DEARBORN, Mich. | This truly is the last place you’d expect one of the top four college basketball teams in the country to be calling home in late March.
As the Kansas team bus barreled toward the Hyatt Regency Dearborn — about 10 miles outside of downtown Detroit — the Jayhawks passed the Ford Motor Company World Headquarters. And that was about it, except for a retro-looking shopping mall and a couple of restaurants.
No fans battled the plummeting temperatures — snow is expected today — to greet the top-seeded Jayhawks at their hotel. In fact, the blue KU flag flying in front of the hotel was the only vestige of home.
So it’s not exactly Omaha, where KU was planted right in the middle of downtown and where a few local fans came to welcome the Jayhawks. But to KU coach Bill Self, always on the lookout for distractions, his team’s remote location may not be such a bad thing.
“Knock on wood, it should be easier here,” Self said, “because we won’t have as many fans around. Not that we don’t have fans here, but Omaha was such a short distance.”
Fanfare is only one type of distraction, though.
“It’s not just distractions when you’re at a site,” Self said. “It’s getting your rest and all those things. I harped on it enough, I hope, that the guys are buying into that.”
Of course, with the expected tipoff on Friday of 9:40 p.m. Eastern time, Self is hoping the Jayhawks can sleep away their mornings for a change. But how to pass the time during the day? Self ruled out a Friday morning tee time because he’s pretty sure he’d need galoshes to play 18.
As for the players, it’s hard to imagine the Jayhawks spending much time at JCPenney, but luckily, there is a movie theater in the mall.
And, hey, if all else fails, there’s always film to watch. Self said KU hasn’t gotten too detailed with its game plan yet for Villanova.
“We’ve just given them bits and pieces so far,” Self said. “I don’t like beginning on Monday saying, ‘OK, let’s guard this way.’ I think you can overdo that to an extent. We’ve been practicing against what they do defensively and been practicing against their principles offensively.”
To prep for the Wildcats, Self popped in the tape from Villanova’s 83-62 win over KU in 2005.
“Allan Ray, Randy Foye and Curtis Sumpter just lit us up,” Self said. “I still get a nervous twitch when I talk about it.”
This week, don’t be fooled if you see Self twitch. It might just be the cold.
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