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MONDAY, MARCH 13, 2017 | VOLUME 133 ISSUE 17

THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN THE STUDENT VOICE SINCE 1904

Business students, meet ‘AL’

The new Q&A app integrates student technology with Capitol Federal Hall OMAR SANCHEZ @OhMySanchez

K

nowing they wanted to be known as one of the most technologically-advanced business schools in the nation, the University School of Business asked one question: "What if the building can learn?"

This spring, over 2,000 business students will pass through the halls of the School of Business at Capitol-Federal Hall. Daily, students meet with professors and make friendships that push them toward success. But now, the business school itself will grow with the students and become another active participant in their lives with AL. Last month, the school launched AL (officially called AL at KU). The free app, available on Apple and Android devices, can instantly answer user-generated questions via an indepth database. Answers can range from just a short

Miranda Anaya/KANSAN AL Technology projects idle thoughts and answers to students’ questions on the video board in Capital Federal Hall.

text response to photos, videos and GIFs. From that app, select interactions are sent to a 32 foot wide by 9 foot tall video wall located in the atrium of Capitol-Federal Hall. Throughout the day, the wall projects the most recent interactions in order

to broadcast the answers to the most pressing questions. An updating feed of the school's news also cycles on the wall’s projection.

The app is live after being in the beta stage since the building’s opening in May 2016. It is set to be the first tool at the Univer-

sity setting to act as both a Siri-like personal assistant and on-the-go education counselor for the business school students.

“We did a little research up front as to what technology other schools were employing. We couldn't find a single instance where any-

one was creating this kind of artificial intelligence in a building setting,” said Stefan Mumaw, the director of creative strategy at Hint, the Kansas City content studio that helped develop AL. “The KU business school has something that, not only no other business

school has, but no other university has.”

Students, faculty and even alumni across disciplines can start using the technology with a current University email address.

Once in the application, a user can ask AL questions, ranging from where the student’s next class is, to the next available study area to self-aware questions like what AL’s favorite basketball team is.

“It's really interesting right now, because we can harvest all of the questions that students asked,” said Michael Brock, video producer at the school and a key contributor to the AL video wall project. “The really cool thing, AL can really help us learn what students are thinking when are walking into the building so we can make sure we are doing everything we can to support their learning environment.”

The system currently SEE AL PAGE 2

Medical center working to prevent guns on campus KATIE BERNARD @KatieJBernard15

Andrew Rosenthal/KANSAN Chance Maginness, presidential candidate for the Onward coalition, listens to a complaint from KUnited campaign manager Victoria Snitsar on March 2.

OneKU coalition claims Onward campaigned early CHANDLER BOESE @Chandler_Boese

Student Senate coalition OneKU filed a complaint Friday, March 10, against the Onward coalition, alleging an egregious violation of election rules.

The complaint, obtained by the Kansan, says that Onward engaged in early campaigning by allegedly telling a fraternity to vote for them when they visited the organization on March 6. OneKU offered evidence of the statement, allegedly made by Onward’s vice presidential candidate Logan

Miller, through screenshots of text messages sent between fraternity members and OneKU coalition members.

Violating the rule about campaigning is an “egregious” violation, according to the complaint, the most severe violation that can be heard by the Elections Commission.

The Student Senate Rules Regulations say that violations of this rule can result in a coalition or candidate being disqualified from the election, but the complaint asks that Onward be fined for the violation instead.

INDEX NEWS............................................2 OPINION........................................4 ARTS & CULTURE..........................................5 SPORTS.........................................8

“Given that the offending Onward members are likely not aware of this rule, we’d like to ask the Elections Commission not to consider disqualification, but rather a fine,” the complaint reads.

Elections Commission Chair Garrett Farlow said he could not speculate on what the sanction might be if Onward was found to have committed the violation.

Farlow said the main goal of the hearing, which will be held Monday, will be to determine whether Miller was campaigning for his coalition, himself, or individSEE ONWARD PAGE 2

While officials at the University of Kansas are preparing for guns to arrive on campus in July, administrators at the University’s Medical Center are working to prevent the change.

KUMC, which includes the hospital and the medical school, is seeking an exemption to the law that would require them to allow concealed carry on campus starting in July. Security changes are being considered if they are not able to gain the exemption.

Dennis McCulloch, the director of public and government relations at the University of Kansas Hospital, is relatively confident that the center will obtain an exemption.

“It is an intricate process,” McCulloch said. “We have a lot of legislators who want this to happen and are pursuing every option.”

There are currently three legislative avenues being pursued by KUMC. These avenues include: passing a bill through the House, passing a bill through the Senate and having the exemption passed as an amendment to another bill. Senate Bill 210 is being debated in committees currently, but House Bill 2150 did not advance past

KANSAN.COM TOP OF THE HILL: Your Lawrence favorites, chosen by you. Vote on Kansan.com by March 31.

committees.

According to McCulloch, KUMC has been working with legislators from the Kansas City area in pursuing these options.

If the exemption is not obtained, KUMC will explore other options to keep guns out of the hospital, McCulloch said. These options include hiring additional security and closing public entrances to the hospital in order to lower the cost of placing metal detectors at all entrances, which is the only way that guns can be barred from the building.

McCulloch said a major reason to keep guns out of the hospital is to preserve its ability to compete in the marketplace.

“Every hospital should be allowed to make their own decision of what works,” McCulloch said. “We’re in an urban area, and we’ve already had patients calling us saying, ‘If you have concealed weapons, I don’t want to be in this hospital.’”

The anticipation of concealed weapons has also affected faculty and staff at the medical center. Speaking as a private citizen, Dr. Erin Corriveau, assistant professor in the department of family medicine, said that she has colleagues who have discussed leaving the hospital if concealed weapons are

allowed, though she herself isn’t sure what she will do.

“It’s on my mind that I would not choose to work in a place with guns,” Corriveau said.

Corriveau is working with other faculty and staff at KUMC to argue that concealed weapons, especially without permits, pose a significant danger within a hospital.

“We deal with patients who have been harmed by gun violence and bringing that into a caring situation is sad,” Corriveau said.

Corriveau and McCulloch both cited high tensions and emotions common within hospitals as a reason for concern about weapons in the environment.

“We have had people threatened because there are some times we can’t get a positive outcome,” McCulloch said. “And people get angry about that and if they had easy access to a gun, what are the risks of that situation?”

Even if KUMC fails to obtain an exemption, McCulloch and Corriveau said, the efforts to keep guns out of the hospital will continue.

McCulloch will turn toward getting increased security measures, while Corriveau said her colleagues will continue to fight for an exemption, for the hospital and the school, in future legislation.

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news Kansan Staff

KANSAN.COM |MONDAY, MARCH 13, 2017

Degree options lead to department growth

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Editor-in-chief Lara Korte Managing editor Christian Hardy Digital operations editor Matt Clough Social media editor Emily Johanek Associate social media editor Emily Juszczyk ADVERTISING MANAGEMENT

Business manager Tucker Paine Sales manager Mitch Tamblyn SECTION EDITORS

News editor Chandler Boese Associate news editor McKenna Harford Sports editor Amie Just Associate sports editor Skylar Rolstad Arts & culture editor Omar Sanchez Associate arts & culture editor Courtney Bierman Opinion editor Vince Munoz Visuals editor & design chief Roxy Townsend Photo editor Missy Minear Copy chiefs Candice Tarver Brendan Dzwierzynski Ashley Hocking ADVISERS

Chief financial officer Jon Schlitt Editorial adviser Gerri Berendzen

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EMILY WELLBORN @EmWellborn

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ecent changes within certain degrees in the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences have led to an increase in students for the Institute for Leadership Studies and Department of Spanish and Portuguese.

Both saw an increase of over 100 students in the last year, because they have added more degree and certificate options that hope to facilitate interdisciplinary study.

“You want a number of people across campus taking a variety of different courses because as a student, that gives you the opportunity to explore and make connections between multiple disciplines,” said Paul Atchley, associate dean for Academic Innovation and Student Success within the college. “In the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, we have to make sure that we’re providing our students with the rich curriculum that allows them to explore the world from a variety of different perspectives.”

The Department of

ONWARD FROM PAGE 1 uals within the coalition. He said the rules would have allowed organization visits and campaigning for coalitions on March 6, but not for individual candidates, as Onward’s presidential and vice-presidential picks had not submitted their official applications to declare their candidacy.

“The main thing will be determining what was meant by ‘Vote for us,’” Farlow said.

Chance Maginness, Onward’s presidential candidate, said the complaint has no basis in the rules. He said the rules state that coalitions are free to campaign any-

AL FROM PAGE 1 has a pool of answers fed from student data gathered during the research process of the app and a question/ answer bank via KU Info. It can be asked questions like “Where can I get Ramen?” but it will be forced to give an automated response if it has yet to learn the proper information.

If the app doesn’t know the answer, it compensates with a sense of humor.

For example, when prompted “Tell me a joke,” AL will respond with the short yet cunning, “Mizzou and K-State are good at basketball.”

In developing the technology, Brock said the human-like responses were meant to create an interactive exchange that encourages users, even when they might not get what they were looking for.

Much of the behind-thescenes learning for AL still takes place in the hands of people like Brock, who monitors the questions/answers dashboard on a regular basis. But, in the future, the school is looking for the technology to get smarter and smaller.

“What we would love to do is make AL more person-

Spanish and Portuguese saw an increase recently following their addition of a Spanish minor in the fall of 2015.

“This was a decision that came from the University.

It was a recommendation by student government that there was a need for having another degree,” said Santa Arias, chair of the Department of Spanish and Portuguese.

She said students would often double major in Spanish to supplement their other degree in the workforce.

Adding the minor gave the students more flexibility in their schedules as compared to the double major.

Another way that the college is reaching more students is through a new leadership studies program.

“It’s a new program because of a need in the market for people to learn about leadership and use that in their professional lives,” Atchley said.

The institute began offering a certificate program within the last year that has gained more students. Mary Banwart, the director of the Institute for Leadership Studies, said more students are taking advantage of the

time after their caucus for president and vice-president, which Onward held on Feb. 16.

“

We just want to make sure that everyone’s going to play by the rules.”

Mady Womack One KU presidential candidate

“I think that this is desperate,” Maginness said. “I think it’s pathetic and I think it’s petty.”

Maginness said that his coalition was never told there was any problem with tell-

al and smaller to the individual, so that it gives them counsel based on what we already know about them,” Mumaw said.

Down the line, the goal is for AL to be able to understand questions asked by the specific user and then recognize things throughout their interactions like the person’s career focus and future goals.

The other possibility, one that Hint and the school said they entertained during the first stage of the process, is to give AL a the most comprehensive database it can have: the entire web.

“Right now, we have a database filled with content, but it's not thinking, it's just pulling content,” Mumaw said.

The developers hope to broaden the app’s range in the future with IBM’s supercomputer, Watson, an artificial intelligence system that is at the forefront of question-answering technology.

“Could something like Watson, true AI, learn over the course of time, pull content from more than just our database, but be able to go tap the entire web to be able to pull content back?”

Mumaw asked.

Andrea Ringgenberg/KANSAN The department of Spanish and Portuguese sees an increase in Spanish degrees since they began offering a Spanish minor in Fall 2015.

program for future employment and because it offers interdisciplinary courses.

“We believe firmly that students would take a leadership course or courses in how to effectively engage in the process of leadership in order to expand their capacity in doing the good work that they are seeking to do through their major,” Banwart said. “We intend for all of our courses to be complimentary to all of the other majors across campus.”

