KANSAS CITY. MO. — University of Kansas men's basketball head coach Bill Self knows "it's going to be a challenge" after facing Arizona for the second time in six days, this time in the 2025 Phillips 66 Big 12 Men's Basketball Championship.
"I actually thought on Saturday we had four seniors play very, very, very well and it was barely enough," Self said, referencing Kansas' 83-76 win against Arizona on March 8. "It's going to take a great energy-type game. We're going to have to play big, obviously, and we gotta be able to guard the ball probably better than we did on Saturday."
Self believes the first matchup against Arizona could have gone either way but that the Jayhawks made "probably a couple more plays" as the game wound down.
He praised the players for their "great effort" in that game and said they need to bring even more on Thursday.
AJ Storr will be looking to build off his 19-point performance against UCF, the most he's ever had in a Kansas uniform.
"I think I just started off going downhill," Storr said on his approach during the game. "I saw the ball go in a couple of times and I stepped out to the three and then it was money."
Zeke Mayo, who scored 24 points himself, thought Storr did "fantastic" on Wednesday.
"As long as he stays aggressive, I'm sure we will live with the results," Mayo said.
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