season is near its end, at least the regular season, this team is what it is.
“Oh, I thought that they were dominant as far as the way they rebounded the ball and we didn't at all,” said Kansas head coach Bill Self late on Tuesday night. “They were so much more athletic and quicker to it and you know they got 30/70 balls. I mean we were so slow in reacting and it’s disappointing to watch, but they were really aggressive and give them credit, they kept balls alive and certainly did a much better job on the offensive glass than we did on the defensive glass.
“I don't know, what, we get 20 defensive rebounds and they got 19 offensive rebounds, something like that? So that's obviously a formula for disaster,” he added.
Moving forward, I really don’t see many changes taking place this season. The guys that have played a majority of the minutes will continue to receive those minutes. That’s the way this entire season has played out and I don’t expect that to change.
With the most important part of the season right around the corner, this team simply can’t afford any letdowns the last two games of the season and during the Big 12/NCAA Tournament. I might be alone in this, but I didn’t see much energy or passion or excitement or enthusiasm last night. Truthfully, I really didn’t see anything of those things.
I saw TCU draw first blood and, this is just me, I think that kind of shook Kansas and they didn’t know how to respond. Ochai Agbaji had an off night from the field, Braun was just 4-of-11 shooting the ball, McCormack got, what, six touches in the paint, and Wilson struggled to score the ball as well.
Still, even with all of that being said, Kansas had a chance, even though it didn’t always feel like that was the case, to steal one on the road. However, they just couldn’t get any stops and failed to grab key rebounds in the second half.
“I didn't think we were willing passers tonight,” said Self. “When the other team plays good defense and they spread you, you’ve got to execute your stuff. And we didn't do that at all. We were really out of sync. I really thought that Ochai, he pressed tonight, and he probably had his worst game that he's had this year, but he played the way we're supposed to play.
“And I didn't think very, very many others really did tonight,” he added. “We were collectively not a very good unit today, so you can always win, you know, lose games when individuals don't play as well as you need them to play. But this was a game where I think everybody played a pretty good role in it.”
Not much, if any, went KU’s way on Tuesday night. The Jayhawks had a golden opportunity to inch one step closer to winning the Big 12 regular-season championship outright, but the best they can do now, unless Baylor slips up at home, is earn a share.
Kansas really needs to come out these next two games and set the tone for the Big 12/NCAA Tournament. This team has every opportunity to make a deep run in March, but this team has very little margin for error.
Each and every night, these guys need to come prepared to play and bring the intensity on both sides of the court. For Kansas, the most important part of the season begins on Thursday night.
The rematch between Kansas and TCU will take place in Lawrence on Thursday. How do the Jayhawks finish with a more favorable outcome the second time around?
“Well, I mean, you’ve got to rebound the ball and got to play better than what we played today,” said Self. “But I think we will play better than what we played today, but got to do something to make them play poorly. And we didn't do anything to make them play poorly. We let them play to their strengths and we can't, we we're not talented enough or good enough to let a team that is so good that can steal points on the glass, steal points on the glass.
“I don't know how many points they got off second shots but it wasn't near as much as what it, I think it appeared to me, but it was pretty substantial,” he added.
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