Road woes may put end to impressive Kansas basketball streak
By Mike Norris
Senior Lagerald Vick, junior Udoka Azubuike and sophomore Marcus Garrett, all starters at some point in the season, have missed a combined 28 games.
That number will increase considering Azubuike is shut down the rest of the season and no one knows if Vick will return from a leave of personal absence.
Freshman Quentin Grimes, who is averaging just 7.3 points to go along with 1.9 turnovers and a horrid 37.8 shooting percentage, hasn’t performed up to his McDonald’s All-American pedigree after scoring a still season-high 21 points in the first game of the year. In fact, the 6’5″, 210-pound guard has scored eight points or less in 12 of his past 13 games.
All of these issues would be bad for any team, but they aren’t anything new. Teams have dealt with injuries since James Naismith invented the game. In fact, Kansas was without Azubuike for 28 games over the past two seasons yet still managed to win two Big 12 titles and notch Elite 8 and Final Four appearances.
For whatever reason, maybe the law of averages or a lack of fight in tough environments, true road games have plagued this team like never before under Self. In fact, if they lose one of their final two contests away from Allen Fieldhouse it will be KU’s worst road conference performance in 16 years since Roy Williams left for Tobacco Road.
Kansas Road Record Under Self (Per KUAthletics.com)
- 2003: 4-4
- 2004: 5-3
- 2005: 6-2
- 2006: 7-1
- 2007: 5-3
- 2008: 6-2
- 2009: 7-1
- 2010: 7-1
- 2011: 7-2
- 2012: 6-3
- 2013: 5-4
- 2014: 4-5
- 2015: 6-3
- 2016: 8-1
- 2017: 6-3
- Current: 2-5
The only other Self team to not finish at least .500 on the road in the Big 12, the 2014-15 version, already had the league title clinched before losing a road tilt at Oklahoma. Four teams lost just once away from Lawrence and a whopping 12 were at least two games over .500.