KU Jayhawks’ Braun describes life in NCAA bubble: ‘Playing video games, watching TV’
Looking forward to what could be a three-week stay in the men’s NCAA Tournament bubble in Indianapolis, Christian Braun filled his suitcase with necessities for Kansas’ final road trip of the 2020-21 basketball season.
“You pack extra clothes for that reason, hoping for a run in March. That’s everybody’s goal here,” Braun, KU’s sophomore guard out of Blue Valley Northwest High School, said Wednesday in a video call with reporters from Indiana.
Braun has actually been away from McCarthy Hall in Lawrence since March 10, when the Jayhawks’ players, coaches and support staff headed to Kansas City for the Big 12 Tournament.
The Jayhawks remained in a downtown KC hotel until Monday’s early-afternoon flight to Indianapolis. They remained secluded in KC even after dropping out of the conference tournament Friday morning following freshman Jalen Wilson’s positive COVID-19 test.
“I didn’t bring board games. We’re trying to stay away from each other,” Braun said. The NCAA has instructed players to not congregate in each other’s hotel rooms in order to reduce chances of contacting COVID-19.
It’s just one player to a room on this trip.
“I did bring my video game. That’s what I’ve been on the whole time,” Braun said. “We’ve got to stay in our room. I’m playing video games, watching TV, stuff like that just to keep entertained.”
Braun said KU’s stay in the NCAA bubble reminds him a bit of a huge AAU tournament. Players from other teams in the NCAA Tournament are staying in a few different hotels near the Convention Center in downtown Indianapolis. Practices are held in the Convention Center.
“You are walking around the hotel, walking to the Convention Center for practice. You see guys you used to know from playing basketball,” Braun said. “You see everybody walking around for meals. It is a lot like AAU because you see all the players on the other teams. It’s actually kind of cool, a different experience having everybody around. I’ve seen a couple guys I played with. I don’t get to talk with them or hang out with them but it’s good to see them.”
One player he’s quite familiar with is Missouri forward Parker Braun — his older brother.
“He’s staying in the hotel next to us,” Christian Braun said. “We don’t get to see each other. It’s awesome he gets to play and I get to play. My parents get to come to watch. We are excited for both of our first NCAA Tournaments. We can’t wait to play.”
The youngest of the Braun brothers, Landon, just completed his sophomore season at Blue Valley Northwest.
“It’s been a crazy month for them (parents). Now they actually get to watch both of us play. They are pretty excited,” Christian Braun said of his mom, Lisa, and dad, Donny.
KU coach Bill Self says he senses his No. 3-seeded players, who meet No. 14 Eastern Washington in a first-round game at 12:15 p.m. Saturday at Farmers Coliseum, are committed to a long stay in Indy. The national title game will be contested on April 5.
“I don’t think it’ll be as big a deal because you can see the finish line,” Self said of players being away from KU’s campus potentially for so long. “I think it’s a much bigger deal having the quarantines and the semi-isolation through the course of six to seven months and the grind of every day, (being told this past school year), ‘This is what we do. This is how you are eating. You are not leaving the room. Basically you have no social life.’
“I think the fact we are here, something that triggers energy is walking around seeing other players who are your competitors and peers and coaches on different staffs, people following you after practice. I believe that gives you energy, gets you more excited to actually play.
“It wouldn’t be easy,” Self continued, referring to staying in Indy until after the title game. “If you are fortunate enough to advance, I think the sacrifices you have to make being here will be minimal compared to the reward.”
Eastern Washington junior forward Tanner Groves, the player of the year in the Big Sky Conference, also is embracing the NCAA bubble.
“It’s been really good. Free meals ... I can’t complain at all,” Groves said, adding, “I’ve been enjoying it. They are feeding us pretty well. We are getting a lot of meals and all kind of snacks every day. The NCAA is treating us right. doing a good job, I think.”
Eastern Washington coach Shantay Legans said this time of year is especially fun for mid-major players who don’t experience the NCAA Tourney every year. EWU has made two NCAA Tournament appearances.
“Leaving Boise (Idaho on Sunday after winning Big Sky tournament) and heading here was surreal, seeing the guys celebrate. It’s what you look for as a coach,” Legans said. “Getting here, you have players all around. You’ve got big-time schools in the same hotel on different floors. It’s something they (Eagles) have never experienced before.
“It’s been great. Our guys are just happy to be here. Our guys were a little tired. They played three games (Thursday through Saturday), got on a private jet (Sunday). They didn’t have to wait in line (at airport). That was cool. It’s cool being part of this.
“As a coach you (normally) want everything right on schedule, right on time. Here you take it how it goes. If practice is at 4 p.m., and it gets switched to 10 a.m., that’s fine. That’s good. We’ll take it as it comes,” Legans added.
This story was originally published March 18, 2021 at 8:50 AM with the headline "KU Jayhawks’ Braun describes life in NCAA bubble: ‘Playing video games, watching TV’."
