Kansas basketball coach Bill Self highlights how impressive he feels some Big 12 teams have been
LAWRENCE — Kansas men’s basketball still has more than three weeks until its Big 12 Conference opener Jan. 1 at home against TCU.
After UTEP on Tuesday is a rivalry matchup Saturday at home against Missouri. Another home game, this one Dec. 18 against Stephen F. Austin, follows. And then there’s a Dec. 21 contest on the road against Colorado and a Dec. 29 matchup at home against Harvard, to wrap up the 2021 portion of the Jayhawks’ 2021-22 regular season slate.
But the weeks that have passed since the current campaign began have allowed a number of programs across the country to shine. That includes teams in the Big 12 like Kansas. And Jayhawks head coach Bill Self highlighted some of them Monday, including one in particular that includes a former Kansas athlete.
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“I’d say (Iowa State’s) probably been as impressive as anybody in our league so far, that’s including Baylor, Texas and us,” Self said. “They’ve played a good schedule. They just went to Creighton and won, if I’m not mistaken, the other day. (Head coach T.J. Otzelberger)’s done a great job. A lot of his personnel is new. (Tristan Enaruna)’s able to — he’s helping them out, without question. We’re all happy for that.”
Iowa State is 8-0 ahead of a game Thursday against Iowa, and ranked No. 19 in the nation in the latest coaches poll. The Cyclones are one of four Big 12 programs ranked in the top 25, along with the Longhorns (11th), Jayhawks (seventh) and Bears (second). Kansas doesn’t face Iowa State until Jan. 11 at home.
As of Tuesday morning, all 10 teams in the Big 12 have a winning record. Iowa State and Baylor, which will face No. 6 Villanova on Sunday, are two that are undefeated. The Jayhawks don’t face the Bears until Feb. 5 at home.
“I haven’t seen enough of West Virginia yet, but they’re record’s obviously very good,” Self said. “I haven’t seen much of (Oklahoma), but I’d say OU and Iowa State to me would be the most pleasant surprises in our league thus far.”
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Self also brought up Kansas State, which is 5-2 ahead of a contest Wednesday against Marquette, as a team that’s improved since the season began. The Wildcats, who’ve suffered defeats so far against No. 10 Arkansas and Illinois, are coming off of a 65-59 win on the road against Wichita State, which is 6-2 with victories against Missouri and Oklahoma State. Self said he doesn’t think people realize how good of a win that victory truly is.
Kansas doesn’t face Kansas State until a Jan. 22 road matchup.
Jordan Guskey covers University of Kansas Athletics at The Topeka Capital-Journal. Contact him at jmguskey@gannett.com or on Twitter at @JordanGuskey.
This article originally appeared on Topeka Capital-Journal: Kansas basketball's Bill Self impressed with Big 12 teams this season
