SPRINGFIELD, Mass. – Kansas men’s basketball coach Bill Self was one of three recipients of the 2015 Mannie Jackson – Basketball’s Human Spirit Award, the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame presented Thursday evening at the 2015 Family Reunion and Awards Dinner at the Hall.

The Class of 2015 Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame Enshrinement ceremonies got underway at the Hall’s “Court of Dreams” on Thursday. The formal evening consisted of returning Hall of Famers with the recognition of the Class of 2015, a brief forum, and the presentation of the Mannie Jackson Human Spirit Awards, the John Bunn Lifetime Achievement Award and the Curt Gowdy Media Awards.

Self, along with former Reebok CEO Paul Fireman and 14-year NBA veteran Steve Smith, are the recipients of the 2015 Mannie Jackson – Basketball’s Human Spirit Award. NBA coach and executive Rod Thorn received the John Bunn Lifetime Award, while legendary broadcaster Woody Durham and famed photographer and KU graduate, Rich Clarkson, received the Curt Gowdy Media Award.

Self, Fireman and Smith were chosen from a large candidate pool that represented every level of basketball and is reviewed annually by a distinguished selection committee appointed by the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame and Mr. Jackson.

Winners of the Mannie Jackson – Basketball’s Human Spirit Award exhibit qualities such as striving to improve the community, making a commitment to others, hard work and embracing the core values of the game. Beyond the game, award winners must reflect the values of Mannie Jackson’s life-long mission to overcome obstacles and challenge the status quo, while taking responsibility for his or her actions and seeking the highest standard of excellence.

In 2006, Self and his wife, Cindy, established the Assists Foundation to function as a fundraising conduit for organizations that serve a variety of youth initiatives in Lawrence and the surrounding area. Assists has helped fund programs such as Kansas Action for Healthy Kids, Lawrence Public Library, Boys and Girls Clubs of Lawrence, Kansas Youth Empowerment Academy, Ronald McDonald House Charities of Northeast Kansas and Head Start of Lawrence, among many others. The Assists Foundation has also helped create a program called ‘Winning Attitudes for Life’ within the Lawrence and Kansas City area school systems for elementary through high school students to promote healthy living, physical fitness, positive well-being and self-respect. The program helps students develop their leadership, team building, decision-making and communication skills.

Eleven basketball greats will be formally enshrined into the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame on Friday, Sept. 11. Included is KU two-time All-American Jo Jo White who played under head coach Ted Owens from 1966-69. White will be the 18th Jayhawk all-time to be enshrined in the Hall of Fame.

Kansas will be well represented at the Hall of Fame ceremonies as Owens will be present to see White get inducted. Former KU assistant men’s basketball coach John Calipari is also an inductee and will be presented by former KU head coach Larry Brown. KU women’s basketball legend Lynette Woodard will be one of the presenters for inductee Lisa Leslie and Brown will also be presenting Lindsay Gaze.

— KU Athletics —

LAWRENCE, Kan. – Former Kansas standout guard Aaron Miles has returned to his alma mater and will be the assistant director of student-athlete development, KU men’s basketball coach Bill Self announced Wednesday.

“Aaron’s basketball career may not be over, but he is certainly going to be forced to miss this year because of a torn labrum that required surgery,” Self said. “I’ve always told Aaron I wanted him to work for me someday. This is an opportunity for him to get a jump start toward the coaching profession, see how he enjoys it and if he would want to make a career of it after his playing days are over.”

Originally from Portland, Oregon, during his professional career, mainly overseas, Miles has made Lawrence his second home since 2008.

“I love helping people. I love basketball and I love the University of Kansas,” Miles said. “This is an ideal situation for me to be able to do all three of those things. I am thankful to Coach Self for this golden opportunity to work under him and learn from his staff. Everybody in this office is special and I can learn from them all.”

A four-year starter at Kansas from 2002-05, Miles set the KU and Big 12 Conference all-time assists record with 954 assists, which ranks ninth in the NCAA Division I career record book. A 2005 KU graduate who was also a two-time Academic All-Big 12 selection, Miles ended his college career with 1,183 points (36th on the KU career list), 264 steals (third) and 105 three-pointers (tied for 21st). His 137 career starts are second on the KU all-time list, while his 16 NCAA Tournament games played are tied for first in school history.

As a Jayhawk, Miles competed in two Final Fours, in 2002 in Atlanta and in 2003 in New Orleans. In his junior season KU advanced to the NCAA Tournament Regional final in St. Louis. Miles won three Big 12 regular-season championships, his third coming in his senior year in 2004-05, the first of the current 11-straight titles held by KU. In 2002, Miles was the starting point guard on the only team in Big 12 Conference history to go undefeated (16-0) in league play. Additionally, he appeared on the coaches’ All-Big 12 teams his sophomore (honorable mention), junior (third team) and senior (second team) seasons.

