What does the phrase \Kansas Jayhawks basketball"" bring to mind?
Some people may think of the long-standing tradition of excellence that Kansas has established, including producing legendary players such as Wilt Chamberlain.
Others may think more recently to the success of current Head Coach Roy Williams in the regular season, as the former North Carolina assistant owns the best winning percentage in NCAA history.
Still others like to point out the lack of postseason success for the Jayhawks, as they have not won a National Championship since 1988 and have had only two Final Four appearances since then.
Something is not quite right here. What could it be? Let's take a look at each of these phrases.
The Jayhawks have a rich history in the NCAA Tournament, making 10 Final Four appearances and earning a 61-30 record in Tournament history.
During the regular season, Williams won 80.7 percent of his games. All told, he holds 382 career wins and consistently ranks in the top five of both polls.
Despite this past, recent history suggests Kansas is unpredictable come Tournament time.
Unfortunately, that may be putting it kindly. Last year, the Jayhawks made it to the Sweet Sixteen, only to lose to the Fighting Illini 80-64, which means they do have a score to settle for this matchup.
However, for three consecutive years Kansas has not made it past the Sweet Sixteen round of the tournament.
Despite this recent track record of postseason disappointment, there was an air of confidence for the Jayhawks coming into this year's NCAA Tournament.
Kansas has had an extremely strong season, making it to the Big 12 finals only to lose to Oklahoma. Dominating their opponents during the season, the Jayhawks head into Friday's game with a 31-3 overall record and an undefeated 16-0 record in the Big 12.
After opening the season with a loss to Ball State, Kansas proceeded to win 26 of its next 27 games, falling only to UCLA, 87-77, Jan. 12.
However, this invincibility was tested after its loss to Oklahoma prior to the NCAA Tournament.
After the first game of the Tournament, this invincibility was gone, as Holy Cross gave the Jayhawks everything they could handle and then some.
Kansas was losing 37-35 after 20 minutes of play against the 16th-seeded Crusaders, only the fifth time the Jayhawks had a halftime deficit to overcome this season.
Holy Cross managed to stay in the game despite 33.3 percent shooting, but Kansas was able to pull it out, winning 70-59. The score was the Jayhawks' second-lowest of the season, far below their average of 92 points per game.
Things nearly went from bad to worse as junior guard Kirk Hinrich sprained an ankle late in the first half.
However, Hinrich surprised even his doctors by playing Saturday night against the Stanford Cardinal, when he came in with 13:05 left in the first half. Doctors had told Hinrich that he should expect to sit out Saturday's game, but were shocked to see how far the swelling had gone down Friday.
Kansas went on to crush Stanford 86-63 Saturday on 52 percent shooting. Senior guard Jeff Boschee led the Jayhawks with 19 points on six-for-11 shooting. They went on a 15-0 run to start the game, leading by 31 with 5:09 left in the first half and dominated the game until the end.
As for Hinrich, he contributed 15 points and eight assists to a game that was clearly in the control of Kansas.
Fears seemed to be calmed after the blowout against Stanford, especially with the return of Hinrich, an important player for Kansas.
Hinrich, who averages 15.3 ppg on 55.9 percent shooting, junior forward Drew Gooden and junior forward Nick Collison will be formidable opponents against Illinois.
Will this lack of postseason success continue for Williams and his Jayhawks? Or will Kansas finally find a way to put its talent and leadership together and create a winning combination that leads to a National Championship?
Only time will tell.
