# 2017–18 Kansas Jayhawks men's basketball team

The 2017–18 Kansas Jayhawks men's basketball team represented the University of Kansas in the 2017–18 NCAA Division I men's basketball season, which was the Jayhawks' 120th basketball season. The Jayhawks, were members of the Big 12 Conference and played their home games at Allen Fieldhouse in Lawrence, Kansas. They were led by 15th year Hall of Fame head coach Bill Self.
On October 22, the Jayhawks renewed their rivalry against Missouri in an exhibition game for charity. The proceeds of the game went to four different charities for Hurricane Harvey and Hurricane Maria relief funds. It was the first time the teams played since Missouri left the Big 12 for the SEC.
The Jayhawks entered the season ranked 4th, their 162nd consecutive poll they have been ranked in. During the season, they extended the streak to, as of the poll released on March 12, 2018, 180 consecutive polls. The last game KU played as unranked team was a 66–61 win over Colorado on January 31, 2009. With their 74–72 win over Texas Tech on February 24, 2018, the Jayhawks clinched their NCAA record 14th consecutive Big 12 regular season championship. The season marked the first time the Jayhawks have ever been swept in the regular season by an opponent under Bill Self, ending what was a streak of 103 home and home series without a sweep dating back to 2001. The Jayhawks lost to Self's alma mater Oklahoma State twice. With 3:49 left in the 2nd half of their Big 12 Tournament Quarterfinal game against Oklahoma State, red-shirt sophomore guard Malik Newman made a 3-point shot. That 3 point was the Jayhawks school record 319th made 3 point shot in the season, breaking a record the Jayhawks set the previous season.
They received an automatic bid to the NCAA tournament as the No. 1 seed in the Midwest region. There they defeated Penn, Seton Hall, Clemson, and Duke to advance to the Final Four. In the Final Four, they lost to No. 1 seed from the East region and eventual National Champions, Villanova.
Senior guard Devonte' Graham was named a Consensus First Team All-American. He was the 23rd different player to be named a Consensus First Team All-American and the 30th overall selection in Kansas history. It was also the 2nd consecutive year Kansas had a Consensus First Team All-American.
In 2023, 15 of the Jayhawks wins, their regular season Conference Championship, their Big 12 Tournament Championship, their tournament appearance, and Final Four appearance, were all vacated for recruiting violations. Specifically games Silvio De Sousa played in were vacated; the first game he played was the home victory over Kansas State. The vacated NCAA Tournament appearance caused their NCAA record of consecutive NCAA Tournament appearances to end at 28 with their 2017 appearance being the final official appearance in the streak.

## Roster and coaching staff changes
### Coaching staff changes

The Jayhawks did not experience any changes to their coaching staff.

### Graduation

| Name | Position |
| Frank Mason III | G |
| Landen Lucas | F |
| Tyler Self | G |

### Early draft entrants
#### Hired agent

| Name | Position | Class |
| Josh Jackson | F | Freshman |

#### Did not initially hire agent

Starting with the 2016 NBA draft, if a player declares for the draft, but does not hire an agent, it allows the player to return to their school even after participating in the NBA Draft Combine, as long as they withdraw from the draft no later than 10 days after the end of the combine. For the 2017 draft, the final withdrawal date to retain NCAA eligibility was May 24.
| Name | Position | Class | Returned/ Entered draft |
| Sviatoslav Mykhailiuk | Guard | Junior | Returned |

### Transfers
#### Incoming

| Name | Year | Position | Old school |
| Charlie Moore | Freshman | G | California |
| Sam Cunliffe* | Freshman | G | Arizona State |
| K. J. Lawson | RS Freshman | F/G | Memphis |
| Dedric Lawson | Sophomore | F/G | Memphis |
*Sam Cunliffe transferred during the 2016–17 season and was eligible to play in December 2017, one year after he transferred.

