It seemed like a few weeks ago the Kansas Jayhawks were on the verge of a strong push for the NCAA Tournament with coach Bill Self and a talented roster. However, February 15, 2025, was a heartbreaking reality. Utah upset the Jayhawks 74-67, extending a loss streak against an opponent of a lower tier. Now it has been clouded with uncertainty, what should have been a hopeful finish to their season. And it was a huge defeat that left Kansas at 17-8 overall and 8-6 in Big 12 play, a serious dent in their hopes for the tournament.

In fact, this loss happened after Kansas had fought their way back into the game, tying it at 60 late in the second half. Utah, though, made the most of defensive breakdown and Kansas’ lack of ability to rebound. Now with just a few games remaining in the regular season, this slip-up has left the Jayhawks with more questions than answers.

That brings us to what Kansas’ chances are at the big dance. Analysts are now sounding the alarm. Andy Patton had some valid concerns on the Locked On College Basketball podcast. “I picked Kansas, it seems like the obvious pick after that loss to Utah,” he said. “I’ll just kind of add on to it a little bit. They’re in a stretch where it looked like they had four relatively easy games and then three tough wins to close. They already lost one of the ‘quote-unquote’ easy games on the road against Utah.” Jayhawks fans hoping to cruise into the tournament are a bit of a gut punch from Patton’s words. Those easy games are now no longer a given and everyone is just wondering if they can get enough wins to pull off the wins they need.

It’s crunch time for Bill Self and his crew now. Kansas, however, has to pull off some serious wins to stay alive in their top four seed hopes.“So they’re in a position now where, if they want to be a top-four seed, they probably need to win five, maybe four, of those games, and they’re just not playing like a team that seems all that likely to do that for Bill Self and the Jayhawks.” Patton said. Tough words for a program like Kansas, which is used to its championship pedigree. It’s hard to argue but with their recent struggles.

They can take their loss to Utah as a prime example. Blatant issues for Kansas: They were poor shooting, particularly on layups, and failed to get rebounds. They even struggled with their star player, Hunter Dickinson, going 4 for 12 from the field. However, these problems have been creeping up all season: other baffling losses, such as their loss to Kansas State and blown lead against Houston, continue to fuel the fire.

Brutal stretch ahead for Bill Self

Kansas’ schedule the rest of the way is no cakewalk. Next is BYU, also 8-6 in conference play, followed by Oklahoma State and Colorado. But real tests begin with Texas Tech at home, Houston away, and Arizona at home. Kansas is ranked lower than all three of those teams, and this stretch could define its season.

However, their inconsistency is now threatening to cost them a spot in the NCAA Tournament. Kansas was projected to be a No. 4 seed comfortably before the Utah loss. But now? If they don’t stabilize, they’re on the edge of falling further down the bracket. 

Bill Self’s Kansas teams have been a juggernaut for years. But the Jayhawks’ woes since winning it all in 2022 have made it less obvious they can make a long tournament run this season. And with the possibility they end up in somewhere like Providence, it’s evident their road to March Madness may not be as easy as it appeared to be.

In short, Patton’s analysis shows how important it is for Kansas to get some consistency, quickly. If they don’t, not only will their seeding suffer, but they could be out of the Big 12 and NCAA Tournaments early, a fate hard to imagine for a program that has so much history with Bill Self. Kansas needs to get it together fast if they want to live up to the expectations placed on them for this March.