FILL in YOUR PICKS! BRACKET, PAGE 4AA Lightfoot, Christian Braun, Marcus Garrett, Jalen Wilson, Ochai Agbaji and Dajuan Harris LAWRENCE Journal- World File Photos ®
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1AA Top to bottom: Mitch FILL IN YOUR PICKS! BRACKET, PAGE 4AA Lightfoot, Christian Braun, Marcus Garrett, Jalen WIlson, Ochai Agbaji and Dajuan Harris LAWRENCE Journal- World FIle Photos ® JOURNAL-WORLDPUBLISHED SINCE 1891 Monday • March 15 • 2021 2021 NCAA TOURNEY PREVIEW #3 IN THE WEST Kansas’ tourney fate. 2AA THE CONTENDERS Teams that could win it all. 7AA TOURNEY REWIND 3 decades of March history at KU. 8AA 2AA M 2021arch 16, 2021 NCAA TOURNEY PREVIEW No further virus issues for 3rd-seeded Kansas Eastern Washington, which 15 other teams that can attest to By Matt Tait We’re going to Indy (this earned a spot in the field by win- this, is that Gonzaga is in our l l l week) with a healthy group; ning the Big Sky postseason tour- bracket,” Self said. “To get to a Fi- [email protected] it’s just a smaller group.” nament and is 16-7 overall. The nal Four, you’re going to have to game is scheduled for 12:15 p.m. eventually probably go through The Kansas men’s basketball — Kansas coach Bill Self Saturday on TBS. one of the better teams our sport team received a No. 3 seed in Kansas landed in the same has seen in recent memory. the West region in the NCAA region as No. 1 seed Gonzaga, “Since that’s the draw we got, Tournament on Sunday, and Big 12 tour- NCAA-record 31st consecutive which defeated KU in the sea- I might as well be comfortable KU coach Bill Self said that the nament. NCAA Tournament, Self said son opener on Thanksgiving. with it and like it,” Self added. COVID-19 issues that kept the Self said he expected both to re- the rest of the team had tested Iowa is the 2 seed in the West, “I certainly don’t dislike it.” Jayhawks from finishing the join the team at some point this negative multiple times since and Virginia and Creighton Gonzaga ran through the Big 12 tournament had not cre- week in Indianapolis. Friday and that he was appre- round out the region’s top five. regular season and West Coast ated any further problems. The third player, who tested ciative that the Jayhawks’ first The winner of KU’s game with Conference tournament at 26-0 “Knock on wood, we think positive for COVID-19 on Friday game of this year’s tournament Eastern Washington will play and enters the NCAA Tourna- we’re in as good a shape as we morning, remains unnamed and was not until Saturday. the winner of the 6-11 matchup ment as the No. 1 overall seed. can be in,” Self said in a Zoom is expected to be out for KU’s “I’m actually glad that we have between USC and the winner of Despite that potential chal- call after the bracket came first two games of the NCAA an extra day,” Self said. “Not only the First Four matchup between lenge looming, which senior out. “We’re going to Indy (this Tournament, in accordance with for (the players who’ve been out), 11 seeds Wichita State and Drake. guard Marcus Garrett said was week) with a healthy group; it’s the tournament’s protocols. but for all our bodies and (so we Self said that while every team “definitely something we’d look just a smaller group. We’re mi- With the exception of those can) practice together closer to in the field deserved respect, forward to,” Self said his team’s nus three bodies right now.” players, the team was sched- game time. So I thought that the nearly all of the teams in the West focus was solely on Eastern Two of those three — junior uled to depart on Monday. draw we got was fair.” region had something in common. Washington, USC, Wichita State David McCormack and sopho- While the Jayhawks are When the full KU gang gets to- “The one thing that jumps out and Drake. more Tristan Enaruna — were shorthanded as they prepare to gether again, the Jayhawks (20-8) in our bracket that would be the ruled out before the start of the kick off a postseason run for an will prepare to face 14th-seeded hardest thing, and I think there’s > SEED, 6AA KU can’t By Matt Tait l l l look too [email protected] Out of all the ways the COVID-19 pan- demic reshaped the far ahead 2020-21 college bas- ketball season, Kansas BENTON coach Bill Self says the changes made to SMITH the format of the 2021 NCAA Tournament [email protected] could be some of the ... & that’s fine with Bill Self most enjoyable. tournament’s 67 the teams in Indianapo- the country at more t a program with the With all 68 teams games will take place. lis. And while that will than a dozen host sites college basketball headed to Indiana Self said recently be decidedly different — Self said it could add pedigree of Kansas, one of the time-honored this week, the ma- that four Indianapolis from what any of them to the intensity of the Atraditions of Selection Sunday is jority of them will hotels were slated to are used to — with the competition. inspecting the rest of whatever be in Indianapolis, be team headquarters tournament typically region the Jayhawks ended up in. being spread across That flies most years, particu- where 55 of the for most, if not all, of > INDY, 10AA larly when KU is a top seed with a legitimate chance of making a run at the championship. But right now, mere days removed from withdrawing from the Big 12 tournament, KU has far too much else to worry about. Forget about Gonzaga, Iowa, Virginia and the rest of the teams in the West region. The Jayhawks don’t even know with Shutterstock Photo absolute certainty at this point how their shorthanded rotation LUCAS OIL STADIUM WILL will play in their NCAA Tour- HOST THIS YEAR’S FINAL nament debut Saturday against FOUR GAMES, AS WELL AS Eastern Washington. THE NATIONAL TITLE GAME. > AHEAD, 6AA Get to know Eastern Washington, KU’s first-round foe By Benton Smith basketball team first will Eastern Washington (16- the floor (17-for-52 on AP File Photo have to get past a hot 7) is ranked No. 110 in the 3-pointers). l l l Eastern Washington team nation by KenPom.com and Now in his fourth sea- EASTERN [email protected] in the first round of the is led by Tanner Groves, the son leading the Eagles, WASHINGTON FORWARD NCAA Tournament. Big Sky’s MVP this season. head coach Shantay Le- Before the Jayhawks gans has a .610 career win- TANNER GROVES, can start worrying about The Eagles, who are Groves, a 6-foot-9, LEFT, ning percentage entering shoots how they match up with the Big Sky Conference 235-pound junior forward, over Arizona USC, Wichita State or champions, enter the Big leads a balanced offense the NCAA Tournament. forward Ira Lee Drake — or even dream Dance on a four-game (78 points per game). He This is the program’s first on Dec. 5, 2020, about looking ahead in winning streak, and contributes 16.4 points, 8.1 berth since 2015. in Tucson, Ariz. the West region to Iowa they’ve won 13 of their rebounds, 55.7% shooting Arizona won or Gonzaga — the Kansas last 14 games. and the ability to stretch > FOE, 7AA 70-67. We install the BEST OPEN SUNDAY-THURSDAY 10AM-9PM, AND FRIDAY AND SATURDAY 10AM-10PM AND REPAIR THE REST! 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