#### Outgoing

| Name | Year | Position | New school |
| Evan Maxwell | RS Sophomore | C | Indiana Wesleyan |
| Carlton Bragg Jr. | Junior | F | Arizona State |
| Dwight Coleby | RS Senior | F | Western Kentucky |

### Recruiting class

US college sports recruiting information for high school athletes :
| Name | Hometown | High school / college | Height | Weight | Commit date |
| Billy Preston F | Los Angeles, California | Oak Hill Academy (VA) | 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) | 230 lb (100 kg) | Nov 18, 2016 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN grade: 93 ||||||
| Silvio De Sousa* F | Luanda, Angola | IMG Academy | 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) | 242 lb (110 kg) | Aug 27, 2017 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN grade: 89 ||||||
| Marcus Garrett G | Dallas, Texas | Skyline High School | 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) | 180 lb (82 kg) | Aug 1, 2016 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN grade: 85 ||||||
| Overall recruiting rankings: Scout: 14 Rivals: 10 ESPN: 24 ||||||
*Originally was recruited as a part of Kansas' 2018 recruiting class, however, De Sousa reclassified to 2017 and received approval from the NCAA to begin playing on January 13.

### Walk-ons

| Name | Position | Class |
| James Sosinski | F | RS* Sophomore |
*Sosinski red-shirted on the Jayhawks football team and was invited to walk on by Bill Self. Following the season, he will have two years of eligibility remaining with the football and basketball team.

### Left team during the season

| Name | Position | Class | Reason |
| Billy Preston | F | Freshman | Signed with Bosnian pro team KK Igokea |

## NCAA Corruption scandal, FBI Probe

On February 23, 2018, Kansas was announced as one of 27 schools that had players being investigated by the FBI's probe into corruption in college basketball which began with an investigation of Louisville and their former head coach Rick Pitino. Kansas' involvement was specifically a former player being named in Christian Dawkins' expense reports for seeking thousands of dollars of reimbursements for expenses incurred from recruits’ families. Former player Josh Jackson's mother reportedly received a $2,700 payment, which was listed in the report. Also named in the report were fellow Kansas Division I team Wichita State, Big 12 members Iowa State and Texas, as well as perennial power house programs Duke, North Carolina, Kentucky, and Michigan State.

