Bill Self Has A Losing Record

By Ian Echlin

It’s one of the only losing records for Bill Self. He’s 2-7 coaching in the Elite Eight.

Once he knew he was advancing to the Elite Eight for the tenth time in his coaching career it was evident that he’s well aware of his history.

In 2017, the table was set for Bill to right the ship. Kansas was the top seed in the Midwest region, and its road to the Final Four went through Sprint Center in Kansas City.

Called “Allen Fieldhouse East” because of its close proximity to Lawrence, on that March night the place was painted crimson and blue. Despite the small strip of green representing the Oregon fans, the crowd was booming with Rock Chalk chants.

Though the Jayhawks came up short against Oregon, there’s another opportunity for Self to go to his third Final Four.

But the opportunity pits Kansas and Bill Self against Duke and Mike Krzyzewski who will be playing for his thirteenth Final Four appearance. A win against Kansas for Krzyzewski would give him the honor of the most Men’s Final Four appearances by a head coach, passing legendary UCLA coach John Wooden in the record book.

“For us in the coaching profession, one of the bridges, the biggest bridge you can cross is the Final Four bridge,” Krzyzewski said.

The bridge to the Final Four appears to be Self’s Achilles heel.

Bill Self Denzel Valentine — Kansas head coach Bill Self stands alongside Michigan State forward Denzel Washington at the 2016 Final Four in Houston. Self was presented the AP Coach of the Year award, and Valentine received the AP Player of the Year award.

Winning the majority of games in his Hall of Fame career, it’s easy to overlook this one black mark, especially since he’s been to two NCAA championship games. He says he approaches every NCAA tournament the same.

“Players need to feel free and they need to be relaxed and have fun as opposed to sometimes you want something so bad it creates pressure,” Self said. “And I do think that that’s been the case a lot of times with us. You want something so bad that sometimes maybe you don’t give yourself the best chance.”

He’s confident that his team can rise to the occasion this year.

“I think this team is really proud of their accomplishment. And I think they feel like that we put ourselves in a position where we don’t have to feel that pressure.”

Coaching accolades aside, both teams know the ante with a bid to the Final Four on the line.