The Kansas Jayhawks continue to wander through uncharted territory after a 65-59 loss at No. 3 Houston, falling to 19-11 overall and 10-9 in Big 12 play. It was only the third time in the Bill Self era that a team has swept Kansas in the regular season. And, with just one game left in the regular season, this 2024-25 team will go down as Self’s worst squad at Kansas, at least in terms of their record.
This latest loss stings, and while it came against an elite opponent, a combination of little mistakes cost Kansas yet another game.
Losing to the No. 3 team in the nation, and the Big 12’s best team, on the road, was expected. Despite being 10-point underdogs, the Jayhawks held their ground and played the Cougars close until the final buzzer.
Unfortunately, Kansas just couldn’t get out of its own way.
The Jayhawks allowed the Cougars to grab 17 offensive rebounds, which would kill any team’s chances of winning, especially against a top-tier team like Houston. Kansas also shot themselves in the foot with their turnovers, giving the ball away 20 times throughout the game. It was an absolutely disastrous combo between the rebounding and turnovers, and Kansas couldn’t overcome both.
After a 2-0 start to the “new season” with wins over Oklahoma State and Colorado, the Jayhawks have now lost two in a row to Texas Tech and Houston. It’s not embarrassing to lose back-to-back games to teams in the AP Top 10, but now the Jayhawks have put themselves in a tough spot heading into the final game of the regular season. They’ll get Arizona at home this Saturday for Senior Day festivities. A win would keep the Jayhawks above .500 in league play, while a loss would have the team finish at .500. The Jayhawks have finished above .500 in conference play every season in the Bill Self era and every year since the 1988-1989 season. That was the first season under Roy Williams, and they finished 6-8 in the Big 8 that year. Their overall record that season was 19-12, and it was the last time a Kansas team missed the NCAA Tournament.
Even with a loss at home to a Top 25 Arizona team, the Jayhawks won’t be at risk of missing the NCAA Tournament this season. They have quality wins over No. 2 Duke, No. 8 Michigan State, and No. 10 Iowa State. Six of their 10 losses have come against ranked teams. Eight of their 10 losses have come against teams that have been ranked at some point this season, with road losses at Kansas State and Utah being the exceptions. There have been some losses worse than others, but this Kansas team will at worst be an eight seed come tourney time.
A win over Arizona could give this team a boost heading into the conference tournament. If the Jayhawks can get on a roll, who knows how this season plays out through the end of March. At this point, anything other than a first round exit seems like it would be a positive for Kansas. The expectations are at an all-time low in the Bill Self era, so this could be the time to shock the world, maybe one of the only times that could apply to the Jayhawks basketball program.
Depending on how things go against Arizona and the type of run (or lack thereof) in the Big 12 tournament, the Jayhawks could see themselves anywhere from a five seed to an eight seed. If Kansas can go out there and beat Arizona and win the Big 12 tournament, that would boost their stock significantly. A loss to Arizona and an early exit in the Big 12 tournament would land them at the low end of the spectrum.
Lining up in the middle of the bracket versus being an 8/9 matchup with the one seed waiting in the Round of 32 is ideal. It’s now on the Jayhawks to see if they can make the most of what looks to be a mostly lost season.