Atchley said that fluidity between interdisciplinary courses can increase student enrollment, but the way that faculty teach classes can have more of an

impact.

“I would say that most of the work that changes what direction a major goes is often done in the classroom,” Atchley said.

He also said that how many students chose a certain major can be affected by a combination of recruiting through introductory level classes and changes in the world.

Atchley said that having a large College is important for the education of all of University students.

“Having a viable and vibrant arts program is critical for a university — like the University of Kansas — considers itself to be a flagship,” Atchley said.

ing people to vote for them, something that he said reveals “bias” on the part of the Elections Commission.

Moreover, he said the rule is not reflected in SSRR, but arbitrarily decided by the commission.

Mady Womack, the presidential candidate for OneKU, said her coalition made the complaint in the interest of fairness among all the coalitions. She said OneKU had been told by the commission multiple times not to say the phrase "vote for us" and wanted Onward to be following the guideline as well.

"We just want to make sure that everyone's going to

play by the rules," she said.

"Honestly, maybe there just needs to be a clarification of the rules from the Elections Commission."

The hearing for the complaint will take place on Monday evening, March 13, at the Union. It will follow the hearing for another minor complaint made against Onward, which alleges that they did not inform the students attending their campaign launch that their votes for presidential and vice presidential nominees were binding.

While this is a goal for down the road, the school is currently satisfied with its place at the forefront of technology integration.

“You find some technology that's in play, but when you're talking about business school, technology doesn't seem to play as large of a role, simply because there seems to be a

struggle in how it can be integrated and what value it provides,” Mumaw said.

“Our ability to be able to break down the mentality of a student adds the value to the technology.”

— Edited by Paola Alor

Spring 2017

Grad Fair

Everything You Need for Graduation in One Place

Tuesday, March 14 & Wednesday, March 15 10:00 a.m. - 4:00 p.m.

Kansas Union Ballroom (Kansas Union, Level 5) Cap & Gown

Announcements

Diploma Frames

Portraits

Desktop Diplomas

Class Rings

Faculty Fine Regalia

Or check out the KU Edwards Campus Grad Fair, KU Bookstore at Jayhawk Central, March 28, 2 p.m - 7 p.m.

The ONLY Store Giving Back to KU.

Not graduating in May? Check our website for additional information: KUBookstore.com/Graduation For disability accommodation, please submit request 5 business days in advance to Lisa Eitner: 785-864-2481, leitner@ku.edu,TTY: 711

3

NEWS

KANSAN.COM

Film & Media Studies to move to Summerfield Hall TANNER HASSELL @thassel17

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he Department of Film & Media Studies will soon be moving from its home in Oldfather Studios to the former business school building, Summerfield Hall.

Faculty in the department said the new facility will feature state-of-the-art spaces and technology for students, while giving students the added benefit of being near other buildings on campus.

Department Chair Michael Baskett said traditions of the old facility will be missed, but the new facility will make going to film and media classes easier for undergraduates.

“It’s been great that Oldfather has had its own identity.

We’ve had a proper film studio that was built and used for all these years,” he said, “Faculty and students like the fact that parking is free as well. There’s a lot of good things about Oldfather just beyond the tradition. Even so, though, I think a lot of faculty and students are excited to be on campus.”

Oldfather Studios was built in 1955 and named after former law professor Charles Oldfather in 1991, according to the University building directory.

Associate Professor of film studies Tamara Falicov said the new location will give film and media studies more visibility.

“I am excited we will have more visibility on campus,” she said. “As it stands, the campus map does not even have Oldfather on it. Now, we

Sarah Wright/KANSAN Summerfield Hall will house the Department of Film and Media studies by fall 2017.

will have a more central visible space.”

Falicov said the building will be shared with the Career Center and the Undergraduate Advising Center.

“

I am excited we will have more visibility on campus.”

Tamara Falicov Associate Professor of Film Studies

“Sharing a building with the Career Center will benefit our students and will give other students a chance to see film and media studies. So we are thinking this will be very positive for our students,” she said.

Baskett said the new location could become a hub for those interested in the arts.

“I think this will provide a chance for the four departments of the school of the arts to collaborate more often,” he said. “We’re going to be right next door to Murphy Hall

where theatre is, we’re right down the road from dance and from visual arts. It’s a huge deal for us to be back located on campus.”

Baskett said the renovation won’t just be a quick fix-up on an old building. He said a brand new soundstage, recording studios, media library and work space will be available for students to use.

“Even though we’ve had a soundstage up until now, and it was great for the 1950s when it was built, we’ve had to keep it up and make ren-

ovations when needed,” he said. “The difference is, starting this fall, we’ll be able to walk into a brand new sound stage. We’ll be able to divide up space to have several different projects going at once.”

Baskett said the addition of a media library will be a welcome addition to the new soundstage and recording studios.

“We’ve never had a media library before, so this is something new for film and media students,” he said. “This will be like nothing we’ve ever

had before. It’ll kind of be a multi-use space for classes or for students.”

Baskett said construction will finish this semester, and new technology will be installed in the new facilities.

He said summer classes may be taught out of Summerfield following this spring.

“We’ll be setting up throughout the summer, and hopefully we’ll teach our summer classes out of Summerfield,” he said. “For certain, we will start fall 2017 in Summerfield.”

opinion FREE-FOR-ALL ›› WE HEAR FROM YOU

KANSAN.COM | MONDAY, MARCH 13, 2017

McCarthy: Potential U.N. job a cop-out

My kink is unlimited breadsticks.

To myself with two midterms today: you shall survive!

I just want to make memes for a living is that too much to ask? do you every think about how arbitrary things are going to be a thousand years from now?

KEVIN MCCARTHY @kevindmccarthy

O

has a pre test hype playlist featuring chief keef, asap rocky, and juicy j

n Wednesday, Kansas Public Radio reported that Gov. Brownback is going to be named U.S. ambassador to the United Nations agencies for food and agriculture. The governor’s office has not confirmed or denied this report but it has been the subject of much speculation in Topeka over the past week. Suddenly, legislators are wondering how this could affect the remainder of the 2017 session.

If Brownback does take the ambassadorship, he will leave behind a massive budget crisis, another school funding dilemma, and a citizenry that is desperate for a government to solve these pressing issues.

If Brownback leaves for Rome, another uncertainty would be how Lt. Gov. Jeff Colyer would interact with the legislature. Colyer has begun reaching out to lawmakers more in recent months amidst rumors of Brownback’s departure, but many are skeptical of whether or not the tone will change if he takes over as governor.

Colyer has a played a big role in crafting Brownback’s budget, which is built around more spending cuts as well as alcohol and cigarette tax increases.

As we have learned, this type of budget is not a longterm solution. Lawmakers have realized this and they showed it by voting down the Governor’s tax proposal 37-1 on Tuesday.

There are still many unknowns with this situation.

Brownback has not officially announced that he is taking the ambassadorship but it would not be surprising if he did. If he stays in Kansas

BIFM 1 is so great because it’s so bad, there was a little bit of effort put into BIFM 2.0

Liston: Fighting bigotry requires conversation

i gave up fast food for lent and i’m DYING right now. it’s only been like a week You look tired -- like a good tired, a pretty tired -- but really tired You know that feeling when you climb into bed after a long day of working and an hour later some drunk jackass wakes you up because his bro texted his girlfriend and now he has to tell the whole apartment complex?

Pandora got a redesign and my life will never be the same “Sorry I’m late, I had to stop and pet a dog.” –Me Apparently, my sneezes are like snowflakes everyday I wake up and thank the lord I am no longer a teenager When I first heard the average college student changes their major 4 times, I swore that wouldn’t be me. fast-forward to now, where I just changed my major based on a coin flip

anyone have a plug for anesthesia meds I think fat dick all the time Just ask yourself. Is it really appropriate for you to wear a neon yellow tank top? @ Baylor A baby is not as exciting as extra garlic sauces

To send in an FFA, text 785-289-8351

READ MORE AT KANSAN.COM @KANSANNEWS /THEKANSAN KANSAN.NEWS @UNIVERSITY DAILYKANSAN

RYAN LISTON @rliston235

Same-sex marriage legalization throughout the country, the expansion of protections to transgender people under Title IX and the election of the first black president were just a few developments over the past few years that indicated an increase in tolerance throughout the nation. The election of President Donald Trump,

Illustration by Erica Gonzales/KANSAN

and finishes his term, he will be face a legislature that is determined to overturn his disastrous tax policy. Additionally, he has the lowest approval ratings of all 50 governors in the country.

If I were Brownback, a cushy job in Rome sounds much better to me than being berated day in and day out by the media and legislators.

However, if Brownback

however, seemed to reveal a prevalence of beliefs like male dominance and white nationalism. These are beliefs that appeared to be fizzling out of American society prior to the campaign.

While these ideas still fall outside of the mainstream, the presence of them is significant and concerning.

Trump’s election did not cause a resurgence in racism, misogyny, xenophobia and other prejudiced beliefs, but it did embolden people who hold those beliefs.

Some people have responded to the normalization of these prejudiced beliefs by altering Trump’s campaign slogan “Make America Great Again” into “Make Racists Afraid Again.” They have also done this by saying that

“

If he stays in Kansas and finishes his term, he will be facing a legislature that is determined to overturn his disastrous tax policy.”

we should shut down people who make racist, sexist or other prejudiced comments.

I believe, however, that we need to work to change these people’s views by engaging them in a dialogue. Shutting them down does not fix the problem, it just obscures and exacerbates it.

“

We should also not ignore the existence of these problems by simply silencing people who hold such beliefs.”

While we should never tolerate prejudice or bigotry, we should also not ignore the

HOW TO SUBMIT A LETTER TO THE EDITOR LETTER GUIDELINES: Send letters to editor@kansan.com. Write LETTER TO THE EDITOR in the email subject line.

Length: 300 words

does leave early it will secure his legacy as an unsuccessful quitter. It will also be an indictment of how badly his signature tax cuts have failed.

Brownback leaving in the middle of a budget crisis that he and his administration created is the metaphorical equivalent of driving a car off a cliff but jumping out just before it goes off. It may be the best thing for him

The submission should include the author’s name, year, major and hometown. Find our full letter to the editor policy online at kansan.com/letters.

existence of these problems by simply silencing people who hold such beliefs. Although some prejudiced people will hold firmly to their beliefs, others may be able to be persuaded through discussion, education and exposure to diversity.

Before the campaign, these prejudiced ideas were becoming less socially acceptable and more widely criticized. Yet, when a person running for the most powerful office in the world stokes fear about people from Mexico and the Middle East, and brags about sexually assaulting women with essentially no consequences, citizens who share these sentiments are likely to feel empowered.

Since these prejudiced beliefs were hidden from the pub-

CONTACT US Lara Korte Editor-in-chief lkorte@kansan.com

Tucker Paine Business Manager tpaine@kansan.com

personally but it is cowardly and irresponsible.

The Governor’s departure would not come as a surprise since he has put himself, his ideology and his legacy ahead of the interests of Kansans for most of his two terms.

Kevin McCarthy is a senior from Lenexa studying political science, history and public policy.

lic eye, combatting Trump’s campaign was unsuccessful.

We cannot afford to block out prejudice. We must deal with the issue directly by advocating for tolerance and acceptance in ways that appeal to logic and emotions.

We need to humanize groups of underrepresented people and show prejudiced people that race, gender, sexual orientation, ethnicity and other demographic factors do not determine a person’s worth or characteristics.

Ryan Liston is a sophomore from Lawrence studying Journalism and Political Science.

