‘We are now just getting started’: Kansas Jayhawks’ Jalen Wilson on Big 12 Tournament

Jalen Wilson scored nine points and grabbed nine rebounds in Kansas’ 69-62 victory over Oklahoma in the quarterfinals of last year’s Big 12 men’s basketball tournament.

The 6-foot-8 redshirt freshman, who played 33 minutes against OU in his first appearance in the college postseason, didn’t get a chance to build on that performance in the semifinals versus Texas.

Wilson, a native of Denton, Texas, tested positive for COVID-19 the morning of the Texas game. KU, which already had two players (David McCormack, Tristan Enaruna) in quarantine in Lawrence, withdrew from the tournament in Kansas City after just one game because of pandemic protocols.

“Last year (I) kind of ruined it for everybody as far as playing in the tournament,” Wilson said Wednesday after the Jayhawks’ shootaround at T-Mobile Center. “I’m definitely looking forward not having COVID to have a chance to play. It will be awesome to get to have a real March Madness. I am very excited.”

KU (25-6) begins Big 12 Tournament play Thursday against ninth-seeded West Virginia (16-16), which beat No. 8 seed Kansas State 73-67 in the first round Wednesday night. Tipoff is 2 p.m. (ESPN).

Wilson enters the postseason after being recognized Sunday by the Big 12 coaches, who named him third-team all-league.

“It feel great. I was happy to be honored in that, as well as my teammates,” said Wilson. He averages 10.8 points and 7.3 rebounds a game — 13.4 points and 8.0 rebounds in Big 12 games only. “We had six dudes make something. It shows how deep our team is.”

KU senior guard Ochai Agbaji was named first-team all-league and Big 12 player of the year by both the coaches and the Associated Press. Christian Braun was second-team all-league by the AP and coaches; Wilson and David McCormack third team by the coaches and Dajuan Harris received honorable mention from the coaches. KJ Adams made the coaches’ all-freshman team.

Wilson did not appear to be an all-league candidate through the first few weeks of the season. In fact he missed the first three games of the season while serving a team suspension in response to his arrest on suspicion of DUI.

“Jalen is a team-guy first, but when you get kind of derailed a little bit like he did early and come back, it was all about fitting in,” KU coach Bill Self said. “That created some confidence issues. I do think when we got to league play, having the league on his mind was like a second season for him. His season just started. For Jalen that was the end of the old and the new starts and that’s all that matters. His stats in league play have been impressive. He’s been mature and handled things just the way you wish a son or daughter would handle something like that. He’s been great.”

Wilson scored in double figures in one of his first nine games played. In Big 12 competition, he’s scored in double digits in 13 games.

He’s made 19 of 56 threes (33.9%) in 18 Big 12 games after making 4 of 27 (14.8%) in nonconference play.

“Everything has been a blessing this year through all the ups and downs. Realizing the opportunity I had … going into conference play was a fresh start,” Wilson said. “It’s the time of year you forget everything in the past and focus on what I can do game-by-game to help us win. Ever since we started (Big 12) it’s been nice.

“Getting the Big 12 championship is all I’d ever think about. It makes me effective on both ends of the floor wanting to make plays.”

Wilson and Mitch Lightfoot, who spoke to the media after Wednesday’s shootaround in KC, say the Jayhawks are motivated to try to win three games in three days and take the title.

“We are hungry. We are looking to win and we’re going to play accordingly,” Lightfoot said.

“We are now just getting started,” Wilson said. “We are locked in.”

Self said there’s a real excitement around the games in Kansas City.

“I think the tournament can carry different meanings and outcomes for different teams or where your team is,” Self said. “I think personally it’s important for us to play well this week. I do. I think our seed line will certainly be affected by how we play this week.

“There’s something else about this,” Self added. “When you compete against the same teams for 2 1/2 months and then you all meet here and do it again … that rush and adrenaline flows through you just as much and I think even more when you get in a tournament setting.

“There’s something about seeing other teams in the hotel. There’s something about seeing other teams prepare to play or seeing other teams come off the floor practicing before you that I think brings energy to our guys. I think it does with all teams.

“Even though I don’t think the tournament for us means as much as the regular season I think a lot of teams would feel that way. In some leagues the tournament is more important than the regular season. We’ve got such a great league I don’t know if that’s the case. If you win our league you are going to be in the NCAA Tournament. Something about the competitive spirit, how the tournament is run and the way Kansas City supports it and everything makes this so competitive you can’t help but be totally all-in when you come here,” Self added.

If KU beats the winner of the Kansas State-West Virginia game Thursday it would advance to a 6 p.m. Friday semifinal against either TCU or Texas. The final is set for 5 p.m. Saturday leading into Selection Sunday.