Following his KU career, Miles competed for the Golden State Warriors of the NBA and the Fort Worth Flyers of the NBA Development League during the 2005-06 season. He then played in the Euroleague, where he played for several teams from 2006 to 2010. He competed for Elan Bearnais Pau-Orthez, which won the French Cup in 2007. The following season he participated with the Spanish ACB team Cajasol Sevilla. Miles played two seasons in Greece – with Panionios in 2008-09 and Aric BC in 2009-10. While with Panionios, he was selected to the HEBA Greek All-Star Game in 2009 and 2010.

Miles played the 2010-11 season for the Reno Bighorns of the NBA Development League and then returned to Europe, winning the Russian Cup in 2012 and 2013 while playing for BC Krasnye Krylya. In 2013 he was the Most Valuable Player of the Russian Cup and his Russian team also won the 2013 EuroChallenge. Last season he competed for Lokomotive Kuban, which is also located in Russia.

— KU Athletics —

LAWRENCE, Kan. (AP) — All quarterback Montell Cozart had to do was grasp the snap and spike the ball, and give Kansas an opportunity for a tying field goal in coach David Beaty’s debut.

Instead, the ball squirted onto the turf. Cozart quickly jumped on it. Time slowly ran out.

South Dakota State streamed onto the field to celebrate.

After blowing a big first-half lead, the Jackrabbits survived a frantic rally by the Jayhawks — and a tense few seconds at the very end — for a 41-38 victory Saturday.

“I felt like I got too lax,” said Cozart, who threw for 291 yards and a touchdown in leading the comeback. “We work on clock situations all the time. When the ball hit me, I fumbled it.”

Simple as that.

It was a dubious debut for Beaty, who became the Jayhawks’ fourth head coach in the past seven years when he was hired to replace Charlie Weis. The former Kansas and Texas A&M assistant inherited a mess — 56 players return from last year, none of whom scored a touchdown.

Twenty-three players on the Kansas depth chart were signed by Beaty after his arrival. Among them was junior college transfer Ke’aun Kinner, who ran for 157 yards and two scores.

“Obviously, unbelievably disappointing right now,” Beaty said. “That was a very tough locker room to look into for my first day as head football coach in division I football.”

The youthful exuberance combined with Beaty’s new “air raid” offense was flashy at times, a disaster at others. And a defense that figured to be the Jayhawks’ biggest concern was gashed by a South Dakota State offense breaking in a new quarterback and running back.

Not that the Jackrabbits didn’t deserve the win. Zach Lujan threw for 293 yards and three touchdowns, Isaac Wallace ran for 118 yards and another score, and Jake Wieneke pulled down eight catches for 160 yards and two touchdowns as South Dakota State roared to a 31-7 lead.

Then held on when their Big 12 opponent mounted a charge.

“We preach when you’re on the field, you have a chance to win the game,” Jackrabbits coach John Stiegelmeier said. “We had some guys rise up with some big plays.”

The Jackrabbits hot start began by marching for an opening field goal, then picking off Cozart and nearly running it back for a touchdown — which they got two plays later anyway.

Ryan Schadler returned the ensuing kickoff 91 yards for a touchdown to get Kansas within 10-7, but the Jackrabbits answered with two more scoring drives. Both finished with TD passes to Wieneke as the sophomore wide receiver piled up five catches for 125 yards in the first half.

Cozart committed his second turnover of the half when he was stripped while scrambling, and Brady Mengarelli scored on a 29-yard scamper to make it 31-7 early in the second quarter.

“It’s exactly how we wanted to start the game,” Lujan said.

After tweaking a few things during halftime, the Jayhawks put together two long drives to open the second half. Kinner capped both with touchdown runs, the second a meandering, hip-shaking 29-yard scamper down the sideline in front of the Kansas bench.

The teams swapped field goals before South Dakota State appeared to put the game away.

The Jackrabbits took over at their 25 and marched downfield in 10 plays, the biggest a pass from Lujan to tight end Dallas Goedert to convert fourth-and-5. Wallace plowed into the end zone two plays later to give the Missouri Valley school a 41-31 lead with 6:18 remaining.

The Jayhawks got within a field goal again with 2:18 left when Cozart hit tight end Kent Taylor with a fade from 10 yards out, then forced a punt and took over with 39 seconds remaining.

With no timeouts, they got within range of long field goal — one they never got to try.

“You never think about stuff like that until it happens to you,” Cozart said of his game-ending fumble. “It feels like an uppercut to the gut.”

