Head coach Bill Self of the Kansas Jayhawks applauds his team prior to a game against the Texas Tech Red Raiders at Allen Fieldhouse on February 28, 2023 in Lawrence, Kansas. (Photo by Ed Zurga/Getty Images)
Kansas head coach Bill Self was discharged from the hospital after receiving a heart procedure and should make a full recovery.
Kansas head coach Bill Self is returning just in time to coach his team at the NCAA Tournament as the Jayhawks look to defend their title.
Self and a dominant Kansas squad are setting out to make history this year despite losing the Big 12 championship to Texas on Saturday. Self had recently checked into a hospital on Wednesday to undergo a surgical procedure on his heart, missing the entire Big 12 tournament. The more important thing is that he appears to be on track to make a full recovery.
The school declined to comment on Self’s specific health concern when the long-time head coach first checked into the hospital, but the details have since been released: Self had a standard heart catheterization and had two stents placed to treat blocked arteries.
Per Kansas’ assistant Norm Roberts, Self is recovering well and is expected to return in time to coach Kansas at the start of the NCAA Tournament; the first round is scheduled to begin on March 16-17 with the exact seedings yet to be announced.
Kansas HC Bill Self was discharged from hospital and is ready to coach again
Having Self back on the sidelines should inject another boost of confidence in the Jayhawks, who are projected to take a No. 1 seed and put up a fierce title defense.
In Self’s 20-year tenure at Kansas, the Jayhawks have won two national titles, one in 2008 and one in 2022, and 17 regular-season Big 12 titles.
In this year’s Big 12 Tournament, assistant coach Norm Roberts took over the reins to lead the Jayhawks into the championship game against Texas, ultimately falling 76-56 against a superior shooting side.
With the NCAA Tournament start just days away, Kansas gets a shot to prove it has what it takes to win a second consecutive championship — and the program will do so with one of college basketball’s winningest coaches back in the driver’s seat.
