Kansas basketball head coach Bill Self has always liked a tight rotation for his teams. Usually, these rotations are of seven or eight players he trusts. This season is no different.
Self is a Hall of Fame coach and has two national championship rings to his name. He obviously knows what he is doing, but it seems as if his bench management sometimes comes back to bite him.
During the eight-point win against BYU on Saturday, that manufactured lack of bench depth almost cost KU. After leading by 21, the Cougars whittled the lead down to four late in the game before the Jayhawks pushed it back to the final margin.
One of the reasons KU lost their lead was because there were two injuries that forced five guys to play almost all the second-half minutes. Darryn Peterson, as usual, pulled himself out of the game after three minutes of the second half, and Elmarko Jackson suffered a bone contusion to his knee in the first half.
Jayden Dawson played five total minutes, forcing Melvin Council Jr., Tre White, Jamari McDowell, Flory Bidunga, and Bryson Tiller to play all the 92 remaining minutes after the intermission. The Jayhawks looked gassed about midway through the second half.
Will the Kansas basketball team have enough juice left on the road at Texas Tech?
Things don't get easier for the Jayhawks. The Kansas basketball team has a quick turnaround and must face ranked Texas Tech on the road Monday night. Will Peterson be able to play his 20 minutes? Will Jackson's bruised knee be healed enough that he can pay effectively?
If the answer to those two questions is no, the KU is in trouble. That leaves only Jayden Dawson, who has played only 37 minutes in the last five games, as a trusted substitute off the bench.
Kohl Rosario has played in just three of KU's last seven games, for a total of 14 minutes. Paul Mbiya has seen only seven minutes of action in the eight Big 12 games. Samis Calderon has 10 minutes in four conference games.
This is an issue KU fans have seen over and over the last few seasons. Self narrows his bench to the bare minimum, then injuries or foul troubles arise, and then he has to turn to players he's basically banished. These players are not ready to play, even if he occasionally has to call on them.
Again, it is extremely tough to criticize a coach who is as accomplished as Bill Self, but it is frustrating when other teams find a way to give their bench players court experience. Heck, BYU had nine players get in at least 11 minutes against KU. Is the Cougars' depth that much better than Kansas'?
This might just be worrying for nothing. Peterson may be fine and able to play his 20 minutes or so before he pulls himself. Jackson may have no ill effects from his bruised knee, and Self can play his seven guys at least 20 minutes each.
The Jayhawks may be fine against Texas Tech, but there are still 10 more regular-season games left. KU still has this game against Tech left and two games against Arizona coming up, plus Houston and Iowa State. Then there is the conference tournament and March Madness.
It feels like KU is going to need Rosario, Mbiya, and Calderon before this season is over. Let's hope they are ready to be thrown in when that time comes.
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