THE KANSAN EDITORIAL BOARD Members of the Kansan Editorial Board are Lara Korte, Christian Hardy, Tucker Paine and Vince Munoz.

arts & culture HOROSCOPES ›› WHAT’S YOUR SIGN?

Aries (March 21-April 19) Exercise, eat well and rest.

Shift directions under this Full Moon, with regard to service, health and labor.

Don’t argue with a brick wall. Minimize risks.

Taurus (April 20-May 20) Keep your patience. Reach a Full Moon turning point in a romance, passion or creative endeavor.

Something that worked now doesn’t. Begin a new phase.

Gemini (May 21-June 20) Domestic changes require adaptation. Begin a new home and family phase under this Full Moon.

Monitor expenses carefully.

Support your crew. Tend your garden.

Cancer (June 21-July 22) A new communications and intellectual discovery phase dawns with this Full Moon. Redirect your research. Be patient with someone who’s not. Start a new chapter.

Leo (July 23-Aug. 22) Don’t make expensive promises. Change directions with income and finances under this Full Moon. Extra expenses or unexpected circumstances require adaptation. Get multiple bids.

Virgo (Aug. 23-Sept. 22) This Full Moon in your sign illuminates a new personal direction. Push your own boundaries and limitations.

It could get exciting, after you’re used to the idea.

Libra (Sept. 23-Oct. 22) This Full Moon shines on a spiritual crossroads. One door closes as another opens. Ritual and symbolism comfort. Consider the past and envision future dreams.

Scorpio (Oct. 23-Nov. 21) This Full Moon illuminates a new social phase.

Changes affect friendships and group projects. Share appreciations as you navigate transitions. After goodbye comes hello.

Sagittarius (Nov. 22-Dec. 21) Avoid spontaneous outbursts. This Full Moon sparks a turning point in your career. Shift focus towards current passions.

Expect a test. Launch a new professional phase.

Capricorn (Dec. 22-Jan. 19) This Full Moon illuminates a shift in your educational direction. Quick action is required, but don’t be hasty. Gambling gets expensive. Explore new frontiers.

Aquarius (Jan. 20-Feb. 18) Try new strategies with your shared finances with this Full Moon. The stakes could seem high. Work out the next phase together.

Pisces (Feb. 19-March 20) Manage shifting priorities with a partnership under this Full Moon. Communicate about what you’re dealing with. Compromise and work together for shared commitments.

KANSAN.COM |MONDAY, MARCH 13, 2017

International Women’s Day Gala topics include men in feminism, gender inequality BRIANNA CHILDERS @breeanuhh3

S

enior producer and correspondent at Vox Liz Plank spoke at the Kansas Union Thursday night about how it's important to include men in the conversations about feminism.

“On International Women’s Day, I think we need to talk about what it means to be a man,” she said. “I think women deserve better, but I also think that men deserve better and things need to change.”

Plank was the keynote speaker of the International Women’s Day Gala, sponsored by Student Union Activities.

International Women's Day commemorates the movement for women's rights each year on March 8.

Other speakers at the event included assistant director of the Emily Taylor Center Annie McBride, professor and director of graduate studies Giselle Anatol, director of the Sexual Assault Prevention and Education Center Jennifer Brockman, and Micha Cox, a University student and activist.

Plank discussed in her keynote that she thinks it’s important that we celebrate International Women’s Day because we still have to ask the basic question, “Why it is important to celebrate International Women’s Day?”

Caitlynn Salazar/KANSAN Liz Plank speaks to the audience gathered in the Kansas Union Ballroom for the Women’s Day Gala Thursday night. She has appeared on multiple national news outlets, including The Today Show and Fox News.

"Gender inequality is still one of the most baffling realities of our time because of the fact that women are the majority of the population but still treated like a minority,” Plank said. “I think it shows how important it is to have a day — and more than a day — to talk about how the presence of women in society is different than it is for men."

Plank said that she hopes what people got out of her talk, an audience of about 40 in attendance, is that they want to be a part of history. Plank believes this is the generation that will get us out of the era we are in now.

“I feel really honored to be able to speak to you and be in your presence

because I’m truly excited about what you all are going to be doing,” Plank said to the crowd. “I hope that men also become not just allies but active warriors in creating a more just and equal society.”

While she said she understood it was odd to be talking about men during an event about women, Plank added that society hasn’t talked enough about men’s responsibilities in building gender equality and what they can gain from being a part of the conversation.

“I’m happy to explain why there is gender inequality and that we should all be for women, being equal members, but I feel like we aren’t pushing through to the right peo-

ple,” Plank said. “And until men believe that this is an issue that concerns them, I don’t think my mission as a feminist is accomplished."

The keynote also touched on the point that some men don’t feel comfortable expressing their vulnerabilities to other men; that when men spend time together, they think feelings have to be explained and justified.

Plank said that means men need to take risks and embrace their manhood in spaces such as a locker room.

“I encourage men to take back the locker room as a space where they don’t have to prove their manhood to other men and hopefully we can rebrand 'locker room talk' as a place where

a man can talk about their insecurities, question what they have been taught and what it means to be a man,” Plank said.

During her time on the campaign trail for the most recent election, she said that for a year that was supposed to be all about women, it turned out to be all about men. She gave examples of TV spots where she had planned to see more talk of women in politics, but they were overshadowed by breaking news about the sexual assault allegations brought against Trump.

Alexis Catanzarite, senior academic advisor at the University in attendance Thursday, said that she thinks it’s important to celebrate International Women's Day because she feels that women are often overlooked in their contributions to society in multiple ways and areas.

"I think it's important that you take at least one day to recognize all the women," she said.

Catanzarite said that Plank's talk did a good job of being timely, and that she agrees it’s important to invite men into the conversation. Part of being a woman is understanding what implications it has, and that includes understanding what being in a man's role is like as well.

Professor seeks out 10th-century icons in mountains of Japan LIBBY FLOOD @libbyflood13

After spending years researching, locating and evaluating Japanese Buddhist art, professor of Japanese art history Sherry Fowler has published “Accounts and Images of Six Kannon in Japan,” a book about a prominent 10th century Buddhist cult.

For the book, Fowler said she trekked through the mountains of Japan searching for rocks and religious carvings, many of which had been left untouched in the wilderness.

She refers to these artifacts as “religious icons” because they are more often sacred depictions of deities rather than traditional works of art.

“My approach relates to material culture,” she said. “A lot of the things in this book are not the most beautiful, or something that would be in a fancy museum.”

In a KU News press release, Fowler said that a helpful comparison would be to that of Christian saints — each with individual assignments. Worshipers believed that a grouping of six Kannon would cover all six paths of rebirth.

It was this belief that spurred the cult of the Six

Kannon.

Kannon is a Buddhist deity with the ability to appear to worshipers in several different physical forms.

The bodhisattva – “enlightened being” – is not singular to Japanese Buddhism, though. Known as Guanyin in Chinese and Avalokitesvara in Sanskrit, the deity of compassion and kindness is central to all factions of Buddhist worship, Fowler said.

Her interest in the images of Kannon began as an undergraduate art history student at California State University, Long Beach.

“I saw this [image of Kannon] from the ninth century and I just thought it was amazing,” she said.

In her research, Fowler found that Kannon is said to hear the cries of those experiencing difficulty along Buddhism’s six paths to rebirth. The deity then appears in whatever physical form is most likely to lead the worshiper to salvation.

These manifestations include that of a nun, monk, dragon, child or king, each with its own identity and set of interests.

Part of Fowler’s research for her book included locating groups of Six Kannon sculptures forgotten SEE JAPAN PAGE 7

Miranda Clark-Ulrich/KANSAN The 2017 Benefit Art Auction Exhibition began on March 10 at 7 p.m. at the Lawrence Arts Center.

Approximately 150 pieces donated by artists will be on display for a month, then will be auctioned off on April 8.

Lawrence Arts Center to host talk featuring 3 local artists BRITTANIE SMITH @britters__smith

As a part of an upcoming benefit, the Lawrence Arts Center will host an INSIGHT Art Talk with three local artists on March 13 at 7 p.m. The talk will be conducted in small groups that will rotate from artist to artist, aiming for a casual, personal and interactive setting.

The featured artists include painter Molly Murphy, jeweler Cate Richards and painter and sculptor Jeff Ridgway will lead the talk. Each will elaborate on their style, technique and current projects.

Ben Ahlvers, the exhibitions program director at the Lawrence Arts Center, said that the art talk is in anticipation of an upcoming 2017 Benefit Art Auction Exhibition. This exhibition include art talks,

an open gallery of over 170 pieces of artwork as well as a silent and live auction.

The Lawrence Arts Center wanted to have different styles of art from photography to jewelry at the exhibition, and Ahlvers said they wanted the artists to have different levels of experience.

The gallery of art for the 2017 Benefit Art Auction Exhibition will open to the public on March 10. Bidding for the silent auction also begins that day and will continue until April 8, when the live auction begins. About 40 pieces of art will be a part of the live auction, including pieces from the featured artists and other contributors.

The funds generated from this event are reinvested into the exhibition program, Ahlvers said.

Richards, the exhibitions coordinator at the

Lawrence Arts Center, has two pieces in the exhibition and auction: a necklace and a ring. She is a multimedia artist, but her main focus is jewelry.

Richards works with atypical materials that have a strong historical context to recontextualize their use, she said. She also focuses on wilderness survivalist tactics in her art as well, using materials such as, nets, rope and cordage.

“The survivalist community is hyper-masculine, and I wanted to inject some femininity and alternative viewpoints into it,” Richards said.

More information about the INSIGHT Art Talk and the benefit exhibition can be found on the Lawrence Arts Center website.

— Edited by Ashley Hocking

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Alumna brings major film, TV projects to the Midwest

Contrbuted Photo Kansas City Film Commissioner Stephane Scupham, a 1999 graduate of the University, worked with the crew of “American Honey” for the duration of its stay in Kansas City.

COURTNEY BIERMAN @courtbierman

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udiences all over the world saw the Kansas City skyline last year in “American Honey.”

The film, which received six nominations at the Independent Spirit Awards — including Best Feature and Female Lead — stars actor Shia LaBeouf. It was filmed in Kansas City, mostly on the Missouri side, in 2015.

Kansas City Film Commissioner Stephane Scupham, a 1999 graduate and University alumna, worked with the crew of “American Honey” for the duration of its stay in Kansas City. As film commissioner, Scupham said she ensures that productions that choose to film in one of the office’s municipalities run smoothly. The production may need a hotel recommendation, information on state child labor laws or film permits, or help finding a location to film. Location scouting was most of Scupham’s job when “American Honey” was in town.

“When you get a good film like that, it has life, so we keep being seen,” Scupham said.

The Kansas City Film Office, which is part of the Visit KC tourism organization, is the primary point of contact for film projects coming to the area. It is one of more than 300 officially sanctioned film offices around the world. Scupham, along with a board of advisors and local film festivals and projects, assists various productions that choose to film in the region, including feature films, short films, reality television and commercials. The office aims to help the Kan-

sas City economy and bring the region recognition in the entertainment industry.

Scupham graduated from the University with a communications degree and an emphasis in film. During her time in Lawrence, she helped found video production club KU Filmworks, along with several original members of the entertainment business networking group called the Hollywood Hawks.

Scupham said a large part of her job now in Kansas City is simply showing filmmakers what the region has to offer in terms of location, budget and hospitality.

Kansas City's proximity to a variety of landscapes — including suburbs, metropolitan areas, rivers, forests, farmland etc. — is a great place for filming, according to Scupham. The city doesn’t require any filming permits, she added, and filmmakers have access to all sorts of architectural styles and ways to entertain themselves while in town.

