Kansas City, MO – The Kansas Jayhawks, without Hall of Fame Head Coach Bill Self, defeated the West Virginia Mountaineers in the quarterfinals of the Big 12 Conference Tournament at the T-Mobile Center in Kansas City.
The Jayhawks were led by forward Jalen Wilson with 22 points, and guard Grady Dick with 18. Both forward KJ Adams Jr and guard Dajuan Harris had 13 points each. West Virginia guard Erik Stevenson led all scorers with 13, followed by forward Tre Mitchell with 11, and Joe Toussaint with 11.
Kansas shot 52.4 percent from the field, connecting on 33-63 shots from the field. They were 7-20 on 3-point shooting and made 5-12 free throws in the game. West Virginia connected on 25-56 shots, and 4-19 from behind the 3-point line.
The largest lead in the game for West Virginia was 3 points, halfway through the 1st half. Kansas led by 17 points with 32 seconds left in the contest.
Kansas had 13 turnovers, compared to 10 by West Virginia. However, the Jayhawks dominated the Mountaineers with points in the paint, 52-36.
West Virginia will return to Morgantown to await a possible NCAA Tournament at-large berth, while the Kansas Jayhawks will face Iowa State at 6:00 p.m. Friday at the T-Mobile Center in Kansas City. Pregame on Z-96.3 The Lake will begin at 5:30 p.m.
It was announced following the game that Kansas Head Coach Bill Self will not return to coach the Jayhawks for the remainder of the Big 12 Conference Tournament after being hospitalized at the University of Kansas Health System due to an illness.
Kansas Athletics and University of Kansas Health System provided the following statement:
“KU Men’s Basketball Coach Bill Self is a patient at The University of Kansas Health System. Chief Medical Officer Dr. Steve Stites wants to clarify that Coach Self did not suffer a heart attack as reported by some media. He arrived at the emergency department last night and underwent a standard procedure that went well. He is expected to make a full recovery. There will be no further medical details released for now.” – University of Kansas Health System.
“I am very grateful for the overwhelming number of well wishes my family and I have received. I’m excited to get back with my team in the very near future.” – Coach Bill Self.
