Kansas Jayhawks edge closer to Kentucky on NCAA men’s basketball’s all-time wins list
Kansas’ men’s basketball team has won 20 games so far during the 2020-21 season — 11 more than fellow blueblood Kentucky.
This means the Jayhawks (20-8), who are preparing for the start of March Madness on Saturday, enter the 2021 NCAA Tournament just five games behind the Wildcats (9-16) in all-time victories. Currently, Kentucky is No. 1 in all-time victories with 2,327 (against 728 losses). KU has an all-time mark of 2,322-870. North Carolina is third at 2,294-828 and Duke fourth at 2,214-904.
Yes, the No. 3-seed Jayhawks are five wins away from tying UK for the most wins in NCAA men’s history. Kentucky has no chance to add to its win total until the start of next season as the Wildcats are not involved in the NCAAs or the NIT.
“I do wish we had that feather in our cap. I know Kentucky has been very proud that they have had that feather in their cap for a long time,” KU coach Bill Self said Sunday, asked specifically about KU’s position on the all-time win list in a Zoom call with reporters. “It would be nice to catch them. There’s a lot of work left to do that,” he added.
Bragging rights are huge for the winningest program of all time.
“I will tell you this, I think Kentucky has, rightfully so, used that as a recruiting tool for decades: ‘We are the winningest program in the history of college basketball,’ and rightfully so,” Self said.
“We’ve said, ‘We are the second-winningest program in the history of college basketball.’ I don’t know that either one of those statements actually gets you a player (in recruiting) in today’s time. I do think it adds interest and it certainly adds pride with your loyal fanbases and your alums.
“We are in a situation where obviously I am aware that we’ve narrowed the gap. I don’t know that exactly it was five or six (games) or whatever it was.”
Told by Lexington Herald-Leader writer Jerry Tipton on Sunday’s Zoom call that KU was indeed just five back, Self said: “In order for us to pass them (this season) we win a national championship. If we were able to do that, then I would tell everybody in the world what was going on.
“The reality of that is, I really don’t think something that happened in the 1930s really translates to how successful a program is now. That is not a goal that we have for this team to accomplish that,” Self stated of passing Kentucky. “That’s not anything I’ll lose one second of sleep over.”
Self in his 18 seasons at KU has won more games than the coaches at Kentucky, Duke and UNC have won in that same span.
The Jayhawks are 521-117 in the Self era. Duke is 507-127 under Mike Krzyzewski and UNC 485-162 under Roy Williams during those same 18 campaigns. Kentucky, which has been led by John Calipari, Billy Gillispie and Tubby Smith in that span, is 478-156.
UNC has won three NCAA titles the last 17 seasons, while Duke has won two. KU and Kentucky have won one apiece in that time period.
“To think, against teams that are thought of (highly), whether it be Carolina or Duke or Kentucky … they’ve not won more games than us (in 18 years),” Self said. “That makes you proud because we’ve had a lot of good players. When you think of the best (programs), we’ve probably won as much or more in that time frame.
“You don’t evaluate who the top golfer is by how many tournaments they finish in the top five,” he added, “but how many majors they win. You can sell it to your advantage, but it can be sold over other ways, too. But I’m proud of it, yes,” Self added.
In one other stat of note, KU has never been worse than a No. 4 seed in the NCAAs in Self’s 18 years at KU. His three University of Illinois teams were never worse than a 4-seed as well. Also, KU has been a No. 1- or 2-seed in 10 of the last 12 seasons and 12 of Self’s 18 seasons at KU. Self’s Illinois teams were seeded No. 4 twice and No. 1 once.
“We’ve been fortunate we’ve had so many good players, going back to Illinois. The last 21 years, the worst team we’ve had is a 4-seed in the NCAA Tournament. The worst team in the NCAA is a 4-seed and that’s happened three times or four times (three times at KU). It’s not perfect,” he added of his record. “You’d think also if we’ve been a top 4-seed 21 straight years we’ve been consistent. We’ve not always played our best in March. We’ve been pretty consistent over time.”
This story was originally published March 16, 2021 at 9:01 AM with the headline "Kansas Jayhawks edge closer to Kentucky on NCAA men’s basketball’s all-time wins list."
