Trevon Duval will take his first official visit to Kansas beginning Tuesday and will be on campus for Wednesday’s Baylor-Kansas game on ESPN2.
Official visit to Kansas tomorrow!!!!!
— Trevon Duval (@DatGuy_Trey) January 30, 2017
Projected as the No. 6 pick in the 2018 NBA Draft by DraftExpress.com, the 6-foot-3 Duval is down to five schools — Duke, Arizona, Kansas, Baylor and Seton Hall — and said he’s planning to take his official visits soon.
Kansas suspended 6-foot-10 sophomore forward Carlton Bragg Jr. for a violation of team rules ahead of Saturday’s matchup with No. 4 Kentucky.
Bragg is averaging 6.1 points and 4.8 rebounds.
“This violation is not connected to the alleged incident in McCarthy Hall on Dec. 17th,” coach Bill Self said in a statement.
University of Kansas police are investigating an alleged rape of a 16-year-old girl at McCarthy Hall, which houses the Kansas men’s basketball team and other male students. Kansas players Frank Mason III, Mitch Lightfoot, Lagerald Vick, Tucker Vang and Josh Jackson were named as witnesses in the alleged incident.
When Kansas visits Kentucky on Saturday in the SEC/Big 12 Challenge, the 38 credentialed NBA personnel are expected to focus on the matchups in the backcourt.
Between them, the two bluebloods have six players projected in the 2017 NBA Draft by DraftExpress.com, with five of them being backcourt or wing players.
Kentucky freshmen guards De’Aaron Fox and Malik Monk are projected as the Nos. 6 and 7 picks, while sophomore Isaiah Briscoe is currently listed at No. 50. Kentucky freshman center Bam Adebayo is the only big man in the game projected in the draft (No. 16).
For Kansas, freshman wing Josh Jackson is the projected No. 4 pick, while junior guard Devonte’ Graham is listed at No. 37. Kansas senior guard Frank Mason, a National Player of the Year candidate, should get a chance to prove he belongs in the NBA, too.
Kansas coach Bill Self says the fallout of an alleged rape of a 16-year-old girl at a school dorm housing the men’s basketball team is a “huge distraction” as his team heads into Saturday’s SEC/Big 12 game at Kentucky.
“It certainly is a distraction without question,” Self said Thursday on a conference call. “The Kentucky game is a big game. It’s probably as big a game for fans as it is for players, but certainly players. It’s a game that you circle and you look forward to playing whenever the season begins and whenever we start practicing.
“Sure, it’s a distraction, I mean how could it not be? But it’s not a distraction from our guys’ standpoint from a film standpoint. It’s a distraction because you have to hear about it and go through it.”
LAWRENCE, Kan. (AP) -- Campus police are
By JOHN RABY
MORGANTOWN, W.Va. (AP) — Esa Ahmad broke out of a shooting slump with a career-high 27 points to lead No. 18 West Virginia to an 85-69 victory over No. 2 Kansas on Tuesday night.
The Mountaineers (16-4, 5-3 Big 12) beat Kansas (18-2, 7-1) for the fourth straight time in Morgantown and snapped the Jayhawks’ 18-game winning streak.
Ahmad led West Virginia in scoring over the first two months of the season but entered Tuesday’s game with four straight games in single digits. He scored West Virginia’s first eight points against Kansas and finished 10 of 17 from the field.
Kansas has landed Arizona State transfer Sam Cunliffe.
Cunliffe, a 6-foot-6, 200-pound wing from Seattle, Washington, joined the Kansas team on Jan. 12 and will be able to practice with the team immediately and will be eligible following the fall 2017 semester.
“We’d seen Sam play in high school and thought he was a great prospect,” Kansas coach Bill Self said of Cutliffe who went to Rainier Beach High School in Seattle. “Sam is a guy that is very athletic and can really shoot the basketball. He will be a player that will impact our program the day he becomes eligible. A lot of people view the year sitting out as a negative but I think Sam is looking at it as a positive; to come in here, get acclimated and practice against some really good players. He wants to get better and will have an impact on our program that enhances our opportunity to have a good team next year.”