During baseball season, members of almost every production Scupham assisted wanted to go to a Royals game.

“It’s something as simple as exposing people to what we have to offer,” Scupham said.

In addition to Kansas City, the office’s domain is spread across Lawrence, Lenexa, Leavenworth, Overland Park and other suburbs and towns on both sides of the border.

Peter Jasso is director of the Creative Arts Commission in the Kansas Department of Commerce. He and Scupham often work together when a production comes to town to help the project along with anything it may

need.

“The fact that [filmmakers] have a place to go, whether it’s my office or Steph’s office, where they can sort of navigate state or local governments or get in touch with crew, in touch with equipment — It just makes it really easy to shoot in the area, and it just kind of lets them know what this region has to offer,” Jasso said.

“American Honey” is likely one of the film office’s most recognizable titles, but 251 productions received assistance from the office in 2016. 18 films that played at the Sundance and Slamdance film festivals had connections to Kansas City, Scupham said. Other titles associated with the film office include NBC's “American Ninja Warrior,” the MTV reality show “Unlocking the Truth,” and various independent films that Scupham said film fans should watch out for during festival season: “Different Flowers,” “Found Wandering Lost,” “Cool Spirits,” “Paradox City,” and others.

“Out of that list, I’m sure we’ll hear one or two of those — maybe even more — will have legs that will help or continue to put Kansas City on the map,” she said.

Scupham said that at the end of the day, her job is about forming and maintaining relationships with filmmakers and other people who bring business and recognition to Kansas and Missouri.

“We’re very conscious of creating an environment where people can work, where we can create and sustain jobs in this industry,” she said.

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JAPAN FROM PAGE 5

by time. She traveled to Japan many times to find these religious icons, but said she had difficulty finding a complete set.

Because of this, Fowler launched an investigation. Her favorite way of describing her research method is by comparing it to detective work, she said.

“Over the centuries, [some will] disappear, some will be broken, some will be reconfigured,” Fowler said. “I had to look for the patterns to figure out what's missing.”

Fortunately, various temples across Japan still house sculptures and paintings of the Six Kannon. At the temple of Daih oonji in Kyoto, Japan, for example, a complete set of full-size wooden sculptures remain in exceptional condition.

Ideal as this discovery was, the Kyoto temple was not the original home of the sculptures. Fowler said she had to track down the sculptures’ place of origin to begin breaking down their significance.

“

The process is kind of like tracking down a missing person.”

Sherry Fowler Japanese Art History

Art history graduate student Mary Frances said that the study of art history requires this, that a work be “contextualized.”

housing

Contributed Photo Nyoirin Kannon. 14th century. Color on silk. Hosomi Museum, Kyoto.

It's a process where art historians have to find out as much as possible about the historical, religious or cultural context of the piece.

“Art historians are trying to understand something about the broader culture that the artist was working in,” Frances said.

“The artist wasn’t working in a vacuum.”

For Fowler, the Daihoonji sculptures couldn’t be put in historical context without a confident understanding of when and where they originated.

“The process is kind of like tracking down a miss-

for sale

ing person,” Fowler said.

“I have to build a case and find out what information is missing.”

Fowler’s next projects include Japanese prints and temple bells, the latter of which she will be studying in Korea this summer.

Her excitement for the art of the Six Kannon, she said, remains strong. “[Sculptures of the Six Kannon] are still working in their religious purpose, and that’s something I really love about them,” she said.

— Edited by Paola Alor

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Jackson’s suspension derails KU in Big 12 tournament AMIE JUST @Amie_Just

K

ANSAS CITY, Mo. — For the first time since December, sophomore guard Lagerald Vick received the starting nod. And for the first time all season, freshman guard Josh Jackson was relegated to the bench to start a game.

Suspended for backing into a parked car and fleeing the scene without leaving contact information, Jackson stood under the basket in his crimson and blue warm ups, rebounding for his fellow Jayhawks during pregame.

His courtside demeanor was not sullen nor dejected, but supportive, as he both cheered and offered benchside advice. But Jackson serving as a de facto cheerleader didn’t do the Jayhawks any favors, as No. 8 seed TCU upset top-seeded Kansas, 85-82.

“It showed,” said senior guard Frank Mason III about not having Jackson on the court. “It was really tough out there [without him]. We could have used him for more points, more rebounds. We just missed his presence out there.”

Vick had large shoes to fill, as Jackson averages 16.4 points and 7.2 rebounds per game. Vick’s numbers didn’t come close.

Vick finished the day with nine points and six re-

Missy Minear/KANSAN Freshman guard Josh Jackson sits out against TCU after being suspended due to traffic violations.

bounds.

Junior guard Svi Mykhailiuk stepped up in Jackson’s absence, scoring 18 points. Thirteen of those came in the first half.

But Mykhailiuk would rather have Jackson on the floor.

“I wish he could have played,” Mykhailiuk said.

“He would have helped us in everything.”

Because of Jackson’s absence, Self elected to play bigger than normal.

With senior center Landen Lucas anchoring the fifth spot, sophomore forward Carlton Bragg Jr., freshman forward Mitch Lightfoot and junior forward Dwight

Coleby all rotated in for 19 minutes combined.

Those three combined for three points, three rebounds and three turnovers.

“Everyone on the bench had to step up and contribute and fill Josh’s shoes,” Coleby said. “I don’t think we did the best job that we

possibly could have done.”

Jackson didn’t speak with the media after the game, but coach Bill Self spoke for him.

“He feels bad,” Self said.

“He feels bad. I’m not trying to minimize anything, but he did, you know, with the mistake, he went and took care of his business and did

that stuff. But it was a culmination of things because we had an incident — one other incident before. So certainly he feels bad and he could have handled it better. Certainly that’s — it’s a teaching moment not only for me, but also for our guys to learn and hopefully be better from it.”

Indoor Championships a reality check for Jayhawks MATT HOFFMANN & SHAUN GOODWIN @MattHoffmannUDK @ShaunGoodwinUDK

The Kansas men’s track and field team entered this weekend’s NCAA Indoor Championships in College Station, Texas, at No. 11 in the nation. The team left the meet at No. 27.

On the first day of competition on March 10, the Jayhawks competed in the pole vault, shot put, long jump and the distance medley relay.

The evening began with the pole vault, as three Jayhawks competed for the national title. This marked only the seventh time in 52 years that a school had sent more than two pole vaulters to the NCAA meet. The Kansas men’s pole vault team was ranked No. 1 in the nation heading into NCAAs, and all three Jayhawks managed to get over the bar at least once.

Senior Nick Maestretti and sophomore Paulo Benavides both cleared the opening height of 5.25-meters, claiming 14th- and 15thplace respectively in the field of 16 vaulters. Senior Jake Albright went one step further, as he cleared 5.35-meters on his second attempt, earning him an 11th-place finish. All three athletes earned second-team All-American honors, making them the 24th, 25th and 26th Kansas vaulters in history to do so.

Benavides also wrote his name in Kansas history, as he became only the 10th Jayhawk vaulter to win an indoor conference title as well as earning All-America honors in the same season.

Junior Nicolai Ceban was

Andrew Rosenthal/KANSAN Sophomore pole vaulter Paulo Benavides vaults in the 2017 Jayhawk Classic. Benavides cleared 17-foot-1, finishing first overall.

the only men’s athlete to earn a spot on the podium Friday night, as he finished seventh-place in shot put, improving upon his 15th-place finish last year. Ceban saw three of his tosses break the 63-foot mark, saving his best throw for last, as he launched the 16-pound weight 19.37 meters. His efforts earned him his first All-America honors, making him only the 14th All-American in Kansas history for the event.

The women’s distance medley relay rounded out the night. Sophomores Riley Cooney and Nicole Montgomery and seniors Whitney Adams and Hannah Richardson finished the event with the second-fastest time in Kansas history. The effort, which led to the quartet finishing seventh, was less than

four seconds slower than the school record, which was only set one month ago by the same group.

The team’s time of 11:5.35 saw them finish only 5.01 seconds behind winners Colorado in a highly-contested race.

Their effort earned All-American status for four Jayhawks for the first time in their careers, and only the second time Kansas has seen a women’s DMR team earn such honors. The first time was in 2010 when a Kansas team finished sixth in the NCAA Indoor meet with a time of 11:11.46.

The team’s highest individual finish came on Saturday, when junior horizontal jumper Barden Adams narrowly missed the podium in the triple jump. He finished

fifth.

“This has never been an easy meet and I guarantee every team here says they wish they could have done a few things better, and we’re obviously included in that,” coach Stanley Redwine said in a Kansas Athletics release.

While the team fell flat overall, Redwine was pleased with Adams’ record-setting performance. His mark of 15.99 meters put him as the fifth All-American in the indoor triple jump in Kansas history.

“Barden had a great meet and he really stepped up. That’s what this competition is all about — being both physically and mentally ready,” Redwine said in the release. “He showed and proved today that he was mentally ready and physical-

ly prepared.”

Freshman thrower Gleb Dudarev nabbed the team’s second-best performance when he finished at sixth in the weight throw. He was also named an All-American despite fouling four times in six throws.

“

I guarantee every team here says they wish they could have done a few things better.”

Stanley Redwine Kansas coach

Dudarev entered the meet as the top-ranked thrower in the Big 12, posting wins in each of his first three events,

including the Big 12 Championship.

“Our kids fought their hearts out but, unfortunately, they didn’t place as high as we wanted them to,” Redwine said in the release.

The men’s 4x400-meter relay team finished third and No. 11 overall with a time of 3:07.87. It was the third-fastest 4x400-meter relay time in school history. The group set the school record of 3:05.57 in February.

As a whole, the women’s team finished at No. 52. It’s the seventh time in the last eight years the team has scored at least one point, according to the release.

With Kansas set to host the outdoor Big 12 Championships in May, Redwine said he wants the weekend’s performance to serve as a reality check.

“As we go into the outdoor season we have to remember this and remember this feeling of when you set goals and don’t attain those goals,” Redwine said in the release.

Kansas will split into three different squads for the first action of the outdoor season. The team will send contingents to three different meets in Austin, Texas, Emporia, and Palo Alto, California. Those meets are set to take place the weekend of March 29 through April 1.

— Edited by Omar Sanchez

MONDAY, MARCH 13, 2017 | VOLUME 133 ISSUE 17

THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN THE STUDENT VOICE SINCE 1904

Dzwierzynski: Don’t count Kansas out BRENDAN DZWIERZYNSKI @BrendanDzw

N

obody is ever going to call Kansas basketball an underdog. However, some fans and pundits still like to discredit the program’s success and will write it off when the NCAA tournament comes around. It’s undeniable that the Jayhawks have suffered some unfortunate tournament losses before, but that’s no indication of the team’s current situation.

Why can’t this year be the year?

You can come up with as many rationalizations as you want for why you don’t think Kansas will win the national championship, but each can be easily refuted.

Concern over depth down low for the Jayhawks is overblown. Sure, only one big man sees the floor for the vast majority of the game, but senior center Landen Lucas has been absolutely phenomenal in that role. It’s hard to be concerned when that big man was the second-leading rebounder in Big 12 play and is an excellent defender.

To add to that, Kansas has the best guard play in the country and it’s not

even close. Led by arguably the top player in the country in senior Frank Mason III, and the top freshman in the country in Josh Jackson, the Jayhawks have the guard-play advantage over every other team in the field. With Mason running the point and Lucas manning the paint, it’s hard to be concerned about depth.

