Bill Self offers words of wisdom to Tarleton State players ... before KU beats them
It’s not often coach Bill Self speaks with members of the opposing team on the day of a Kansas men’s basketball game.
That rare occasion took place on Friday, however, when KU’s 19th-year Hall of Fame coach walked onto James Naismith Court in Allen Fieldhouse during Tarleton State’s shootaround. While standing next to Tarleton coach and longtime friend Billy Gillispie, Self rendered some words of wisdom to the Texans, who had lost their opener, 62-50, Tuesday at Stanford, and were playing No. 3-ranked KU on Friday night.
“Well, it lasted for 45 seconds so highlights were minimal,” Self said of his speech He gave his short talk at the request of Gillispie — a former assistant on Self’s coaching staffs at Tulsa and Illinois — several hours before the Jayhawks’ 88-62 victory over the Western Athletic Conference team.
“I am impressed how hard they play. It reminds me of our Tulsa days to be honest with you. We had probably more guys than what they have right now, but it’s the same type of energy and effort. You watch … that team is going to beat somebody they are not supposed to beat, they play so hard,” Self said.
The Texans trailed KU, by just eight points at halftime of what turned out to be a lopsided defeat Friday night.
Tarleton’s men’s basketball Twitter account on Friday posted video of Self’s short speech to the Texans.
“Thank you to coach Bill Self for coming by shootaround and speaking with our guys ahead of tonight’s game,” read the Twitter post which included one of Self’s quotes to the team: “Toughness always beats skill over the course of time.”
Self had this to say to a Texans team that Friday night was led by guards Shamir Bogues, Montre Gipson and Tahj Small, who scored 20, 19 and 12 versus KU. Ochai Agbaji had 25 points to lead the Jayhawks.
“You guys have a chance to have a good team, a real good team,” Self said to the Tarleton State players at shootaround. “You’ve got interchangeable parts, all about the same size. As you get into the season that will become much harder to guard and also (will be) much harder to score against. You won’t let bigs play big because you are tough. I hope we put it on you tonight,” Self added, drawing a laugh from Gillispie. “If you guys listen, this dude (Gillispie) can be out there sometimes. The teams that buy in … you can beat anybody.”
Tarleton State will play Wichita State on Tuesday, North Dakota State on Nov. 22, Michigan on Nov. 24 and Gonzaga on Nov. 29, all on the road.
“Over a course of six months, skill will prevail over a course of one night. Toughness will always beat skill over the course of time. We hope we get you tonight, but I wanted to say I was impressed watching your film,” Self said, concluding his speech to the Tarleton team.
This story was originally published November 13, 2021 at 10:56 AM with the headline "Bill Self offers words of wisdom to Tarleton State players ... before KU beats them."
