After their double-digit, quarter-final loss to Arizona, the Kansas Jayhawks basketball team won’t be a factor in the 2025 Big XII conference tournament, and they are staring down the barrel of an inexcusable eight or nine-seed in the NCAA Tournament.
This is all a terrible disappointment, considering that this team was the No. 1 preseason team, and Bill Self has never been seeded lower than four while at Kansas.
The season started off so promising, with early wins against North Carolina, Michigan State, Duke, and North Carolina State. After a 7-0 start, the Jayhawks lost back-to-back games to Missouri and Creighton, then stumbled in their conference opener, losing to West Virginia at Allen Fieldhouse. KU is 14-12 since that perfect 7-0 start, far below expectations.
How far can the Kansas basketball team go in the NCAA Tournament?
Frankly, not far. They will be an eight-seed at best, maybe even a nine-seed. It doesn’t matter. Those eight-nine games are usually pretty evenly matched and a toss-up for who will win. If the Jayhawks were able to survive that game, then they would face a No. 1 seed. Game over!
Since those early nonconference wins, this Kansas basketball team has not displayed traits that most of Self’s teams always have, like toughness and the iron will to outplay the team down the stretch. KU has consistently collapsed late in tight games, and for maybe the first time in his career, Self has been outcoached on more than a few occasions.
This season has been inexplicable. Very little has gone right this season or last, for that matter. There is nothing that should make anyone optimistic that KU would be primed for a deep run during March Madness.
As hard as it is to swallow, there is very little chance Kansas will make it out of the first weekend. A first-round loss is a 50-50 proposition at this time, and there is no way this team beats a top seed in the tournament.
It will be a long, boring tournament for Kansas basketball fans. The Jayhawks will be eliminated early, and the offseason will be painful as Self tries to right the Titanic, which is the Kansas basketball program. 2022 seems like a very long time ago.