Bill Self, Jayhawks preparing for showdown with Iowa State ... and a KU basketball reunion

Bill Self’s duties Saturday include coaching Kansas’ No. 2-ranked basketball team against No. 14 Iowa State, then hosting approximately 200 former KU players, coaches and managers at a banquet celebrating the blue-blood school’s 125 Years of Basketball.

“I do think there’s a different feel. I do think it’s a busier weekend,” Self said Friday, referring to all the hoopla surrounding a 3 p.m. matinee against Iowa State at Allen Fieldhouse. It will be streamed live on ESPN+.

Expected to be in attendance are former KU coaches Larry Brown, Ted Owens and Roy Williams, as well as a plethora of former Jayhawk players and staff members from the past several decades.

“I’m excited about the weekend,” Self, KU’s 20th-year coach, quickly added. “I’m not an early riser and I was in the office at 6 this morning, excited about what’s ready to go on. I also knew in large part if I didn’t get much done before 10 o’clock I’d be done for the day as far as watching tape and that stuff. I do think it’s an exciting time. It should be a great weekend, but what would make it perfect is obviously winning.”

The Cyclones are tied with Kansas State and Kansas for first place in the Big 12 with a 4-0 record. ISU overall is 13-2 and on a six-game winning streak.

“Our guys are very aware what’s going on,” Self said. “But by no means is the game taking — in any way, shape or form — a backseat to what’s going on this weekend.”

KU has won nine straight games entering the ISU contest.

“Coach said something last night after we got done watching film. He said the last time all the (former) players came back we lost or something like that,” KU point guard Dajuan Harris noted. “We’ve just got to be ready to prepare for practice, get better, then come with a lot of focus tomorrow before the game.”

Indeed, the last time KU held a reunion weekend, five years ago during the 2017-18 season, the Jayhawks lost to Oklahoma State, 84-79.

“This is a unique place and T.J. (ISU coach Otzelberger) is telling his group, ‘Can you believe the opportunity we have to go ruin their weekend?’’’ Self said. “And we are telling our group, ‘Are you kidding me? We’re not going to let anybody (ruin the weekend).’ It’s going to be a fun weekend but it’s going to be a hotly, hotly contested game.”

Self loves the KU tradition of inviting former players, coaches and managers back to a game every five years.

“I’m sure a lot of people do a lot of things at their respective schools that are cool and important, but I said this many times (and) this isn’t anything other than facts: Nobody can boast that the inventor of the game was their first coach (James Naismith). Nobody can boast that the most dominant player maybe of all time (Wilt Chamberlain) went to your school. We can,” Self said. “We’ve had eight coaches. I think five of the eight are in the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame. That’s pretty good history.”

KU’s Hall of Fame coaches are: Self, Williams, Brown, Naismith and Phog Allen.

“Fortunately for us we have coach Owens, coach Brown and coach Williams all coming back for this weekend, too. That makes it special, especially for their players that played for them,” Self noted.

KU basketball injury update

Self said on Friday that senior forward Cam Martin likely would not play Saturday due to shoulder discomfort. The KU basketball coach, however, does expect freshman guard MJ Rice to play.

Self said Rice (back) has practiced and would be available unless he had any setbacks Friday or during shootaround and warmups Saturday.

About the Iowa State Cyclones

Iowa State is led in scoring by senior guard Jaren Holmes at 13.1 points per game. He has a team-high 48 assists and grabs 3.1 rebounds per contest.

Senior guard Gabe Kalscheur has a team-best 29 steals while averaging 11.8 points per game. His 28 threes are second the team behind Caleb Grill’s 34. A senior guard, Grill averages 11.1 points and 4.3 rebounds per contest.

Senior center Osun Osunniyi averages 8.1 points and 3.4 rebounds a game. Freshman point guard Tamin Lipsey averages 6.9 points a game with 71 assists to 30 turnovers.

“I think they play as hard as anybody that we could ever play against,” Self said of the Cyclones. “Defensively they probably are as good as anybody we’ll play this year.”