It’s also relatively foolish to just expect Kansas to be knocked off because it’s happened in the past. Kansas has the second-most tournament wins of any program since coach Bill Self took over the team in 2003-04. If you still insist that Self isn’t a good coach in March, you’re just not paying attention.

The Bucknell loss is years in the past. The same can be said for VCU, Northern Iowa and even Wichita State. Those games are old news, down notes in an otherwise spectacular career for Self at Kansas. Those were wildly different teams than this current Jayhawks squad, and there’s no reason to believe there will be a similar result this season.

Kansas’ early exit from the Big 12 Tournament may also cause some fear, considering the Jayhawks lost to an inferior opponent, but

it’s hard to consider the loss a big deal for anyone other than TCU. The Horned Frogs were trying to play their way into the big dance, while the Jayhawks just needed to stay healthy entering it.

Since Kansas’ last national title, five of the eight championship-winning teams didn’t win their conference tournament, including each of the last four. Needless to say, conference tournaments don’t mean a whole lot for elite programs.

Don’t lose sight of the fact that the NCAA tournament is impossible to predict. It’s called “March Madness” for a reason. Chaotic upsets happen every year, but there’s no reason to think the Jayhawks are prime candidates for one of those letdowns in 2017.

Forget the past; all that matters is this season. The fact is that Kansas has the best team in the country, led by the best player in the country, with one of the best coaches in the country at the helm. With all that working for the Jayhawks, there’s no reason to believe Kansas can’t bring home a sixth national championship this season.

File Photo/KANSAN Mario Chalmers cuts down the net after the 2008 National Championship game.

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Miranda Anaya/KANSAN The Kansas men’s basketball coaching staff laughs during Senior Night at Allen Fieldhouse on Feb. 27.

KU looks forward to favorable Midwest region SKYLAR ROLSTAD @SkyRolSports

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deflating Big 12 tournament quarterfinal loss last Thursday left a bad taste in Kansas’ mouth heading into the NCAA tournament next weekend.

However, the Jayhawks look to capitalize on eight days of rest as they learned the potential road to the Final Four in Sunday afternoon’s selection show.

“We’re happy we’re a one seed,” Kansas coach Bill Self said. “I’m not sure that’s a huge advantage. We’re obviously happy that we get to stay fairly regional with our travel, especially going down to Tulsa in the first weekend.”

Kansas, unsurprisingly, was picked as the No. 1 seed in the Midwest region. The team is set to face the winner of NC Central vs. UC-Davis in Tulsa, Oklahoma. The tournament berth makes for the 28th-straight NCAA tournament appearance for Kansas.

In his last year at Kansas, senior center Landen Lucas will strive to bring Kansas back to the Elite Eight.

There’s an added incentive, too. Kansas will play at the Sprint Center in Kansas City, Missouri if it makes it to the Sweet Sixteen. A game in front of an essential home crowd could give the Jayhawks a boost it didn’t have last year in a loss to Villanova.

“Hopefully we’ve got a lot of Kansas fans out in Tulsa cheering us on,” Lucas said.

“And the biggest thing about getting the seed that we got is that we play in Kansas City.

Our fans are great, especially helping us when we’re going on runs or maybe coming back in the game. So we’re all looking forward to playing in front of them in Tulsa and seeing them out there.”

The Jayhawks fell to the Wildcats in an Elite Eight game last year that came down to the final possession in Louisville, Kentucky. Kansas was awarded the No. 1 overall seed last season, but had to play the Sweet 16 and

Elite Eight games in Louisville rather than Chicago.

Kansas, Big 12 tournament champions for two of the last four years, lost in the conference tournament after the first game for the first time since 2009 with an 8582 loss to TCU last Thursday.

Lucas told reporters Sunday he thought the team got better in the extra practice days that stemmed from the loss.

“

Hopefully we’ve got a lot of Kansas fans out in Tulsa cheering us on.”

Landen Lucas Senior center

“Obviously, we wanted to be out there playing, especially guys [who] won’t be here next year, and you’ve got a limited amount of games.” Lucas said. “We had a goal we wanted to accomplish, but then we didn’t do that. But I think quickly as

soon as we got into practice, it turned into focusing on our next goal and knowing that we could use this time to get better, get healthier, get rested and get focused for the ultimate goal.

“We tried to spin it as much into a positive as possible, and move forward after that.”

Self said postgame on Thursday that the loss will give the team needed rest heading into the NCAA tournament. Self’s update on Sunday was that the team made strides to re-focus.

“When the coach acts like a maniac, you know you’ll probably try a little harder or what not,” Self said. “I do think there are some things that we have to tighten up.

Our ball screen defense was bad against TCU, and obviously rebounding.”

Freshman guard Josh

Jackson is set to return for the start of the NCAA tournament. Jackson was suspended for a traffic incident for the Big 12 tournament loss to TCU. Self called Jackson one of the most consistent players in country for the last month, and told reporters he will be ready to compete.

“I think he’ll respond favorably,” Self said. “He was down, obviously, and he understood. I mean, he’s a smart kid without question.

I think he’ll respond very favorably moving forward.”

Currently, Kansas’ potential road to the Final Four includes match-ups against No. 8 seed Miami, No. 4 seed Purdue and 2-seed Louisville.

Self looked at the bracket this season, and said he concluded the same thing he does every year.

“Obviously, I think it’s

very difficult,” Self said. “But you look at it, I think everybody in the tournament could probably say the same thing, that it’s very difficult.

It’s been my experiences in all the years, when you think you’ve kind of figured something out, it never plays out that way. So I’m not going to fret or be disappointed at all because I think everybody in the field, all the 1 seeds, would probably say, Villanova? Are you kidding me?

Look who we’ve got to go against or whoever.”

Kansas’ first tournament game will tip off at 5:50 p.m. on Friday, March 17, in Tulsa. The game will be against the winner of NC Central vs. UC Davis, which tips off Wednesday, March 15 at 5:50 p.m. in Dayton, Ohio.

— Edited by Frank Weirich

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Midwest Regional features three Big 12 teams AMIE JUST

ment 11 times.

The Gaels are led by forward Jordan Washington, who averages 17.9 points per game. Washington also hauls in 7.4 rebounds per game. The Gaels won the MAAC Tournament as the 1-seed in the conference.

@Amie_Just

A

s expected, the Kansas Jayhawks earned the No. 1 seed in the Midwest Region of the NCAA Championship. Kansas did not walk away with the No. 1 overall seed, as the defending national champions in the Villanova Wildcats claimed that spot.

Kansas will play either NC Central or UC Davis in the first round of the tournament. Those two teams are battling for the No. 16 seed in one of the First Four games held in Dayton, Ohio.

The NC Central Eagles boast a 25-8 record and won the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference Tournament on Saturday.

The UC Davis Mustangs earned their first trip to the NCAA tournament this year with a 22-12 record. They won the Big West Tournament on Saturday.

NC Central and UC Davis will play on March 14 or 15 in Dayton, Ohio, and then will face off Kansas in Tulsa, Oklahoma on March 17.

The rest of the first round matchups in the Midwest are as follows:

NO. 8 SEED MIAMI VS. NO. 9 SEED MICHIGAN STATE The Hurricanes (21-11) last made the NCAA tournament in 2016 and advanced all the way to the Sweet Sixteen under the leadership of then redshirt-senior Angel Rodriguez.

This season, Miami has played 10 tournament teams 14 times, including Iowa State (loss, 73-56), Florida (loss, 65-56), Notre Dame (loss, 67-62), Wake Forest (loss, 96-79), Duke (loss, 70-58; win 55-50), North Carolina (win, 77-62; loss 78-53), Florida State (loss, 75-57; loss 66-57), Virginia Tech (win, 74-68; loss 66-61), Louisville (loss, 71-66, Virginia (win, 54-48 OT).

The Hurricanes have three guards that average double digits in Davon Reed (15 points per game), Ja’Quan Newton (13.4) and Bruce Brown (11.9).

The Spartans last made the NCAA tournament in 2016 and, as a No. 2 seed, were bounced by No. 15 seed Middle Tennessee in the first round. A No. 15 seed upsetting a No. 2 seed

NO. 7 SEED MICHIGAN VS. NO. 10 SEED OKLAHOMA STATE

Missy Minear/KANSAN Senior guard Frank Mason III makes a pass during Kansas’ Big 12 Championship quarterfinal loss to TCU.

has only happened eight times in the history of the NCAA Tournament.

This season, Michigan State has played 10 tournament teams 14 times, including Arizona (loss, 6563), Kentucky (loss 69-48), Florida Gulf Coast (win, 78-77), Baylor (loss, 73-58), Minnesota (win, 75-74 OT; win, 65-47; loss, 63-58), Northwestern (win, 61-52), Purdue (loss, 84-73; loss, 80-63), Michigan (win, 7062; loss, 86-57), Wisconsin (win, 84-74), Maryland (loss, 63-60).

Three Michigan State players average double figures in scoring. Miles Bridgers averages 16.7 points per game, Nick Ward averages 13.7 and Eron Harris averages 10.4.

NO. 5 SEED IOWA STATE VS. NO. 12 SEED NEVADA Iowa State (23-10) finished its season on a high note, winning the Big 12 Conference Championship for the third time in four years. The Cyclones have also won 10 of their last 11 games, including one at Allen Fieldhouse against then-No. 2 Kansas.

The Cyclones played several NCAA tournament teams this season for a 7-7 record against the field.

Those previous opponents include Mount Saint Mary's, Miami, Gonzaga, Cincinnati and Vanderbilt, as well as all five of their fellow Big 12 Conference members in the tournament at least twice.

Scoring leaders for Iowa

State include: Monte Morris (16.3), Naz Mitrou-Long (15.5), Deonte Burton (14.8) and Matt Thomas (12.0).

Nevada (28-6) hasn't been in the NCAA tournament for 10 years, but is riding into the big dance on a nine-game win streak.

The Wolf Pack won the Mountain West Conference this season for the first time since 2012.

Nevada comes into its seventh NCAA tournament appearance having faced a few other NCAA tournament teams, including Saint Mary's and Iona early in the season.

Four Wolf Pack starters average double digits in scoring. Marcus Marshall averages 19.8 points, good for No. 41 in the country.

Other double figure scorers for Nevada are Cameron Oliver (15.8), Jordan Carolina (14.8) and D.J. Fenner (14.1).

NO. 4 SEED PURDUE VS. NO. 13 SEED VERMONT The Boilermakers (25-7) have made three-straight NCAA tournaments, but this seems to be the best chance for Purdue to advance. Purdue hasn't had less than seven losses since the 2009-10 season, when Matt Painter's squad ran to the Sweet Sixteen for backto-back seasons.

Playing in the Big Ten, Purdue has played several NCAA tournament teams, such as Michigan, Northwestern, Michigan State, Maryland, Wisconsin and Minnesota. It's also played

Notre Dame, Louisville and Villanova this season.

The Catamounts (295) currently hold the longest winning streak in the country at 21-straight. Vermont's strength of schedule isn't as strong as Purdue's, only having played two NCAA tournament teams in Butler and South Carolina.

The Catamounts lost both games.

In preparing for their sixth NCAA tournament appearance, the Catamounts have three players averaging in double figures. Anthony Lamb leads the charge with 12.6 points per game. Payton Hensen and Trae Bell-Haynes follow him with 11.4 and 11.1 points per game, respectively.

Justin Patton also brings in an average of 13.1 points per game. Maurice Watson Jr. and Khyri Thomas average 12.9 and 12.4 points respectively.

