Kansas basketball coach Bill Self reaches 800 career wins with victory vs UNCW

LAWRENCE — Kansas basketball head coach Bill Self had already reached one milestone this season, before Tuesday’s game against UNCW.

Back last week in Atlanta, during the Champions Classic against Michigan State, when the Jayhawks won Self became the all-time winningest head coach in program history. He passed Phog Allen, who had 590 wins. That victory gave Self 591 at KU.

But Tuesday’s 84-66 win against UNCW gave Self another milestone in his coaching journey. With No. 1 Kansas’ 5-0 start to the season, Self now has 800 career wins. And even though Self didn’t spend much time talking about how special the moment was for himself postgame while speaking with reporters, much like his reaction to becoming the all-time winningest head coach for the Jayhawks, a pair of his veteran players had more to say.

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“Coach is just a winner, that’s all,” graduate guard Dajuan Harris Jr. said. “He’s a winner. It’s fun playing with him. He makes it look easy for me. So, he’s just a winner.”

Graudate center Hunter Dickinson added: “Hopefully he gets to 900 and 1,000, because, I mean, he is one of the best and he deserves it all. But just trying to get more milestones, trying to get that third national championship for him. I feel like that’s the biggest thing we want right now for him.”

Kansas basketball coach Bill Self waves toward fans after a win against UNCW inside Allen Fieldhouse on Nov. 19, 2024.

Self was once a graduate assistant at Kansas, before becoming an assistant coach at his alma mater Oklahoma State. His head coaching career then began at Oral Roberts a little more than three decades ago, before stints at Tulsa and Illinois. He began his run at KU with the 2003-04 season and has been in Lawrence ever since.

Those many wins over the years have helped Self win numerous conference championships. He’s also won a number of games in the NCAA tournament. As Dickinson alluded…

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Author : The Topeka Capital-Journal

Publish date : 2024-11-20 15:04:00

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