Kansas basketball coach Bill Self, hospitalized, misses KU first-round win and will be out for remainder of Big 12 tournament

March 10, 2023 by hamza

Kansas head coach Bill Self watches a replay during the second half of an NCAA college basketball game against Texas in Austin, Texas on Saturday, March 4, 2023. (AP Photo/Eric Gay )

Kansas City, Mo. – Kansas men’s basketball coach Bill Self was at the University of Kansas Hospital instead of T-Mobile Center for the top-seeded Jayhawks’ 78-61 victory , against West Virginia on Thursday, and the KU leader will miss the rest. of the Big 12 tournament.

Self was admitted to hospital late Wednesday evening recovering from an illness and was said to be ‘doing well and receiving excellent care’.

After Thursday’s game, KU updated Self’s status

“KU men’s basketball coach Bill Self is a patient of the University of Kansas Health System,” the Thursday night statement confirmed. “Chief Medical Officer Dr Steve Stites would like to clarify that Coach Self did not suffer a heart attack as reported by some media. He arrived in the emergency department last night and underwent a standard procedure which went well. He is expected to make a full recovery. There will be no further medical details released at this time.

KU players were briefed on Self’s situation early Thursday morning. Interim head coach Norm Roberts, who also led the team when Self was suspended in November, said it was important to update the players on Thursday morning instead of forcing them to manage and reflect on the situation throughout Wednesday night.

Although he and the rest of the KU staff are worried about their longtime friend, Roberts said everyone remained calm.

“We were reassured that he would be fine and that sort of thing,” Roberts said after the game. “There was never a time when we thought he wasn’t going to be okay.”

Roberts and Self spoke briefly on the phone after Thursday’s win, and Self, who watched the game on TV, gave his own statement after the game ended.

“I am so grateful for the overwhelming number of well wishes my family and I have received,” he said. “I’m delighted to be back with my team in the very near future.”

A source with knowledge of Self’s condition told the Journal-World that the long-term prognosis is positive.

Although the health component is unique, Roberts taking the place of Self was not entirely unfamiliar to the Jayhawks.

Previously a head coach at St. John’s from 2004 to 2010 and also at his alma mater, Queens College, from 1991 to 1995, Roberts led Kansas to three wins in three tries earlier this season, including a Champions Classic win. against Duke in Indianapolis.

Self was with the Jayhawks at the team’s open practice at T-Mobile Center on Wednesday afternoon and met with the media for about 15 minutes after practice ended.

He appeared to be in normal condition and was in good spirits about the start of the playoffs and KU’s desire to make another run at a national title later this month.

“We talked about it a lot,” Self said Wednesday at the start of the Jayhawks’ playoff series. “We talked about we’re going to Kansas City to try to get in a position to win this thing, but knowing we better take it one game at a time. But I didn’t focus on winning. I emphasized let’s play our best. What the tournament does (Big 12), it can validate what your regular season has been. And this is the time to validate it.

The Jayhawks (25-6) won the Big 12 regular season title by one game against Texas and entered Kansas City this week, in good position to be the No. 1 seed. 1 of the NCAA Tournament next week.

All of this, however, likely put a damper on the Jayhawks head coach’s health.

Self is 581-130 in his 20 seasons in charge of the Jayhawks and 788-235 in his 30 seasons as head coach, which included stops at Oral Roberts, Tulsa and Illinois before Kansas.

He has long been considered one of the best coaches in the game, with one of the best winning percentages in NCAA basketball history, and was more recently considered the best active coach in basketball. ball with the recent retirements of Duke’s Mike Krzyzewski, North Carolina’s Roy Williams and Villanova’s Jay Wright.

Kansas football coach Lance Leipold at a press conference after Day 6 of his team’s 15 spring football practices had this to say about Self’s situation.

“Looks like he’s well cared for and those things and I wish him the best,” Leipold said. “It’s a shame it’s happening at this time for his team.”