LAWRENCE, Kan. — Bill Self watched the North Carolina buzzer beater Saturday and the students rushing the floor, and he hoped for a moment like that two days later at his place.
No court storms — “We won’t do that, we won’t storm,” Self said — but in his 23 years as Kansas’ coach, the 63-year-old hasn’t celebrated as he did in the moments after an 82-78 win over Arizona, the first loss of the season for the Wildcats (23-1, 10-1 Big 12).
Maybe it was the history of this one — KU had never beaten a No. 1 team at Allen Fieldhouse, and Self was going for 40-0 in the building on “Big Mondays” — or maybe it was the circumstances. Less than an hour before tipoff, Self walked down the stairs from his office and found star Darryn Peterson in the training room, with flu-like symptoms, and unable to go, missing his 11th game this season.
Or maybe Self’s just falling in love with this team.
But there the Hall of Famer stood in the aftermath of another historic win, at the free-throw line on Naismith Court, looking up at all the students who hadn’t budged from their spots, and Self clinched his fists, raised them in the air and gave four pumps.
“I never do that,” Self said. “I’m never like that.”
This one obviously meant something to Self, who has been given a shot of adrenaline by this team.
He loves to win “grimy,” as he’d describe it afterward, and this was one of his masterpieces in the “make the opponent play poorly” category. These No. 9 Jayhawks (19-5, 9-2) have recently figured out how to do that with regularity. It started in November at the Player’s Era Festival, when KU went 3-0 without Peterson.
But in early January, once Peterson had returned, the Jayhawks lost their way, losing two of their first three Big 12 games and allowing 89 points per game over that stretch. It was almost like Peterson’s presence made the team think it would start outscoring everyone.
That triggered a player’s only meeting and the realization that becoming a dominant defensive team had to be part of the formula. Since then, Kansas has had the third-best defense in college basketball, according to Bart Torvik’s data.
It didn’t look like it in the first half Monday, when the two teams surprisingly spent 20 minutes trading baskets, leading to a 45-42 Arizona advantage at the half. The Wildcats dominated the paint with 24 first-half points, and Arizona’s 7-foot-2 center Motiejus Krivas (eight points, nine rebounds and three blocks in the first half) controlled the game on both ends.
“Their big guy is good,” Self said. “I mean, he’s good, and we knew he was good, but I didn’t know he’s that good (able to score) over both shoulders, and this and that.”
KU center Flory Bidunga has been arguably the best defensive center in college basketball over the last month, but he looked small next to Krivas, who easily threw in two early hooks over Bidunga’s reach.
The big fella is controlling the game right now if we’re being honest. pic.twitter.com/mBoRh3fTTU
— Arizona Basketball (@ArizonaMBB) February 10, 2026
That the Jayhawks were nearly even at the half was a surprise, given senior point guard Melvin Council Jr., the go-to option anytime Peterson has been out this year, was just 2-of-10 from the field. Kansas was within striking distance because freshman forward Bryson Tiller came out hot, scoring 14 of his 18 points in the first half, and redshirt sophomore Jamari McDowell, who started in place of Peterson, also had a hot start, with 10 points.
Without fail, the Wildcats’ length this season eventually leads to several misses and some turnovers, then they stretch their lead to double-digits and it’s over. Monday’s game felt like it was on its way there early in the second half, when Arizona opened on a 10-2 run to take an 11-point lead. But then Council finally made a 3, sparking a 9-2 run for KU.
Council and Bidunga, who finished with 23 points apiece, kept attacking the rim, whether Krivas was there or not. Even when they missed, the Jayhawks scraped and clawed for offensive rebounds and kept getting the ball on the rim until it went in.
They nearly fought themselves to exhaustion. At one point, Tiller, after a dunk, collapsed to the floor, lying back as though the court was his bed. Arizona and its physicality can have that effect, but Tiller returned after a brief stint on the bench, and Allen Fieldhouse provided all the fuel Kansas needed.
“It’s hard to be tired when that crowd’s like that,” Self said.
The building is always loud, but it was relentless Monday, almost willing every loose ball into the Jayhawks’ hands.
The offense was better than expected without Peterson, and Self noted his other players have been more aggressive individually when their star hasn’t been able to play. Self added that he wasn’t sure they would have been as aggressive with Peterson playing.
Still, the defensive end won the game in the second half.
The Jayhawks found a way to keep the Wildcats out of the paint, with Bidunga’s rim protection just as intimidating as Krivas’ was in the first half.
“He didn’t get as many blocked shots as what he has some other games,” Self said of Bidunga, who finished with three blocks, “but they knew he was around and that makes a big difference.”
Bidunga, appropriately, had the game-sealing block in the final minute when he was switched on Arizona freshman Brayden Burries, who got around him for a split second. Bidunga recovered and blocked his shot at the basket, which Self called “as big as (a) play as we’ve had.”
Flory Bidunga blocks Brayden Burries in crunch time pic.twitter.com/juVcP635at
— Ricky O’Donnell (@SBN_Ricky) February 10, 2026
Afterward, once Self pumped his fists in the air, he hugged Bidunga and Council. By Bidunga’s count, that’s three hugs this season.
“We got to cut him off,” Bidunga joked. “No more.” In recent weeks, Self has made it a point to make it known how much he appreciates the big fella, complimenting his defense at every opportunity.
But the heartbeat of this team is clearly Council, who has quickly put himself in the pantheon of Self’s all-time favorites.
“How can you have a bad day when you’re around him?” Self said. “He’s put his handprint on this place as much as anybody possibly could in the short amount of time he’s been here. I mean, he owns this place.
“He’s as popular as any kid that we’ve ever had play here. … I think the pleasant surprise of who he is has really made this enjoyable for everybody.”
One fair critique of Self in the portal era is that he hasn’t found guys who fit him. But he has that in Council. And after two years of Kansas not competing for Big 12 titles, this team is in the race, trailing both Houston and Arizona by one game after Monday’s win.
It feels good for Self to be in the fight again. This was a big game, he said, but “hopefully we’re gonna play bigger games than this, or it’d be a disappointment.”
As Self thought about it more, the possibility of what’s ahead might be what had him in his feels.
“I was probably a little bit more emotional because we’re better than what we played when we get all our pieces, and to me, that’s exciting,” Self said. “Now, whether or not that happens, I don’t know. But I’ve said this all along, a lot of teams this time of year, when you get to early February, they know where their ceiling is, and the great teams are operating pretty close to their ceiling.
“I don’t know where our ceiling is. And I know that we’re not close to it yet, though. So I think that we’ve got another big step that we can take, and it’s exciting to know that I believe our best ball can still be well ahead of us.”
