Kansas is sitting in a solid spot as we head into February, and the next few weeks will go a long way in determining just how comfortable that seat will be come Selection Sunday.
In the latest NCAA Tournament projections, Kansas is holding steady as a No. 4 seed according to ESPN and a No. 5 seed per CBS Sports. Not a bad place to be, but the real story is what’s ahead. The Jayhawks are about to hit the teeth of their schedule - a stretch that could either solidify their tournament standing or send them tumbling into the bracket’s middle tier.
It all starts with a home matchup against BYU on Jan. 31.
From there, things escalate fast. Kansas travels to Lubbock to face 11th-ranked Texas Tech on Feb. 2, then returns to Allen Fieldhouse for a Feb. 7 tilt with Utah.
But the real headline comes two days later, when No. 1 Arizona comes to town for a marquee showdown that could have major implications for both teams’ seeding.
And just when you think the gauntlet might ease up, Kansas heads to Ames for a Feb. 14 clash with No. 8 Iowa State.
That’s four ranked opponents in five games - and not just ranked, but top-tier teams that are battle-tested and tournament-bound. It’s the kind of stretch that defines seasons.
“Everybody is going to go through a hard phase of their schedule,” head coach Bill Self said. “This is certainly the toughest phase of ours.”
He’s not wrong. But the good news for Kansas?
They’re playing some of their best basketball of the season right now. The Jayhawks have rattled off four straight wins, tightening up defensively and showing a level of cohesion that had been missing earlier in the year.
Even with Darry Peterson limited, the rotation has found a rhythm, and the team looks more settled on both ends of the floor.
That momentum makes the timing of a recent short break a bit awkward - at least from a rhythm standpoint.
“We are actually playing pretty well, so sometimes when you are playing well you do not want time off,” Self said. “But from a rest standpoint, I cannot see it being remotely negative at all.”
Rest or not, Kansas is about to be tested in a way few teams are. The next five games aren’t just about wins and losses - they’re about resume-building, seeding leverage, and proving they can take punches and keep swinging. A strong run through this stretch could push the Jayhawks into protected seed territory - a top-four spot that comes with the benefit of geographic preference and, in theory, a more favorable path through the early rounds of the tournament.
But a stumble? That could drop them into the pack, where nothing is guaranteed and matchups get trickier.
This is where experience, depth, and coaching matter most. And with Bill Self at the helm, Kansas has the leadership to navigate the storm. Now it’s about execution - one game at a time, in a stretch that could define their March.