Margin of error low as Jayhawks continue Big 12 play, hoping to turn things around

LAWRENCE, Kan. (WDAF) — Expectations are always high for Kansas basketball with the Jayhawks routinely dominating the Big 12.

“Sometimes our people may take for granted how hard it really is to win the league and how anything less than that can be a disappointment,” Head Coach Bill Self told reporters Friday. 

The Jayhawks are 4-2 in conference play, but there’s still plenty of time to turn things around. 

“We put ourselves in a position where we can’t have anymore slip-ups. There’s a lot of good Big 12 teams this year,” sophomore guard Christian Braun said. 

KU is coming off a loss to Oklahoma State, in which it allowed the Cowboys to score 37 fast break points. Self said moving forward, the Jayhawks need to improve on the defensive side of the ball. 

“This team has the opportunity to be good at doing that. We just need to try to lock in a little bit more and give a little bit more effort to the defensive side,” senior forward Mitch Lightfoot said. 

Kansas was picked to finish second in the conference in the pre-season poll, behind Baylor. But Self believes his team can make a push during the final weeks of the regular season. 

“I would feel better if we had a little bit more margin for error. As good as our league is, other teams aren’t going to lose a lot. So we’ve got to play better than what we have in order to put ourselves in position to still have a shot, going into the last two or three weeks,” Self said. 

The Jayhawks host Iowa State at 1 p.m. Saturday.