By Wendell Barnhouse
Big12Sports.com Correspondent
Kansas coach Bill Self understands that a No. 2 seed and an 11th consecutive Big 12 Conference regular-season title are nice accomplishments. But the Jayhawks head into the NCAA Tournament understanding the expectations borne of a blue blood program.
“I think this tournament will determine whether it’s a real good season or whether or not it’s a great season,” Self said. It’s “how we do in Omaha, to be real candid with you.”
It starts with Friday’s first game in the Midwest Regional when Kansas takes on No. 15 seed New Mexico State. The Jayhawks will face the winner of the Wichita State-Indiana game and if the Shockers win, the third-round game will be a magical matchup of Sunflower State programs that haven’t played since 1993.
Self has said he needs his team to be “whole” – or as whole as it can be. Freshman forward Cliff Alexander is still sidelined by an NCAA eligibility issue. Junior forward Perry Ellis, who is from Wichita, is in the process of returning from a sprained right knee suffered in KU’s next-to-last game.
Self said this week that Ellis, who played in two games in the Phillips 66 Big 12 Men’s Championship, is improving and close to getting his explosiveness back. A healthy Ellis is crucial to the Jayhawks’ chances of advancing to the regional semifinals.
“It’s all about confidence and mindset,” Ellis said of returning to action in Kansas City. “And getting out there really gave me a lot of confidence of what I can do and how it feels. And like I said, it’s getting better and better as time goes on.”
Since winning the national championship in 2008, Kansas has reached the Final Four once, losing to Kentucky in the 2012 title game. The last two seasons have ended with disappointing upset losses.
Kansas guard Wayne Selden, who scored a career-best 25 in last Saturday’s loss to Iowa State, summed it up this way: “This is when it really matters.”
Midwest Regional
11:15 a.m. Friday, Omaha, Neb.
No. 2 Kansas (26-8) vs. No. 15 New Mexico State (23-10)
Jayhawks update: Kansas’ 26-straight NCAA Tournament appearances is the nation’s longest active streak and ranks second-best all time. North Carolina had 27-straight appearances from 1975-2001.Sophomore Wayne Selden, Jr. and freshman Kelly Oubre, Jr., each had career highs of 25 points in games at the Phillips 66 Big 12 Men’s Championship last weekend. Kansas sophomore Brannen Greene is making 41 percent from 3-point range but has missed 24 of his last 28 attempts. Kansas averages 5.0 blocked shots per game and has 36 blocks in the last six games. The Jayhawks have outrebounded 21 of 34 opponents and are 19-2 when having the edge on the boards.
Aggies update:Pascal Siakam, a 6-9 redshirt freshman forward from Doula, Cameroon, has been Nex Mexico State’s most productive player, averaging 13 points and 7.7 rebounds per game. The Aggies are turnover prone, averaging 14 per game. New Mexico State grabs 39.5 percent of available offensive rebounds and that ranks ninth in Division I. The Aggies were 0-3 against teams in the RPI top 50 and 2-3 against teams ranked 50-100 in the RPI. But they haven’t played a team ranked in the top 100 since Jan. 3. New Mexico State has won 13 in a row and has made the NCAA Tournament five of the last six seasons.
What’s next: Winner plays on Sunday against the winner of No. 7 Wichita State and No. 10 Indiana.