Rhode Island (24-9) hasn't been to an NCAA tournament since 1999, but the Rams rolled through the field to win the Atlantic 10 Conference Tournament, beating VCU for the title.

The Rams have faced multiple NCAA tournament teams this season, including Duke, Dayton and VCU. Leading the charge for the Rams are E.C. Matthews and Hassan Martin.

Matthews averages 14.9 points per game and Martin averages 14.1 points and severn rebounds per game.

NO. 6 SEED CREIGHTON VS. NO. 11 SEED RHODE Island

NO. 3 SEED OREGON VS. NO. 14 SEED IONA

Creighton (25-9) hasn't made the NCAA tournament since 2014 when current Oklahoma City Thunder forward (and son of Creighton coach Greg McDermott) Doug McDermott was a senior. Coming off a loss in the Big East title game to Villanova, the Bluejays have plenty to play for.

In the Big East, Creighton played many NCAA tournament teams, including Villanova (thrice), Marquette, Xavier, Butler and Seton Hall. In nonconference play, Creighton beat Wisconsin.

The Bluejays are led by former Kansas State guard Marcus Foster, who averages 18.3 points per game.

Oregon (29-5) finished second in the Pac-12 and had a shot at a 2-seed in the tournament. A loss to Arizona in the Pac-12 title game likely dropped Oregon to a No. 3.

The Ducks lost starting forward Chris Boucher for the season with an ACL injury during the Pac12 Tournament semifinal against Cal. However, the Ducks are known for their excellent backcourt. Guard Dillon Brooks stars for the Ducks with 16.3 points per game.

Iona (22-12) took the tournament bid by winning the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference tournament over Siena. The Gaels have made the NCAA tourna-

Michigan (24-11) captured the automatic bid to the tournament by winning the Big Ten tournament on Sunday. The Wolverines further boosted their tournament resume by defeating No. 24 Wisconsin in the title game.

The Wolverines defeated No. 13 Purdue along the way to the Big Ten Tournament title. Senior guard Derrick Walton Jr. leads Michigan with 15.2 points per game.

Powered by point guard Jawun Evans, Oklahoma State (20-12) comes into the tournament a dangerous No. 10 seed. A strong finish to the Big 12 season allowed the Cowboys into the tournament.

Evans, who averages 19.0 points and 6.2 assists per game, could have been a contender for national awards if he played for a more successful team. The Cowboys have also showed a propensity for three-point shooting, shooting 40 percent as a team.

NO. 2 SEED LOUISVILLE VS. NO. 15 JACKSONVILLE STATE

With wins over Purdue and Kentucky in the nonconference season, Louisville (24-8) is one of the strongest teams not to be named a No. 1 seed in the nation. The Cardinals compete in the ACC, one of the toughest conferences in the nation.

Cardinals coach Rick Pitino's tournament experience is always a helpful factor in predicting success for Louisville this season.

Pitino has reached the top with less talented teams in the past.

Jacksonville State (2014) made the tournament by way of the Ohio Valley Conference championship.

The Gamecocks finished the conference season with a 9-7 record and won the OVC Tournament as the 4-seed.

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Garcia: Tips for filling out your tournament bracket AUSTIN GARCIA

East, and South) and the No. 8 seed in the other two regions.

@Austin_TG15

M

arch is one of the most exciting times of the year for the sports world because of the NCAA tournament. It's intense, entertaining, miraculous, heart-jolting or heart-breaking for loyal fans, hence why it's dubbed "March Madness."

There is always a game on television, and any game has the potential to be the unbelievable game of the century.

Other than supporting your main team, the fun of March Madness is filling out a bracket. According to ESPN, 11.57 million people, some of them not even sports fans, filled out an NCAA tournament bracket through their website.

Some did it for the thrill, while others did it for bragging rights or money.

Former President of the United States Barack Obama even took the time to fill out a bracket every year, although President Donald Trump declined to ESPN this year to keep this newly acquired tradition alive.

However, of those millions of brackets last year on ESPN’s Tournament Challenge, after two days only .0024 percent of brackets remained perfect.

Here are some tips from someone who has tossed out his bracket after the second day, to be-

TIPS FOR THE FINAL FOUR:

Having all four No. 1 seeds reach the final four is extremely rare. It has only happened one time, back in 2008. Do not put all No. 1 seeds in the Final Four. The No. 9 and 10 seeds have not reached the Final Four since 1985, when the league expanded to 64 teams.

Who should you put in the Final Four? A happy combination to put into the Final Four would be a maximum of two No. 1 seeds, a No. 2 seed and either another No. 2 seed or a No. 3 seed.

TIPS FOR THE CHAMPIONSHIP: Associated Press In this April 4, 2016, file photo, Villanova head coach Jay Wright celebrates after the NCAA Final Four tournament college basketball championship game against North Carolina, in Houston. Jay Wright recounts Villanova’s national championship run in his new book, “Attitude.” (AP Photo/David J. Phillip, File)

ing a three-time champion in a league with over 200 people.

Although filling out a bracket can’t be perfected by science, there are certain things you can do, based on history, to have a better chance of winning your friends league, work league, family league or ESPN NCAA Tournament Challenge.

GENERAL TIPS:

Make a bracket with more than seven upsets and a bracket with less than five upsets. Also, in one of those brackets, have your favorite team win it all, because you don’t want to be that person that didn’t have their team winning it all and then it happens that they win it all, and on the other, a team you believe has the potential to win it all.

Don’t be that person that spends thousands of

dollars or bets their house on a bracket (yes it happens). March Madness can win you some money, but don’t go overboard.

A person flipping a coin can have just as great of a chance as someone who maps out each scenario.

TIPS FOR THE ROUND OF 64 TEAMS: Upsets are what make March Madness so interesting. However, a No. 1

seed has never lost to a No. 16 seed. Picking an upset at this level of the bracket is not the place to do it. If you are going to pick an upset, a prime spot to do so would be the No. 5 versus the No. 12 and/or the No. 7 versus the No. 10.

Another interesting stat is a No. 9 seed has beaten a No. 8 seed more times than they have lost.

It would be smart to pick the No. 9 seed in two of the regions (Midwest, West,

A No. 1 seed vs. a No. 2 seed seems to be the combination that works for me. The No. 1 seed has won the tournament 52 percent of the time, therefore choosing a No. 1 seed is the logical decision to win it all.

March Madness can make you feel on top of the world, or down in the pits. Don’t miss out on the fun of filling out a bracket because you don’t know where to start.

—Edited by Paola Alor

The types of people who fill out March Madness brackets CHRISTIAN S. HARDY @ByHardy

THE DISHONEST

THE STATISTICIAN

These are the ones who fill out 10 brackets — an upset bracket, a favorite team bracket, a no upsets bracket, a coin flip bracket, and whatever else they can find to be more and more wrong. Then, when one of those 10 is doing well, you won’t hear the end of how they picked a No. 15 seed over a No. 2 seed and had every other upset right on one bracket. These are the people who actually believe that making a good March Madness bracket makes you look like a college basketball god. Breaking news: it doesn’t. It just makes you lucky. If you make more than one bracket, and if you ever call more than one bracket your “main bracket,” you are an insufferable human.

There is some overlap between the statistician and the gambler, except the statistician actually likes basketball and has a soul. Statisticians also can sometimes stay quiet, keeping their obscure Ken Pomeroy numbers about Vanderbilt’s offensive steal rate and Butler’s free-throw rate to themselves.

Certainly, plenty of people will lean on Ken Pomeroy to pick their bracket, but then there are those who believe tournament history and stats from the last four tournaments will dictate how this one goes and those who base their brackets on tournament history. These people usually don’t cheer for a team, but at least they have more of a spine than the gamblers.

THE CLUELESS These people don’t know anything about how basketball works or the teams in the NCAA tournament, which is all good and well. But the clueless are only truly recognized when they begin to brag about their aloofness. They use coin flips, mascots, and team colors to choose their winners. But they especially won’t shut up about how they used coin flips and mascots to make those choices because they just don’t care about sports. Their gall approach takes five steps up on the annoying scale when their bracket actually starts doing well, and they keep reminding you, “I don’t even know anything sports!”

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THE GAMBLER This person has absolutely no rooting interest, unless they have money on something, whether it be an over-under or the game result itself. These people are gambling on individual games, and digging for every sliver of information on the two teams in any game. These are also the people who go beyond the analysts and experts and their typical Cinderella picks and land on their own, usually dictated by Vegas odds.

This person has mostly sold their soul to sports, but they have the highest highs and lowest lows of anyone else on this list.

THE HOMER

Without a shadow of a doubt, their favorite team is the champion in this person’s bracket, without even checking out the other 67 teams. Of course, there’s some validity in that when you’re a Kansas basketball fan. But this strategy has less validity for your friend, a Wichita State (a 10 seed) fan, or your other friend, a Kansas State (11 seed) fan. Beyond how annoying it is for a fan of a mediocre team to actually believe their team will make it in this crapshoot of a tournament, it’s completely non-sensical to believe their team can even make it to the Elite Eight every time they're in the tournament — nonetheless win it all.

March Madness is unavoidable. Some 70 million brackets are filled out every year — compared to 129 million votes in the presidential election. Most businesses have office pools for their employees to try to win a pot and over $9 billion was gambled, both legally and illegally, on the NCAA tournament last year.

When something is that popular, naturally, some of those people participating are going to be unbearable. That’s just the way the world works.

“Look how many people are here. Some of you are sh—y people, there’s no question,” Aziz Ansari said in his 2012 stand-up “Dangerously Delicious” in front of a crowd of less than 2,000. That’s about where I find myself with March Madness — surrounded by people who are utterly annoying with their bracket “formula” that no one but themselves cares about.

Only two things are similar between all of these types people: They are going to be wrong a lot, and they are irritating beyond belief. And if you haven’t recognized these people before, you certainly will once they’ve been identified.

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1 VILLANOVA

@SkyRolSports

KANSAS MIAMI (FL.)

WISCONSIN

9 VA TECH

KANSAS

VILLANOVA

5 VIRGINIA

NEVADA

VIRGINIA

12 UNC-WILM.

FLORIDA

4 FLORIDA

NEVADA VERMONT

FLORIDA

13 ETSU 6 SMU

VILLANOVA

EAST

SMU

11 PROV/USC

LOUISVILLE

CREIGHTON OREGON OREGON

BAYLOR

14 NM ST. 7 S. CAROLINA 10 MARQUETTE

ARIZONA

SMU S. CAROLINA

OK STATE LOUISVILLE

DUKE

15 TROY 1 GONZAGA

5 NOTRE DAME

6 MARYLAND 11 XAVIER 3 FLORIDA ST. 14 FGCU 7 ST. MARY’S 10 VCU 2 ARIZONA

N. CAROLINA SETON HALL

N.WESTERN

9 VANDERBILT

13 BUCKNELL

N. CAROLINA N.WESTERN

8 N.WESTERN

4 W. VIRGINIA

LOUISVILLE

N. CAROLINA

GONZAGA

16 SD ST.

12 PRINCETON

LOUISVILLE

S. CAROLINA

2 DUKE

W. VIRGINIA

N. CAROLINA

N. CAROLINA

NOTRE DAME

MINNESOTA W. VIRGINIA

BUTLER BUTLER

W. VIRGINIA WEST

MARYLAND

ARIZONA

N. CAROLINA

SOUTH

KSTATE/WF UCLA

MARYLAND

UCLA

FLORIDA ST. ARIZONA

UCLA WICHITA ST.

