Bill Self did not make the trip with No. 19 Kansas ahead of Tuesday’s game against Colorado in Boulder, Colo., after he was hospitalized Monday as a precautionary measure.
“Kansas men’s basketball coach Bill Self felt under the weather earlier (Monday) and, out of an abundance of caution, was taken to LMH Health where he received IV fluids,” a statement from the athletic department said. “He is feeling better but did not accompany the team to Boulder.”
The school avoided comment about whether Self will be available to travel Tuesday or if the Jayhawks will have an interim coach in his place for the game.
Self has dealt with a series of health issues related to his heart in recent years. Last July, he had two stents inserted after experiencing discomfort.
He also missed Kansas’ Big 12 and NCAA tournament appearances in 2023 after he was hospitalized on March 8 due to chest tightness. He had two stents inserted at that time as well.
In terms of his team, less is more for the Jayhawks’ rotation as evidenced by consecutive dominating home wins over then-No. 2 Iowa State and Baylor last week. The victories elevated Kansas back into the AP Top 25 this week.
Self limited his rotation to seven players in the 84-63 win over the Cyclones and the 80-62 victory over Baylor.
“The way that I see it right now, we’re playing better playing less guys,” Self said after the win over the Bears.
Flory Bidunga, Melvin Council Jr., Darryn Peterson, Bryson Tiller and Tre White started for Kansas (13-5, 3-2 Big 12) against the Bears. Jamari McDowell and Elmarko Jackson were the chief reserves off the bench. Self used only these seven players against Iowa State.
Jayden Dawson (six minutes) and Kohl Rosario (almost two minutes) played insignificant minutes as deep reserves in the win over Baylor.
Rosario, a 6-foot-6 freshman guard who has six starts and is averaging 14.9 minutes a game, figures to have less of a role heading into the second half of the season. He is shooting 25.5% from 3-point range and 40.9% overall.
“Kohl’s got the best attitude and everything,” Self said. “By no means are we giving up on him.”
Colorado (12-6, 2-3) enters on a three-game losing streak after winning the first two conference games, most recently losing at West Virginia 72-61 on Saturday.
“We got to keep fighting and scratching and clawing,” said coach Tad Boyle, who played at Kansas for Larry Brown. “I told our team this … that I think you can be getting better in this league and improving as a team.”
Kansas legend Danny Manning is a Colorado assistant.
Until the West Virginia game, Boyle had started the same lineup all season: Barrington Hargress (13.7 points per game), Sebastian Rancik (13.2), Bangot Dak (11.4), Elijah Malone (5.9) and Felix Kossaras (5.8).
But Colorado’s leading scorer is reserve Isaiah Johnson (15.8), who is shooting 51.6% from the field and 44.3% from 3-point range. Boyle inserted him into the starting five for the first time against West Virginia, in place of Kossaras, and Johnson went for 12 points in a season-high 37 minutes.
–Field Level Media
