If KU basketball gets overall No. 1 seed, Bill Self would have a choice to make
Kansas men’s basketball, in nearly every bracketology, is the projected overall No. 1 seed for next month’s NCAA Tournament.
And if that sticks over the next three weeks, it’ll leave KU coach Bill Self with an interesting decision to make:
Indianapolis or Houston?
KU, with the résumé it has built thus far, is in position to have some extra control regarding its Final Four path. A recent NCAA rule change makes it so that the overall No. 1 seed — and only that team — gets to select its sites for both the opening rounds and regional.
For the Jayhawks, Omaha, Nebraska is a lock to start; the Jayhawks are closest to that first and second round site and should have a huge contingent of fans following them there.
The regional, though, is a little trickier. KU is closer to Indianapolis (521 miles) compared to Houston (712), but that might not be the only factor at play.
“I have given it some thought, but I haven’t given it enough thought to know that the positives or the negatives of (which is best),” Self said Thursday. “It’s still a crapshoot. You pick before the seeding, before the field is drawn. So no matter what you pick — what you think you’re staying away from — still is a 50-50 chance that you could still get.”
Self went on to make an interesting point. Because Indianapolis is where the Midwest Regional Sweet 16 and Elite Eight games will be played, it could be extremely close to many of the other teams that KU might play. Think Dayton or Creighton as potential 2 seeds, Louisville as a 3, Kentucky as a 4, or even Michigan or Michigan State as 5s.
Against many of those programs, KU fans might be outnumbered in Indianapolis. But if the Jayhawks selected Houston, they’d likely still secure a decent crowd (mostly from alums in the Dallas area) while also guaranteeing any potential opponent would not be in their own backyard.
Self said Thursday he hadn’t talked to his administration extensively about what KU might do. That’s understandable, as the Jayhawks will need to finish strong to secure their spot as the top overall seed.
Here are two other factors, though, that could come into play if Self has to make a final call.
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Sign upOne ... the building. Indianapolis’ site is at the NFL’s Lucas Oil Stadium, while Houston’s is the NBA’s Toyota Center. If Self preferred to play in a basketball setting as opposed to a football one, that could play a role.
It also would never be said publicly, but could KU take Baylor into account when making its choice? Self has repeatedly said, at this point in the season, the Bears rank as one of the best Big 12 teams he’s coached against in his 17 seasons at KU.
If Baylor really is the nation’s second-best team, would it be an added benefit to make the Bears go earn their spot in the Final Four somewhere outside the state of Texas while not allowing them to play in Houston for their most difficult games?
One reason this rule change came about was because of a situation Self found himself in four seasons ago. KU — the No. 1 overall seed — was sent to Louisville for the South Regional instead of Chicago for the Midwest Regional, with the Jayhawks eventually losing to eventual national champion Villanova in the Elite Eight.
“That was a screwy deal that year, because by the way that the rules were written, (Louisville) was like 10 miles closer, but it was a connection flight and cost three times as much money and a quarter of your fanbase had a chance to go,” Self said. “So that was not good for us at that particular time, so I do think that’s a good rule change. But also, the committee didn’t do anything wrong. That was just the way that it was set up that year.”
Partly because of that, KU has an opportunity to choose some of its own adventure when it comes to this NCAA Tournament.
Self hasn’t made a final decision yet. But you can bet he’s not done thinking about it.