## Schedule and results

All wins beginning with the home game against Kansas State are officially vacated. The original results are listed in the table.
| Date time, TV | Rank$^#$ | Opponent$^#$ | Result | Record | High points | High rebounds | High assists | Site (attendance) city, state |
| Italy exhibition trip |||||||||
| August 2, 2017* 11:30 am | | vs. A.S. Stella Azzurra | W 90–56 | – | 16 – Newman | 4 – 4 tied | 9 – Graham | Honey Sports City Rome, Italy |
| August 3, 2017* 11:30 am | | vs. Players Group | W 92–61 | – | 15 – Azubuike | 12 – Garrett | 5 – Graham | Honey Sports City Rome, Italy |
| August 5, 2017* 12:00 pm | | vs. Players Group | W 99–71 | – | 18 – Vick | 7 – Preston | 6 – 2 tied | Palasport Enrico Somaschini Milan, Italy |
| August 6, 2017* 12:00 pm | | vs. Italy All Star A2 | W 118–74 | – | 32 – Newman | 9 – K.J. Lawson | 10 – Graham | Palasport Enrico Somaschini (500) Milan, Italy |
| Exhibition |||||||||
| October 22, 2017* 3:00 pm, PPV | | vs. Missouri Showdown for Relief Border War | W 93–87 | – | 25 – Graham | 10 – Graham | 5 – 2 tied | Sprint Center (18,951) Kansas City, MO |
| October 31, 2017* 7:00 pm, Jayhawk TV | | Pittsburg State | W 100–54 | – | 19 – Newman | 14 – Azubuike | 5 – Graham | Allen Fieldhouse (16,300) Lawrence, KS |
| November 7, 2017* 7:00 pm, Jayhawk TV | No. 4 | Fort Hays State | W 86–57 | – | 27 – Graham | 9 – Azubuike | 8 – Graham | Allen Fieldhouse (16,300) Lawrence, KS |
| Regular season |||||||||
| November 10, 2017* 8:00 pm, ESPNU | No. 4 | Tennessee State | W 92–56 | 1–0 | 23 – Vick | 10 – Garrett | 12 – Graham | Allen Fieldhouse (16,300) Lawrence, KS |
| November 14, 2017* 8:30 pm, ESPN | No. 4 | vs. No. 7 Kentucky Champions Classic | W 65–61 | 2–0 | 17 – Mykhailiuk | 8 – Azubuike | 5 – 2 tied | United Center (21,684) Chicago, IL |
| November 17, 2017* 7:00 pm, Jayhawk TV | No. 4 | South Dakota State | W 98–64 | 3–0 | 27 – Mykhailiuk | 7 – 2 tied | 11 – Graham | Allen Fieldhouse (16,300) Lawrence, KS |
| November 21, 2017* 7:00 pm, Jayhawk TV | No. 3 | Texas Southern Hoophall Miami Invitational campus game | W 114–71 | 4–0 | 21 – Mykhailiuk | 11 – Garrett | 11 – Graham | Allen Fieldhouse (16,300) Lawrence, KS |
| November 24, 2017* 7:00 pm, Jayhawk TV | No. 3 | Oakland Hoophall Miami Invitational campus game | W 102–59 | 5–0 | 21 – Azubuike | 10 – Azubuike | 7 – Graham | Allen Fieldhouse (16,300) Lawrence, KS |
| November 28, 2017* 7:00 pm, Jayhawk TV | No. 2 | Toledo Hoophall Miami Invitational campus game | W 96–58 | 6–0 | 35 – Graham | 7 – Garrett | 5 – Graham | Allen Fieldhouse (16,300) Lawrence, KS |
| December 2, 2017* 4:30 pm, ESPN | No. 2 | vs. Syracuse Hoophall Miami Invitational | W 76–60 | 7–0 | 35 – Graham | 9 – Azubuike | 7 – Vick | American Airlines Arena (8,426) Miami, FL |
| December 6, 2017* 8:00 pm, ESPN2 | No. 2 | Washington Jayhawk Shootout | L 65–74 | 7–1 | 28 – Vick | 9 – Azubuike | 7 – Vick | Sprint Center (17,106) Kansas City, MO |
| December 10, 2017* 1:00 pm, ESPN | No. 2 | No. 16 Arizona State | L 85–95 | 7–2 | 25 – Vick | 9 – Azubuike | 8 – Graham | Allen Fieldhouse (16,300) Lawrence, KS |
| December 16, 2017* 7:00 pm, FS1 | No. 13 | at Nebraska Shelter Insurance Showcase | W 73–72 | 8–2 | 26 – Azubuike | 10 – Azubuike | 8 – Graham | Pinnacle Bank Arena (15,596) Lincoln, NE |
| December 18, 2017* 6:00 pm, ESPN2 | No. 14 | Omaha | W 109–64 | 9–2 | 26 – Mykhailiuk | 12 – Azubuike | 8 – Graham | Allen Fieldhouse (16,300) Lawrence, KS |
| December 21, 2017* 10:00 pm, ESPN2 | No. 14 | vs. Stanford Sacramento Showcase | W 75–54 | 10–2 | 22 – Azubuike | 7 – 3 tied | 6 – Graham | Golden 1 Center (7,880) Sacramento, CA |
| December 29, 2017 8:00 pm, ESPN2 | No. 11 | at Texas | W 92–86 | 11–2 (1–0) | 23 – Graham | 13 – Azubuike | 8 – Graham | Frank Erwin Center (15,802) Austin, TX |
| January 2, 2018 8:00 pm, ESPN | No. 10 | No. 18 Texas Tech | L 73–85 | 11–3 (1–1) | 27 – Graham | 7 – Azubuike | 6 – Graham | Allen Fieldhouse (16,300) Lawrence, KS |
| January 6, 2018 8:15 pm, ESPN2 | No. 10 | at No. 16 TCU | W 88–84 | 12–3 (2–1) | 28 – Graham | 7 – Lightfott | 6 – 2 tied | Schollmaier Arena (6,800) Fort Worth, TX |
| January 9, 2018 8:00 pm, ESPN2 | No. 12 | Iowa State | W 83–78 | 13–3 (3–1) | 27 – Newman | 8 – Newman | 9 – Graham | Allen Fieldhouse (16,300) Lawrence, KS |
