Why UTEP? Why now? Self discusses why Jayhawks are playing added nonconference game
Kansas men’s basketball coach Bill Self figured a 12-day layoff between games might be ill-advised for his Jayhawks this time of year.
So, three weeks ago, he had KU hoops schedule-maker/deputy athletic director Sean Lester explore nonconference opponents who could play Thursday, March 4, at Allen Fieldhouse.
That quick search for a foe concluded last Thursday when KU (18-8, 12-6) and UTEP (12-10, 8-8) announced plans to play a tune-up for their respective conference tournaments — Big 12 and Conference USA — at 7 p.m. Thursday.
“It’s a situation Sean came to me (and said), ‘Do we want to play another game?’ And the answer was going to be ‘No,’ if in fact we weren’t going to be able to finish our (Big 12) season on time because of a pause, because 11 days or 12 days is too long,” Self explained Tuesday on his Hawk Talk radio show.
“We saw how that affected us when we came back from Christmas,” Self added of a long stretch between games.
The Jayhawks, who headed to their hometowns or hometowns of friends for Christmas break with an 8-1 record on Dec. 23, spent four days out of town for the holiday. They had no game from Dec. 23 until Jan. 2. That’s when Texas slugged the Jayhawks, 84-59, at Allen Fieldhouse.
“That’s not taking anything away from Texas,” Self said. “They whipped us, but I do think that layoff may have contributed to us not being as sharp. So we wanted to do something (after it was apparent KU would not need to make up any missed league games because of COVID-19 protocols) and this was a good game for us against UTEP, a quality opponent.”
KU was allowed to schedule a 27th game because the KU-Tarleton State game, set for Dec. 13, had been called off because of COVID-19 protocols in Tarleton’s program.
UTEP, which defeated Charlotte in a pair of games last Saturday and Sunday in El Paso, Texas, would have been idle nine days from March 1 until the start of the Conference USA Tournament on March 10 without this game versus KU.
“I’ve known Rodney (Terry, UTEP coach) a long time. He was a longtime assistant at Texas, recruited Durant (Kevin) and some of those guys,” Self said. “He’s been around big-time ball and I thought it would be a good game for us, so this will be.
“It’s all about trying to stay as sharp as we can,” Self added.
UTEP, which has won four consecutive games, is led by 6-3 junior guard Souley Boum, who averages 18.7 points a game on 38.4% shooting. He’s made 59 of 142 threes for 40.8% and 119 of 146 free throws for 81.5%. Senior forward Bryson Williams averages 14.8 points a game. Former Oklahoma guard Jamal Bieniemy, the nephew of Chiefs offensive coordinator Eric Bieniemy, averages 8.6 points a game.
“We were on Zoom when we found out. I was really excited when we found out,” Boum, a native of Oakland, California, told the El Paso Times. “It’s an experience of a lifetime for us. We’re excited to go on this trip and try to get a victory.”
Noted 6-5 New Orleans native Bieniemy: “It’s a big-time opportunity for us. Going into the conference tournament it’s a chance to stay sharp and stay competitive and trying to keep our momentum going, to keep playing hard and together.”
This story was originally published March 3, 2021 at 9:53 AM with the headline "Why UTEP? Why now? Self discusses why Jayhawks are playing added nonconference game."
