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College hoops has already had tons of upsets this season, with none more electrifying than West Virginia's 62-61 road victory over Kansas basketball on Tuesday. However, the No. 7 Jayhawks could have avoided it by taking a timeout and running a proper play with 1.8 seconds left.
Instead, Bill Self pocketed his timeout and had Kansas heave a Hail Mary downcourt to KJ Adams, which he explained post-game, via KWCH 12 News' Tejay Cleland.
“Well, that's what we practice all the time. I thought we had a timeout, but to be honest with you, we were better off running something where I thought they would put somebody on the ball, and they did,” the two-time AP College Coach of the Year said. “So that meant if they put somebody on the ball, that means KJ's one-on-one. If we call timeout, there's a chance that they'll talk about it and put two guys back, and therefore KJ won't get a naked catch. That's about as good as you can do, it was a good pass and KJ got a naked catch, but it just didn't work out.”
While it makes sense to catch the defense off guard with a quick heave rather than allowing it time to set up, converting a cross-court pass into a made shot is always an uphill battle. What's even weirder is that Self put the game in Adams' hands despite his subpar outing (two points, 1-of-5 FG).
Regardless, this game wasn't just about Kansas' mistakes. Mountaineers senior guard Javon Small helped seal the win in a couple of big moments, such as drilling this contested jumper in the corner with two minutes to go, via WVU's social media.
The 6-foot-3, 190-pounder also drained the final free throw to secure the one-point lead with 1.8 seconds left before the Jayhawks' ill-fated heave.
Kansas basketball's next chance to redeem itself will come on Sunday against UCF, while West Virginia will try to keep its momentum against Oklahoma State on Saturday.