| January 13, 2018 11:00 am, ESPN | No. 12 | Kansas State Sunflower Showdown | W 73–72 | 14–3 (4–1) | 23 – Graham | 8 – Azubuike | 5 – Graham | Allen Fieldhouse (16,300) Lawrence, KS |
| January 15, 2018 8:00 pm, ESPN | No. 10 | at No. 6 West Virginia | W 71–66 | 15–3 (5–1) | 17 – Mykhailiuk | 9 – Azubuike | 6 – Graham | WVU Coliseum (14,115) Morgantown, WV |
| January 20, 2018 5:00 pm, ESPN | No. 10 | Baylor | W 70–67 | 16–3 (6–1) | 24 – Newman | 8 – Graham | 7 – Graham | Allen Fieldhouse (16,300) Lawrence, KS |
| January 23, 2018 6:00 pm, ESPN2 | No. 5 | at No. 12 Oklahoma | L 80–85 | 16–4 (6–2) | 24 – Mykhailiuk | 7 – Graham | 9 – Graham | Lloyd Noble Center (11,886) Norman, OK |
| January 27, 2018* 3:30 pm, ESPN | No. 5 | Texas A&M Big 12/SEC Challenge | W 79–68 | 17–4 | 24 – Mykhailiuk | 7 – Newman | 7 – Graham | Allen Fieldhouse (16,300) Lawrence, KS |
| January 29, 2018 8:00 pm, ESPN | No. 7 | at Kansas State Sunflower Showdown | W 70–56 | 18–4 (7–2) | 22 – Mykhailiuk | 10 – Newman | 11 – Graham | Bramlage Coliseum (12,528) Manhattan, KS |
| February 3, 2018 11:00 am, CBS | No. 7 | Oklahoma State | L 79–84 | 18–5 (7–3) | 20 – Azubuike | 5 – 2 tied | 8 – Graham | Allen Fieldhouse (16,300) Lawrence, KS |
| February 6, 2018 8:00 pm, ESPN2 | No. 10 | TCU | W 71–64 | 19–5 (8–3) | 24 – Graham | 11 – Azubuike | 5 – 2 tied | Allen Fieldhouse (16,300) Lawrence, KS |
| February 10, 2018 1:00 pm, CBS | No. 10 | at Baylor | L 64–80 | 19–6 (8–4) | 23 – Graham | 4 – 3 tied | 5 – Newman | Ferrell Center (10,284) Waco, TX |
| February 13, 2018 6:00 pm, ESPN2 | No. 13 | at Iowa State | W 83–77 | 20–6 (9–4) | 19 – Azubuike | 6 – 2 tied | 5 – Graham | Hilton Coliseum (14,384) Ames, IA |
| February 17, 2018 5:00 pm, ESPN | No. 13 | No. 20 West Virginia | W 77–69 | 21–6 (10–4) | 21 – Azubuike | 8 – Graham | 7 – Graham | Allen Fieldhouse (16,300) Lawrence, KS |
| February 19, 2018 8:00 pm, ESPN | No. 8 | Oklahoma | W 104–74 | 22–6 (11–4) | 23 – Graham | 8 – Azubuike | 7 – Graham | Allen Fieldhouse (16,300) Lawrence, KS |
| February 24, 2018 3:00 pm, ESPN | No. 8 | at No. 6 Texas Tech | W 74–72 | 23–6 (12–4) | 26 – Graham | 7 – Azubuike | 4 – 2 tied | United Supermarkets Arena (15,098) Lubbock, TX |
| February 26, 2018 8:00 pm, ESPN | No. 6 | Texas | W 80–70 | 24–6 (13–4) | 20 – Azubuike | 8 – Azubuike | 11 – Graham | Allen Fieldhouse (16,300) Lawrence, KS |
| March 3, 2018 3:00 pm, ESPN2 | No. 6 | at Oklahoma State | L 64–82 | 24–7 (13–5) | 15 – Graham | 7 – Azubuike | 8 – Graham | Gallagher-Iba Arena (12,482) Stillwater, OK |
| Big 12 Tournament |||||||||
| March 8, 2018 2:00 pm, ESPN2 | (1) No. 9 | vs. (8) Oklahoma State Quarterfinals | W 82–68 | 25–7 | 30 – Newman | 6 – 2 tied | 9 – Graham | Sprint Center (17,903) Kansas City, MO |
| March 9, 2018 6:00 pm, ESPN2 | (1) No. 9 | vs. (4) Kansas State Semifinals | W 83–67 | 26–7 | 22 – Newman | 11 – De Sousa | 8 – Graham | Sprint Center (18,223) Kansas City, MO |
| March 10, 2018 5:00 pm, ESPN | (1) No. 9 | vs. (3) No. 18 West Virginia Championship | W 81–70 | 27–7 | 20 – Newman | 10 – De Sousa | 13 – Graham | Sprint Center (17,718) Kansas City, MO |
| NCAA Tournament |||||||||
| March 15, 2018* 1:00 pm, TBS | (1 MW) No. 4 | vs. (16 MW) Penn First Round | W 76–60 | 28–7 | 29 – Graham | 11 – Lightfoot | 6 – Graham | Intrust Bank Arena (14,390) Wichita, KS |
| March 17, 2018* 6:10 pm, TBS | (1 MW) No. 4 | vs. (8 MW) Seton Hall Second Round | W 83–79 | 29–7 | 28 – Newman | 7 – Azubuike | 9 – Graham | Intrust Bank Arena (14,385) Wichita, KS |
| March 23, 2018* 6:07 pm, CBS | (1 MW) No. 4 | vs. (5 MW) No. 20 Clemson Sweet Sixteen | W 80–76 | 30–7 | 17 – Newman | 11 – Azubuike | 4 – 2 tied | CenturyLink Center Omaha (17,399) Omaha, NE |
| March 25, 2018* 4:05 pm, CBS | (1 MW) No. 4 | vs. (2 MW) No. 9 Duke Elite Eight | W 85–81 $^{OT}$ | 31–7 | 32 – Newman | 10 – 2 tied | 6 – Graham | CenturyLink Center Omaha (17,579) Omaha, NE |
| March 31, 2018* 7:49 pm, TBS | (1 MW) No. 4 | vs. (1 E) No. 2 Villanova Final Four | L 79–95 | 31–8 | 23 – Graham | 8 – Newman | 3 – 2 tied | Alamodome (68,257) San Antonio, TX |
| *Non-conference game. $^#$Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses. MW=Midwest E=East. All times are in Central Time. |||||||||
Source:

