Bill Self will not coach KU basketball in second-round game vs. Arkansas
KU basketball coach Bill Self, who continues to recover from a heart catheterization dating back to last Wednesday — the day before the Jayhawks began play at the Big 12 Tournament — will not coach the Jayhawks against the Arkansas Razorbacks in the NCAA Tournament’s Round of 32.
Self, who was in the building for the Jayhawks’ practice session on Friday, admitted in interviews on Thursday he had not been his usual self in the Jayhawks’ practice sessions leading up to their first-round game, stating that he had mostly sat and watched practice.
The Jayhawks are set to tip against Arkansas at 4:15 p.m. Central at Wells Fargo Arena in Des Moines, Iowa.
The most recent update on the KU coach came from assistant and acting coach Norm Roberts, who has led the Jayhawks in all eight games Self has missed this year (7-1 record). That included three games at the Big 12 Tournament, four games to start the year (program-imposed suspension) and Thursday’s NCAA opener.
“Coach is doing well. It’s a day-to-day situation with him and everything, but he’s doing good,” Roberts said on Friday. “He was in practice with our guys just a little while ago and coaching them, so we will see what happens.”
Said Self on the Jayhawks’ pregame radio show Thursday, before a 96-68 win over No. 16 seed Howard, “I’m doing better. I’m feeling stronger and everything. ... I don’t think I’m at the point where I can be very good for our team if I was out there. I’ve been at practice every day, sitting and watching practice more so than actually on the court participating in a big way.
“Everything is moving in a positive direction. It’s just taking longer than what I had hoped it would to get me back to the point where I can be out there every day.”
Self did say at the time he was hoping to be back Saturday, but the KU coach evidently will not be back until next weekend, if the Jayhawks were to advance.
With a win over Arkansas on Saturday, the Jayhawks would advance to meet the winner of No. 4 seed UConn and No. 5 St. Mary’s in the Sweet 16 in Las Vegas.
The Star’s Gary Bedore and Scott Chasen contributed to this report.