It is Sunday, which means it is time once again for the Sunday Mailbag, where I will answer all of your questions about anything college basketball. Since most of the United States is snowed in, there is no better time to get caught up on the most pressing questions from the last week of College Basketball.
It was another light week for the Sunday Mailbag; there were only three questions. One of the questions is about a Blue Blood program that is likely going to lose its coach, and we can look at some replacements. Then there is a question about a Big Ten contender that lost its best player and is searching for a replacement. The final question takes us to the Atlantic 10 and looks at a team poised to make a deep run in March Madness.
If you would like to ask a question for the Sunday Mailbag, check back on Monday when the question is posed on the Social Media platforms. Once requested, it will be answered in that week's article. Let's get into it.
Bill Self has had some health problems and is now missing games because of it. Will he be the head coach at Kansas next year? If not, who is his replacement?
It has been widely publicized that Kansas coach Bill Self has had some health problems over the last few years. This all came to a head last week when Self checked himself into the hospital for an illness and then subsequently missed games. The rumors are flying now about coach Self potentially retiring at the end of the season and Kansas having to hire another coach.
Another coach running the Kansas program is news in and of itself. The Jayhawks have had only 8 coaches in their long and storied history, and Self has been the coach at Kansas for 22 seasons. The question of whether Self will retire is hard to answer. Many thought the head man was going to retire at the end of last year, given all the problems the Jayhawks team had with chemistry. This year, coach Self had a vintage team, at least on paper. This version of the Jayhawks has performed much better than last season but has still not lived up to the lofty expectations of the program.
Coach Self has accomplished everything he can at Kansas. He has won National Championships and Big 12 Championships, further cementing Kansas as the premier program in the country. So if coach Self does retire, who will be the next coach, or who is the coach in waiting?
It all depends on the route Kansas likes to take, and that route is likely to be letting coach Self choose his replacement. He has earned it. If Coach Self gets to select his replacement, he is expected to pick one of his current assistant coaches, a Kansas legend. That is none other than Jacque Vaughn. Vaughn has plenty of coaching experience and was the head coach of an NBA franchise for 6 total seasons before returning to Lawrence. Vaughn took the job at Kansas with the expectation that he was the coach-in-waiting. The Jayhawks will be in good hands with Vaughn at the helm.
How does Illinois replace the production lost by Kylan Boswell?
Illinois has one of the best rosters in the country. The Illini put a ton of pressure on opponents on defense and have one of the country's elite offenses. Boswell is the point guard for Illinois and is one of the best players in the Big Ten. Boswell was the second-leading scorer and the best on-ball defender for head coach Brad Underwood. It makes sense that Illinois fans would be worried when it was announced that Boswell would miss a month with a broken hand that he suffered in practice.
Depth is always a good thing, and so is talent evaluation. Talent Evaluation led Illinois to star Freshman Keaton Wagler, who will lead Illinois while Boswell is out. Wagler was already starting as the off guard for the Illini, but now that he is running the offense, his game has taken off. In the win over Purdue on Saturday, Wagler scored 47 points and made 9 threes. That led Illinois to a victory over the Boilermakers in Mackey Arena.
If the Freshman guard continues to play at this high a level, Illinois is going to be just fine while Boswell is out. Illinois shoots threes at a high volume and makes them, and they are defending, which is what has gotten them over the top in their Big Ten games. Illinois struck gold with Wagler, and enjoy him, because if you can score as he can, there is a place for you in the NBA.
Is Saint Louis a Wagon?
Those of you who don’t know what I am referring to are the Saint Louis Billikens out of the Atlantic Sun. The Billikens have been on an upward trajectory over the last two seasons under head coach Josh Schertz. Schertz came to Saint Louis after building up the Indiana State program, but could never get to the NCAA Tournament, even though the Sycamores won 32 games in his final season.
Schertz is well on his way to winning 30 games with the Billikens in only his second year there. Saint Louis currently averages over 91 points per game, allows under 67 points per game on defense, and does it with ball movement, balanced scoring, and three-point shooting. The Bills can jump on teams quickly and will separate really fast. Saint Louis is also a buzzer-beater away from being undefeated.
The Billikens are a wagon and are going to get a single-digit seed; how high the seed is will be determined by how many games Saint Louis wins. They are going to win games in the NCAA Tournament and be a huge Final Four sleeper. They have two starters who shoot well over 45% from deep, they average 19.5 assists per game, and don’t look like anyone is going to beat them in the Atlantic 10. Yes, Saint Louis is a wagon, and they should be treated as such until proven otherwise.