## Rankings

Ranking movements Legend: ██ Increase in ranking ██ Decrease in ranking ( ) = First-place votes :
| | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week |
| Poll | Pre | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | Final |
| AP | 4 (1) | 4 (2) | 3 | 2 | 2 | 13 | 14 | 11 | 10 | 12 | 10 | 5 | 7 | 10 | 13 | 8 | 6 | 9 | 4 | Not released |
| Coaches | 3 | 3 | 2 | 2 (1) | 2 (1) | 12 | 13 | 11 | 10 | 12 | 10 | 5 | 7 | 10 | 13 | 8 | 6 | 9 | 3 | 3 |
*AP does not release post-NCAA tournament rankings.

## Post-season awards
### Bill Self

* Big 12 Co-Coach of the Year

### Devonte Graham

* Big 12 Player of the Year
* 1st Team All-Big 12
* Consensus 1st Team All-American
* NCAA Tournament All-Midwest Regional team

### Malik Newman

* Big 12 Newcomer of the Year
* Big 12 All-Newcomer Team
* Big 12 Tournament Most Outstanding Player
* NCAA Tournament Midwest Regional Most Outstanding Player
* NCAA Tournament All-Midwest Regional team

### Sviatoslav Mykhailiuk

* 2nd Team All-Big 12

### Udoka Azubuike

* 3rd Team All-Big 12

### LaGerald Vick

* Honorable Mention All-Big 12

### Clay Young

* Academic All-Big 12
Primary source unless otherwise noted: