Inside The Paint

It may be time for a re-evaluation of No. 5 Kansas, as Bill Self's Jayhawks were blown out by the Iowa State Cyclones for their first loss in conference play. Turnovers, three-point shooting, and leadership are all being discussed as liabilities for this team, and we're ready to talk about how fixable each glaring weakness truly is.  How much is Bill Self to blame for his team's no-show in Ames? Has Quentin Grimes turned a corner? What can Dedric Lawson do to get back on track? We hear your questions, and we're ready to break down some solutions for this team as they seek to win the Big 12 for a 15th year in a row. The good news is that Kansas has a winnable next stretch of games, so the prospect of five straight wins is something that should get all Jayhawk fans to relax. Up next for KU is a home tilt against TCU, who enters Allen Fieldhouse having won nine games in a row. We break down keys to the matchup and discuss whether or not KU can get back on track.

It's January, which means the Big 12 race is soon to be in full-force. The Jayhawks opened up their campaign for a 15th straight league title by taking down Oklahoma, 70-63, in a defensive battle.  There were plenty of things to like from Kansas on Wednesday night, including Quentin Grimes' second consecutive game with at least 14 points. Devon Dotson is the clear-cut Big 12 Freshman of the Year. Dedric Lawson wasn't even that great, and he still went for 13 points and 15 rebounds. Also, the once-leaky Kansas defense shut down Oklahoma and star senior Christian James, holding the Sooners to just 40% shooting from the floor. The game left us plenty of talking points as well, though. Is there any hope for Charlie Moore to pull out of his early-season struggles? Did we discover that Kansas plays better with big lineups as opposed to smaller ones? Is Kansas State a bottom-three team in the league? Up next for KU? A huge road showdown with Iowa State in an early-season tilt for first place in the league. A win

In their final game of 2018, the Jayhawks rolled past Eastern Michigan thanks to Udoka Azubuike's return. They conclude the nonconference slate at 11-1, coming close to having gone undefeated. We recap the win and discuss how even though it came against a vastly inferior opponent, Quentin Grimes' effort should leave fans encouraged that he could bust out of his season-long funk just in time for January. We recap the nonconference season as a whole, giving Kansas a letter grade for their efforts thus far. How is this team better or worse than we anticipated them being? How many wins can we expect them to bring home in Big 12 season? We recap the first two months or the year and preview the conference slate in an extended segment. Concluding the show is a preview of the first Big 12 game of the year, when Kansas welcomes Oklahoma to Allen Fieldhouse for a Wednesday night showdown. We offer up predictions, previews, and picks for how Kansas will fare in their conference opener.

Kansas' undefeated season came to a sudden end on Saturday night. After leading for the first 37 minutes, the Jayhawks went cold down the stretch and blew a winnable game in Tempe against Arizona State. We're here to recap what went wrong in the loss, from officiating to bad execution. Udoka Azubuike is expected back as KU takes on Eastern Michigan to close out nonconference play at Allen Fieldhouse. We recap a busy week of Big 12 basketball and preview the Jayhawks' next opponent on a busy Inside the Paint podcast.

Charlie Moore broke out with a big game on Tuesday night, leading No. 1 Kansas past South Dakota in their biggest win of the season thus far. Everybody besides Quentin Grimes is getting in on the action, and we're here to talk all about what that means. Up next: a top-20 showdown in the desert with Arizona State, and we all have different opinions on how we think the test will go. Picks and predictions are made. Merry Christmas!

For the first time since 2008, Kansas beat Villanova in a basketball game. The No. 1 Jayhawks avenged some demons from the last few years by downing the Wildcats at Allen Fieldhouse, improving to 9-0 on the season. We talk about the game, the struggles of Quentin Grimes, the dominance of Dedric Lawson, and the formula for success to get the most out of KU's depth. We also talk about a great week from Jayhawk alum playing in the NBA.

For the first time in eight years, the Kansas Jayhawks are 8-0 after beating New Mexico State on Saturday. They returned to No. 1 in the polls, where they started the season, but there are plenty of questions left to answer for KU. Where are they going to look for offense without Udoka Azubuike? Who should get the frontcourt minutes? We debate it all. There's also a big game on Saturday, as Kansas hosts Villanova in a rematch of last year's Final Four loss. Will KU finally get its revenge? We preview and pick the game.

Kansas finally scored a 25-point win on Tuesday night, clobbering Wofford behind an enormous second-half run to get to 7-0 for the second year in a row. The Jayhawks lost center Udoka Azubuike to an ankle sprain, but KU certainly has the depth to overcome the injury for the next few weeks. We discuss the game, Quentin Grimes' emergance in the second half, and other takeaways from the week of college basketball before looking ahead to New Mexico State.

In a game you had to see to believe, the Jayhawks escaped as a 20-point favorite by beating Stanford in overtime this weekend. Lagerald Vick was amazing, scoring 25 points in the second half and overtime, including the game-tying three with less than 10 seconds left.  We talk about the win and a slumping Big 12 overall, as just two undefeated teams from the conference remain. Kansas, at 6-0, has a soft December schedule ahead, but can anything get this team to win a game with ease? Wofford is up next, and we all think that might be the matchup that gets them going.

We waited for Dedric Lawson to get going, and he came alive under the bright lights of New York City to carry Kansas past Tennessee in an overtime thriller. The Jayhawks, now 5-0, keep getting leapfrogged for the No. 1 ranking, but they appear to be playing as well as anyone in the country. We discuss the win and what we want to see in the next few games for KU, as the schedule is about to get a lot softer.

KU beat Marquette, but it took them 20 minutes to get going on Wednesday night. They now await Tennessee in the championship game in New York City. We talk all about it on a Thanksgiving day Inside the Paint.

Lagerald Vick stayed hot and Kansas beat Louisiana to improve to 3-0, but the basketball team is on the back burner for KU fans this weekend. The announcement of Les Miles as head football coach has rocked Lawrence and made fans excited for the future of Kansas sports.  We're still here to talk about the basketball team, who heads to New York City to take part in the NIT Preseason Tip-Off tournament. Marquette is on deck for the Jayhawks, and we're here to preview what should be a high-scoring shootout in the Big Apple.

Behind a magical night from Lagerald Vick, the Jayhawks improved to 2-0 by beating Vermont in the home opener on Monday night. There were a handful of takeaways, but between Vick's flawless shooting night and Udoka Azubuike's emergence as a dominant scorer, there are plenty of things to be excited about for the Jayhawks. Next up for KU is a battle against Louisiana in a Friday night home tilt. The Jayhawks will look to get Dedric Lawson going before heading east to play in the NIT Preseason Tournament.

Kansas opened the year by beating the Spartans in a game that wasn't as close as the final score indicated, and there were plenty of positive takeaways from an encouraging first game of the season. We're ready to recap the things that went right and wrong for the Jayhawks, as well as discuss whether or not the Big 12 is going to take a massive step backwards this season.

With a loaded roster filled with scholarship players, Bill Self has his work cutout for him in his 15th year as the head coach at Kansas. If KU's two exhibition games against Emporia State and Washburn were any indication, finding the right lineup to maximize chemistry will be a bit of a challenge. Kansas needs to continue to filter through lineups in order to find the right group of five to maximize output in any given situation. While that will likely take several weeks of regular season action, the purpose of these exhibition games was for Bill Self to have time to figure some of it out, and while the scoring margins of the victories were impressive, I'm not sure that he took any steps towards figuring out his puzzle.

Projected as the No. 1 team in college basketball, the Jayhawks showed off their teeth in a Late Night in the Phog scrimmage. We're here to tell you what to make of it, plus provide a full breakdown of the team's 2018-19 schedule, on the Inside the Paint podcast.

Season six of the Inside the Paint podcast is here! Lagerald Vick and Udoka Azubuike return to load Kansas to full capacity. The question that people are asking is, are the Jayhawks too loaded? How will Bill Self find a way to find minutes for 13 scholarship players? Who is starting, and what jersey numbers are they wearing? Also included: the 2018 nonconference schedule, everything KU-related from the NBA Draft, new AD Jeff Long, and even some Kansas football!