Kansas’ Self, recovering from heart procedure, to miss game

By ERIC OLSON
AP Sports Writer

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Kansas coach Bill Self will miss the defending national champion Jayhawks’ NCAA Tournament first-round game against Howard on Thursday, the school announced two hours before tipoff.

Assistant coach Norm Roberts will serve as acting head coach while Self continues to recover from a heart procedure performed last week.

Self traveled to Des Moines with the Jayhawks and led the team’s practice on Wednesday. He did not attend the team’s media availability. Roberts said Self had returned to the hotel to rest.

Self’s status for a possible second-round game Saturday was unknown.

Self went to the emergency room the night of March 8, shortly after watching the Jayhawks hold a final shootaround ahead of their Big 12 Tournament quarterfinal. He was complaining of chest tightness and concerns with his balance.

Dr. Mark Wiley, the chief of cardiovascular medicine at the University of Kansas Health System, said the 60-year-old Self underwent a standard heart catheterization and had two stents placed to help treat the blocked arteries.

Roberts coached the Jayhawks in the Big 12 Tournament. He also served as acting coach earlier in the season, while Self was serving a school-imposed four-game suspension.

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