ST. MARY’S ARIZONA

WICHITA ST.

ARIZONA

KENTUCKY

Rolstad bracket commentary

SKYLAR ROLSTAD @SkyRolSports

When talking to the media Sunday, Kansas coach Bill Self said this season’s tournament will likely be a four or five-team tournament. I chose several shocking upsets, such as Iowa State going home against Nevada, but none of those

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• • • • • • •

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8 WISCONSIN

15 ND

Bracket Predictions

VILLANOVA

16 MSM/NO

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will factor into the final outcome of the tournament.

This year’s tournament field includes plenty of formidable teams, but the top two seeds in every region are the only real contenders.

North Carolina and Louisville have quietly been the most outstanding teams in the country this season and their under-the-radar excel-

lence will show in the later stages of the tournament.

I predicted Kansas to lose to Louisville in the Elite Eight because of the team’s streaky, at times inconsistent, scoring might come back to bite them against a quality opponent like the Cardinals. North Carolina might not be the best team in the country this season,

KANSAS 1 NCC/UCD 16 MIAMI (FL.) 8 MICH ST. 9 IOWA ST. 5 NEVADA 12 PURDUE 4 VERMONT 13 CREIGHTON 6 RHODE ISL. 11 OREGON 3 IONA 14 MICHIGAN 7 OK STATE 10 LOUISVILLE 2 JAX. ST. 15 N. CAROLINA 1 TEXAS SO. 15 ARKANSAS 8 SETON HALL 9 MINNESOTA 5 MIDDLE TN 12 BUTLER 4 WINTHROP 13 CINCINNATI 6 KSTATE/WF 11 UCLA 3 KENT ST. 14 DAYTON 7 WICHITA ST. 10 KENTUCKY 2 N. KENTUCKY 15

but I’ve chosen the Tar Heels to defeat a talented Arizona team that won the Pac-12 and looks to have an easy road to the Final Four in the West region.

— Edited Brown

by

Casey

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1 VILLANOVA 16 MSM/NO 8 WISCONSIN 9 VA TECH 5 VIRGINIA 12 UNC-WILM. 4 FLORIDA 13 ETSU 6 SMU 11 PROV/USC 3 BAYLOR 14 NM ST. 7 S. CAROLINA 10 MARQUETTE 2 DUKE 1 GONZAGA 16 SD ST. 8 N.WESTERN 9 VANDERBILT 5 NOTRE DAME 12 PRINCETON 4 W. VIRGINIA 13 BUCKNELL 6 MARYLAND 11 XAVIER 3 FLORIDA ST. 14 FGCU 7 ST. MARY’S 10 VCU 2 ARIZONA 15 ND

1 VILLANOVA 16 MS MARY’S 8 WISCONSIN 9 VA TECH 5 VIRGINIA 12 UNC-WILM. 4 FLORIDA 13 ETSU 6 SMU 11 PROV/USC 3 BAYLOR 14 NM ST. 7 S. CAROLINA 10 MARQUETTE 2 DUKE

VILLANOVA

1 GONZAGA 16 SD ST. 8 N.WESTERN 9 VANDERBILT 5 NOTRE DAME 12 PRINCETON 4 W. VIRGINIA 13 BUCKNELL 6 MARYLAND 11 XAVIER 3 FLORIDA ST. 14 FGCU 7 ST. MARY’S 10 VCU 2 ARIZONA

KANSAS

BRIAN MINI

@brianminimum

VILLANOVA

KANSAS MIAMI (FL.)

WISCONSIN KANSAS

VILLANOVA

IOWA ST.

VIRGINIA FLORIDA

PURDUE PURDUE

FLORIDA VILLANOVA

EAST

SMU

KANSAS

MIDWEST

RHODE ISL. OREGON

SMU

OREGON

BAYLOR VILLANOVA

DUKE

LOUISVILLE

MARQUETTE

MICHIGAN LOUISVILLE

DUKE

LOUISVILLE

UCLA

GONZAGA

N. CAROLINA GONZAGA

N. CAROLINA ARKANSAS

VANDERBILT GONZAGA

N. CAROLINA

UCLA

NOTRE DAME

MINNESOTA

NOTRE DAME

BUTLER BUTLER

W. VIRGINIA WEST

MARYLAND

UCLA

GONZAGA

SOUTH

CINCINNATI UCLA

FLORIDA ST.

UCLA

FLORIDA ST. ARIZONA

UCLA DAYTON

VCU ARIZONA

KENTUCKY

ARIZONA

KENTUCKY

VILLANOVA

KANSAS

JORDAN WOLF @JordanWolfKU

VILLANOVA

KANSAS

WISCONSIN

MIAMI (FL.) KANSAS

VILLANOVA

IOWA ST.

VIRGINIA VIRGINIA

PURDUE PURDUE

ETSU EAST

SMU

SMU

KANSAS

MIDWEST

CREIGHTON OREGON

SMU

OREGON

BAYLOR SMU

OK STATE

ARIZONA

S. CAROLINA

OK STATE OK STATE

DUKE DUKE

15 TROY

15 ND

Bracket Predictions

DUKE

15 TROY

KANSAN.COM

LOUISVILLE

KANSAS

GONZAGA

N. CAROLINA N. CAROLINA

GONZAGA

ARKANSAS

N.WESTERN W. VIRGINIA

KANSAS

N. CAROLINA

PRINCETON

MINNESOTA MINNESOTA

W. VIRGINIA

WINTHROP

W. VIRGINIA WEST XAVIER

ARIZONA

UCLA

SOUTH CINCINNATI UCLA

FLORIDA ST.

UCLA

FLORIDA ST. ARIZONA

UCLA WICHITA ST.

ST. MARY’S KENTUCKY

ARIZONA ARIZONA

KENTUCKY

KANSAS 1 NCC/UCD 16 MIAMI (FL.) 8 MICH ST. 9 IOWA ST. 5 NEVADA 12 PURDUE 4 VERMONT 13 CREIGHTON 6 RHODE ISL. 11 OREGON 3 IONA 14 MICHIGAN 7 OK STATE 10 LOUISVILLE 2 JAX. ST. 15 N. CAROLINA 1 TEXAS SO. 15 ARKANSAS 8 SETON HALL 9 MINNESOTA 5 MIDDLE TN 12 BUTLER 4 WINTHROP 13 CINCINNATI 6 KSTATE/WF 11 UCLA 3 KENT ST. 14 DAYTON 7 WICHITA ST. 10 KENTUCKY 2 N. KENTUCKY 15 KANSAS 1 NCC/UCD 16 MIAMI (FL.) 8 MICH ST. 9 IOWA ST. 5 NEVADA 12 PURDUE 4 VERMONT 13 CREIGHTON 6 RHODE ISL. 11 OREGON 3 IONA 14 MICHIGAN 7 OK STATE 10 LOUISVILLE 2 JAX. ST. 15 N. CAROLINA 1 TEXAS SO. 15 ARKANSAS 8 SETON HALL 9 MINNESOTA 5 MIDDLE TN 12 BUTLER 4 WINTHROP 13 CINCINNATI 6 KSTATE/WF 11 UCLA 3 KENT ST. 14 DAYTON 7 WICHITA ST. 10 KENTUCKY 2 N. KENTUCKY 15

Mini, Wolf bracket commentary BRIAN MINI

@brianminimum

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Kansas and Villanova were the first two No. 1 seeds revealed for the tournament and they also happen to have, in my opinion, the clearest path to the Final Four barring any injuries Gonzaga will find it much harder to advance to the Final Four, but I think this is finally the year they don’t disappoint everyone. It’ll be hard for other teams to stop senior center Przemek Karnowski and junior guard Nigel Williams-Goss.

UCLA easily has the toughest road. To get to the Final Four, it’d need to get both Kentucky and North Carolina (barring their upsets, of course). If freshman guard Lonzo Ball has an off game, there are limited options behind him to lead UCLA past the other blue bloods.

Villanova should get past Gonzaga to move to the National Championship. Kansas and UCLA is a toss up. UCLA gets a slight edge in a matchup against Villanova. Freshman forward T.J. Leaf is a matchup problem and senior guard Bryce Alford has elite scoring potential.

JORDAN WOLF @JordanWolfKU

Call me a homer, but I can never bring myself to pick Kansas to lose.

I have the Jayhawks sneaking past UCLA in the Final Four. The Bruins’ nations best offense will be a force to be reckoned with in a brutally tough region.

In the West, I like Arizona. I was torn between the Wildcats and Florida State, giving the edge to Sean Miller’s team due to superior coaching.

Finally, in the East, I chose SMU in my biggest surprise. I had the privilege of watching Mustangs’ star junior guard Semi Ojeleye in high school, and I think he can carry the Mustangs. I also like this year’s potential for major upsets. In the first round, I like No. 13 East Tennessee State and star senior guard T.J. Cromer, the defensively-sound No. 12 Princeton, and No. 13 Winthrop because of senior guard Keon Johnson. It’s also a bit of an upset for me to slot No. 10 Oklahoma State in the Elite Eight, but I think the Cowboys have enough firepower to make a deep run.

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Big 12 well-represented in tournament

JORDAN WOLF @JordanWolfKU

T

he Big 12 Conference is well-represented in the NCAA tournament, with six of 10 teams earning a spot in the big dance.

Conference champion Kansas is the No. 1 seed in the Midwest, and the No. 2 seed overall. They will play the winner of North Carolina Central and UC-Davis in the first round, after the two square off in a First Four matchup on March 14 to be the region’s No. 16 seed.

Should the Jayhawks advance, they will play the winner of No. 8 Miami and No. 9 Michigan State. The Hurricanes finished 21-11 and seventh in the ACC. Their quality wins include home victories over North Carolina, Virginia and Duke. The Spartans, meanwhile, finished 19-14, with wins over Michigan, Wisconsin and Northwestern.

Two other Big 12 schools found themselves placed in the Midwest, the first of which is Big 12 tournament champion Iowa State. The Cyclones are the region’s No. 5 seed, and will face the high-scoring No. 12 seed Nevada in the first round.

If they advance, they could potentially face No. 4 Purdue before a theoretical rubber match with Kansas in the Sweet Sixteen.

Also in the Midwest re-

gion is No. 10 Oklahoma State. The Cowboys will face No. 7 Michigan in their first game, and Wolverines enter as one of the country’s hottest teams.

If the Cowboys advance, a potential matchup with No. 2 seed Louisville looms in the second round.

The inclusion of three Big 12 schools in one region is a bit unusual. While it makes sense to group them all within the Midwest, it paves the way for several potential rematches in later rounds, should the teams advance. Kansas coach Bill Self was surprised to see the region unfold the way it did.

“I was really, really surprised,” Self said. “Not saying [it was] wrong, but I was really, really, really, really, surprised.”

“

It’s cool to look at everybody in your bracket to see who you could potentially play.”

Landen Lucas Senior center

Senior center Landen Lucas acknowledges the appeal of a potential rematch with either Iowa State or Oklahoma State, but says the team is trying to remain focused and not

look ahead too much.

“Yeah, that would be fun,” Lucas said. “Like I said earlier, it’s cool to look at everybody in your bracket to see who you could potentially play. But we know in order to play any of those guys, we’ve got to make it out of weekend one, and we’ve got some tough match-ups.”

In the East region, Baylor locked up the No. 3 seed. The Bears finished third in the Big 12, but received the second-highest seed of any conference member. They will face New Mexico State in the first round, and sit in the same region as both the No. 1 overall seed Villanova and No. 2 Duke, which it could potentially face in the Sweet Sixteen.

