Bill Self weighs in on how Kansas State will fare in the Big 12 Tournament when injuries to Hunter Dickinson and fellow All-American candidate Kevin McCuller Jr. keep him out of the game in Kansas City. I wanted to know.
The match took an unusual turn. Because the Jayhawks, small and lacking in depth, lost to Cincinnati by 20 points before they could even unpack their bags. And as curious as Self was last week, this game highlighted how much he doesn't want his team to go into this week's NCAA Tournament without Dickinson and McCuller.
“Damn, if you're perfect you can play with anyone. We proved that,” Self said. The team is the No. 4 seed in the Midwest Region and will have a tough opener Thursday in Salt Lake City against No. 13 seed Sanford.
The problem is that the Jayhawks haven't been healthy for a while. Dickinson suffered a shoulder injury just a week ago during a 30-point loss to Houston, but McCuller's knee injury has been lingering for weeks, leaving him on the bench.
The 7-foot Dickinson did non-contact workouts over the weekend, and Self expected to have a full practice Monday to prepare for the NCAA Tournament. He was also optimistic that McCuller would be able to play, although it's not a sure thing.
“(McCullagh's) overall game plan is to hope he's good on Monday, and if he's bad he won't be, and we'll expect that on Tuesday. .'But I don't know as much about Kevin as I do about Hunt,'' Self said. “I think when you get Hunter back, he automatically gives you confidence. He's different in that way and he's going to give us more than we've ever had at this time of year.”
But the Jayhawks aren't the only ones concerned about health. Whether it's a top-seeded team like Purdue or Houston or a bubble team like Colorado or Northwestern, much of the NCAA Tournament hopes could rest in the training room.
Purdue, which like Houston earned the No. 1 seed, will be keeping a close eye on All-Big Ten guard Braden Smith's calf. He hurt it in the conference quarterfinal win over Michigan State, but didn't seem to mind it as much in the semifinal loss to Wisconsin.
“He's a tough guy,” Boilermakers general center Zach Eady said. “I never had any doubts about whether he was going to play, whether he was going to be OK. In high school, he played about half a season with a broken foot. He never experienced pain. I can do it. I trust him.”
“The schedule is for him to play,” said Marquette coach Shaka Smart, who plays No. 15 seed Western Kentucky in Indianapolis on Friday. “But we have to grow this week.”
The Golden Eagles will also be monitoring the status of big man Oso Ighodalo, who did not play the rest of the Big East title game with a banged left knee, and guard Stevie Mitchell, who was playing through a shoulder injury. I plan to.
Meanwhile, BYU forward Ali Khalifa injured his ankle in the second half of the loss to the Red Raiders. The Cougars, the No. 6 seed in the East, were already without Mark Adams Jr. and Dawson Baker for most of the season due to injuries.
No. 9 seed Northwestern, which is without guard Ty Berry after a season-ending torn meniscus, hopes Matthew Nicholson will be available for Friday's game against No. 8 seed FAU in New York. The center has been dealing with a foot injury for the past two weeks.
Nevada was hit by the flu ahead of last week's Mountain West Tournament, and Wolf Pack coach Steve Alford estimated five or six players had the flu. They're all healthy, but guard Hunter McIntosh remains uncertain with a knee injury.
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AP March Madness bracket: https://apnews.com/hub/ncaa-mens-bracket and coverage: https://apnews.com/hub/march-madness
