By ADAM ZAGORIA
Kansas coach Bill Self is hopeful freshman big man Udoka Azubuike will play this week in the NCAA Tournament.
The Jayhawks are the No. 1 seed in the Midwest Region and face Ivy League champion Penn, the No. 16 seed, on Thursday at 2 p.m ET in Wichita, KS. If Kansas wins, they would get the winner between No. 8 Seton Hall and No. 9 N.C. State (4:30 ET) on Saturday.
Kansas won the Big 12 Tournament without Azubuike, who suffered a sprained MCL.
He averaged 13.7 points and 7.3 rebounds and is Kansas’ main low-post presence.
“Well, [Azubuike] worked out on the court today,” Self told ESPN. “Now it was 1-on-0, it was light. But he did some sliding drills and shot stationary shots, jump hooks, things like that. And that was very, very positive, it went well. So we’re hoping he can progress each and every day. He’s got a brace that’s customized for him and he felt good in it.
“So we’re hoping maybe practice a little bit by Wednesday and maybe be available Thursday. But it’s the type of injury, he can get better fast. We’re not going to put him out there too quick, we’re not going to risk it.
“We’re very hopeful and optimistic that he can play this week, now whether it’s Thursday or Saturday, or both, we don’t know. But that’s probably better than we thought four days ago when he hurt it.”
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