The Big 12’s second-place finisher, West Virginia, received the No. 4 seed in the West region.

It will face No. 13 Bucknell in the first round, a program whose most notable claim to fame is its upset of Kansas in 2005, when Bucknell was a No. 14-seed and a Kansas was a No. 3.

If the Mountaineers get past Bucknell, they could potentially face No. 5 seed Notre Dame before possibly getting a chance to knock off No. 1 Gonzaga.

It was uncertain entering Selection Sunday whether or not Kansas

State would earn a spot, but the Wildcats secured a play-in berth as one of the final at-large selections. They will square off with Wake Forest in the First Four, fighting for the chance to be the region’s No. 11 seed. If the Wildcats win, they will face No. 6 Cincinnati, before a potential matchup with high-powered No. 3 UCLA. Despite the rivalry between the two schools, Self was happy to see Kansas State make it in.

“I was really happy to

see, and I know you may not believe this, but I was actually [happy] to see our league get another team,” Self said.

In the play-in, the Wildcats will face a Wake Forest team coached by legendary former Kansas forward and assistant coach Danny Manning. The narrative is hard to ignore.

“The fact that … [Kansas State coach Bruce Weber] gets the chance to play Danny makes for a little interesting twist as well in that play-in game,” Self

said.

Kansas State’s First Four matchup will kick off things for the conference on March 14. Iowa State and West Virginia will follow next with their first games on Thursday, March 16, with Kansas, Baylor, Oklahoma State and Kansas State (if it advances) playing on the following day.

— Edited by Frank Weirich

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Potential locks, Cinderellas, and upsets in the NCAA tournament BRIAN MINI & JORDAN WOLF @brianminimum @JordanWolfKU

T

he 2017 NCAA tournament features plenty of potential to be one of the most exciting in recent years. Sure, there are plenty of teams that seem destined to make it out of the first round, but there are also plenty of match-ups that have all the makings of an upset.

This year’s field consists of perennial powers like Kansas and North Carolina, but it also features firsttime appearances from schools like Northwestern and North Dakota. Is this the year that a No. 16 seed upsets a No.1 seed or a No. 9 seed wins it all? With the tournament officially starting on Tuesday, March 14, here’s what to know for this year’s March Madness.

Potential Cinderellas

East: No. 10 Marquette Entering as the No. 10 seed, the Golden Eagles have compiled quite the resume. They have wins over tournament teams Villanova, Xavier, Seton Hall, Vanderbilt and Creighton (twice). Marquette ranks first nationally in threepoint shooting and eighth in offensive efficiency. With a potent offensive and a so-so defense, it wouldn’t be unfathomable to see Marquette take down South Carolina and if they catch them on an off day, Duke.

South: No. 9 Seton Hall

Seton Hall is an odd team. It can’t hit free throws, but it makes up for it with defense and rebounding.

Its beaten South Carolina, Creighton and Xavier as well as winning at Butler. Seton Hall has solid, balanced scoring with four players in double digits, but they’re more forward-heavy than most teams. Teams with talent at the guard position might be their downfall, but favorable match-ups in the frontcourt could seem them advancing further than expected.

West: No. 14 Florida Gulf Coast Florida State should be favored to knock the Eagles out in the first round, but it wouldn’t be surprising if FGCU brought back some of their magic from 2013 when they started the tournament by upsetting a two-seed. The Seminoles’ tournament résumé is less than impressive with their best win coming against UT Arlington. FGCU averages more than 40 points per game in the paint, so Florida State will need to limit FGCU’s inside game. If they don’t, it could be a 2013 repeat.

West: No. 11 Xavier The only thing stopping Xavier from full Cinderella status is Maryland’s Melo Trimble standing in its way.

Still, Maryland is far from perfect and Xavier was ranked early in the season.

Sure, the Musketeers were blown out by Villanova early in the season, but defeated ranked conference foes Butler and Creighton.

Junior guard Trevon Bluiett is a problem for teams and if his 40-point game against Cincinnati is any indication, he’ll have no trouble scoring against tournament teams.

Upset Alert East: No. 13 East Tennessee State The 13 seeds are surprisingly strong this year. SMU is a good team, but East Tennessee State has a surprisingly solid roster. East Tennessee State has three players shooting over 50 percent while also averaging over 20 minutes per game. Florida has had a rocky season while, not perfect, East Tennessee State finished with just seven losses. Senior guard T.J. Cromer shoots over 40 percent from three, highlighted by going 9-for12 against Samford earlier this month. Florida is dealing with the loss of their best defensive big man, junior John Egbunu, and senior guard Canyon Barry has been dealing with an injury that’s limited him.

South: No. 13 Winthrop Eagles When you look at infamous upsets in NCAA tournament history, there’s often one overlying common theme: one star player. From C.J. McCollum at Lehigh to Steph Curry at Davidson, when a low-seeded team has one player capable of an explosive performance, their odds at an upset increase dramatically.

Enter Keon Johnson. The senior guard is Winthrop’s leading scorer, and at 22.5 points per game, the 10thhighest scorer in the country.

He’s had several huge games this season, logging seven games with more than 30 points. In the Eagles’ biggest win, an 84-80 overtime victory over Illinois, Johnson put up 38 points on 71.4 percent shooting.

He’s an elite scoring threat on the perimeter, and will certainly give his opponent, No. 4 Butler, significant trouble. Don’t be shocked if Johnson’s name is everywhere on Thursday after leading Winthrop to victory with another highoutput performance.

Midwest: No. 12 Nevada Wolf Pack When Iowa State was announced to be in Kansas’ region, many fans salivated at the potential rematch between the two Big 12 foes.

But before that can happen, the Cyclones need to get

past a high-powered Nevada offense.

Going into the tournament, the Wolf Pack currently hold the No. 38 scoring offense in the country at an even 80 points per game. Iowa State, meanwhile, sits just above Nevada, at 80.9 points per game. So, needless to say, this one is going to be a shootout. Their defenses are comparable as well, as they both allow averages in the low-70s. What separates the Wolf Pack is their depth and the strength of it. Four Nevada players average more than 14 points per game, including two that both average nearly nine rebounds per game as well.

Leading the charge is senior guard Marcus Marshall, who sits at 19.8 points per game on the season. It won’t be easy for Nevada to upset Iowa State, but if the right combination of their strong scorers gets hot, it could definitely happen.

West: No. 10 VCU St. Mary’s played one team from a Power 5 conference this year and they won, but they lost all three games they played against ranked opponents.

Meanwhile, VCU at least has exposure to Power 5 teams, despite going 1-3 in those games. VCU’s offense isn’t great, but the defense still got them to the tournament.

The downside of St. Mary’s weak schedule is that they haven’t seen a swarming defense like VCU. For that reason alone, St Mary’s is on

“

This year’s field consists of perennial powers like Kansas and North Carolina, but it also features first-time appearances from schools like Northwestern and North Dakota.”

upset watch.

The Locks East: No. 1 Villanova Villanova entered the tournament as the No. 1 overall seed, after a very impressive season that netted it the Big East title and a 31-3 finish. The Wildcats face either Mount St. Mary’s or New Orleans, a pair of 16-seeds that will face off in the First Four. No 16 seed has ever beaten a one, and don’t expect that to change here.

East: No. 2 Duke Duke has lost in the first round as a two-seed before, dropping its 2012 opener to 15-seed Lehigh. The difference now is that this year’s Troy team doesn’t have a player close to two-

time All-American and current starting guard for the Portland Trail Blazers

early in the week. Frankly, it doesn’t really matter which one wins, as neither

South: No. 2 Kentucky

Associated Press Seton Hall forward Desi Rodriguez (20) reacts during the second half of an NCAA college basketball game, Saturday, March 4, 2017, in Indianapolis. Seton Hall won 70-64.

time All-American C.J. McCollum, who scored 30 points in Lehigh’s upset. It should be smooth sailing for the Blue Devils this time.

East: No. 3 Baylor Baylor hasn’t won a tournament game since 2014, after dropping games to 14-seed Georgia State and 12-seed Yale in the first round over the past two seasons. Fortunately for the Bears, it seems like that streak will come to an end this year. New Mexico State had a decent season but doesn’t have much by way of quality wins. Expect Baylor to roll.

West: No. 1 Gonzaga The narrative of Gonzaga being an illegitimate oneseed may have some merit, but to suggest that the Bulldogs are going to become the first one-seed to lose to a 16-seed is ridiculous. The Bulldogs will face South Dakota State, who barely finished above .500 and placed No. 5 in the Summit League. The Gonzaga upset predictions will have to wait for another round.

West: No. 2 Arizona Arizona faces North Dakota in the first round, a team that is playing in its first-ever NCAA tournament since entering Division I competition in 2009. The Fighting Hawks won the Big Sky Conference, but stand no match for the warhardened Wildcats who have battled in one of the nation’s top conferences all season.

Arizona will coast to victory.

Midwest: No. 1 Kansas It’s unclear as to who Kansas will play, as potential opponents North Carolina Central and UC-Davis will play in a First Four matchup

is capable of keeping up with the Jayhawks. Don’t expect the Jayhawks to be the first one-seed to fall to a 16-seed.

Midwest: No. 2 Louisville Louisville has impressive wins this year against Notre Dame, Kentucky, Duke, Indiana and Purdue.

Jacksonville State finished 20-14 and only made the tournament because of a surprising conference tournament win.

The Gamecock’s roster features some high scorers, but not a lot of defense. Combine that with the fact that the school’s never made an NCAA tournament and things don’t look great for Jacksonville State.

Kentucky had a stretch where it looked like it might be an easy win for most solid teams. Unfortunately for Northern Kentucky, who might not be considered particularly solid, Kentucky has bounced back to look like a very dangerous team.

Lead by its guards, Kentucky should have no trouble dispatching Northern Kentucky, whose starting point guard turns the ball over three times a game.

Northern Kentucky’s best scoring chances will be in the paint where Kentucky has more than enough forward depth to stop whatever the Norse throw at the Wildcats.

Midwest: No. 3 Oregon Not only is Iona 1-11 in NCAA tournament, but Oregon is also great both offensively and defensively.

Iona finished fourth in the MAAC, while Oregon had the second-best record in the Pac-12. Iona can score from range and that’s about it. Oregon ranks 23rd in the nation in three-point defense, so that shouldn’t be a problem for the Ducks.

South: No. 3 UCLA UCLA, like every team, is flawed, but Kent State has no way of exploiting the Bruins. Kent State’s most attractive quality is its guard play, which UCLA shouldn’t have a problem shutting down. Kent State doesn’t like shooting threes and UCLA has a nice collection of solid big men who can deal with anything inside the paint. The Golden Flashes lack top-tier depth, which will be their downfall in the tournament.

South: No. 1 North Carolina This is quite possibly the clearest mismatch of the tournament. Texas Southern is undersized while North Carolina’s frontcourt is the best in the country. Texas Southern is yet another low-seeded team that can’t hit three-pointers. There’s no conceivable way that the Tigers can tame the Tar Heels’ offense in what looks to be a blowout in the making. Aside from two of their starters, there’s no offense to be found on Texas State’s roster.

Midwest: No. 4 Purdue To briefly summarize, Purdue has Caleb Swanigan and Vermont does not.

Purdue is top 20 in the country in both offensive and defensive efficiency and features an incredible frontcourt. Vermont is on a 21-game winning streak, but the toughest teams they played during that stretch were Stony Brook and New Hampshire. Vermont is yet another team with a lack of three-point shooting and on top of that, the Catamounts rank 219th nationally in three-point defense.