— Associated Press —

LAWRENCE, Kan. – Forward Clay Young has joined the Kansas men’s basketball team as a walk-on, KU head coach Bill Self announced Wednesday. A transfer from Kansas City Kansas Community College (KCKCC), Young (6-5, 205) will be a redshirt sophomore at KU.

Young started every game and averaged 10.0 points and 5.6 rebounds while at KCKCC in 2013-14 under head coach, and former Oklahoma standout, Kelly Newton. Young led the Blue Devils with 17 blocked shots and averaged 1.6 assists per game as a freshman. Last year in the second game of the season, the Lansing, Kansas native tore his anterior cruciate ligament (ACL), missed the remainder of 2014-15 and took a medical redshirt. Young was a 2014 Academic All-American while at KCKCC.

“We found out about Clay through his junior college coach, Kelly Newton. Norm (Roberts) and I recruited Kelly hard when we were at Tulsa and he was at Neosho (County) Community College,” Self said. “We stayed in touch and he told us all along he had a young man that wanted to go to KU and would do anything to be a part of the program. We brought Clay over in the spring and we liked him. He’s a nice young man who does well academically and is fitting in very well.”

Young went to KCKCC from Lansing High School where he was a four-year starter who earned honorable mention all-state recognition following his senior year under head coach Rod Briggs. He averaged 9.0 points, 6.0 rebounds and 1.5 assists his senior season where he was named first team All-Kaw Valley League in leading Lansing to the 5A state title game.

“I’ve been a KU fan all my life and I thought (after KCKCC) if I had a chance to walk-on at a big-time program, it would be Kansas,” Young said. “Coach Newton and I started talking to the (KU) coaches in March about being a walk-on. I found out in July it was going to be a real thing.

“I know my role as a walk-on,” Young continued. “I’m going to push the guys as much as possible and be the best teammate I can be.”

— KU Athletics —

LAWRENCE, Kan. – Kansas football head coach David Beaty announced the dismissal of cornerback Matthew Boateng from the team Wednesday afternoon.

“Matthew has been dismissed from our program for a violation of team rules,” said Beaty. “We wish him well in his future endeavors.”

Boateng, a sophomore from Toronto, Ontario, saw action in eight games as a true freshman in 2014. He collected nine tackles, one forced fumble and one interception.

— KU Athletics —

LAWRENCE, Kan. (AP) — Montell Cozart will be under center for new Kansas coach David Beaty when the Jayhawks begin their season Sept. 5 against South Dakota State.

Beaty announced Monday that the junior had won the competition for starting quarterback.

“He is a very bright, hard-working, smart dude,” said Beaty, who was hired to replace Charlie Weis last fall. “He’s what you want. I love the dude that he is. Our team loves him.”

Cozart started three games as a freshman in 2013 and the first five games last season before Michael Cummings took over. But when Cummings sustained a season-ending left knee injury in the spring game, it appeared the job would be Cozart’s to lose.

Still, Beaty made him earn it in a competition with talented junior college transfer Deondre Ford and a pair of freshmen, Ryan Willis and Carter Stanley.

Part of the reason Cozart earned the job is he appears to fit Beaty’s offensive scheme, called the “Air Raid.” Cozart may not have the biggest arm in the Jayhawks’ stable of quarterbacks, but he may be the most athletic.

“It’s fun — simple, fast and fun,” Cozart said of the offense. “Going out there, the plays (are) so simple that you can go out there and be real confident and know exactly what you have to do on each and every play. The simple plays help a quarterback be confident.”

Cozart struggled with inconsistency as a sophomore. He was just 64 of 128 for 701 yards with five touchdowns and seven interceptions.

Beaty has praised the progress Cozart has made not only in learning the system but in growing as a leader, and Cozart acknowledged that he has made strides in both areas.

“Absolutely, I’m getting better,” he said. “That’s what it’s all about. I’m getting better every day and am learning new things that are going to give me more confidence.”

It doesn’t hurt that Cummings is still around the program. He and Cozart have been able to learn the Air Raid offense together, even though Cummings will spend the season on the sideline.

“It was hard seeing him go down in the spring game,” Cozart said. “It was really tough for me because I’ve been under him for three years, learning under him.”

Cozart is aware that earning the starting nod in late August doesn’t guarantee he will be under center all season. The Jayhawks have churned through a handful of starters in his brief time on campus, from Jake Heaps to Cummings to himself.

That doesn’t mean that Cozart is afraid of a little competition, either.

He made that clear by earning the job in the first place.

“Things are going really well,” Cozart said. “I’m looking forward to keep competing.”

— Associated Press —

IRVING, Texas – For the 10th-straight season, the Kansas men’s basketball team will make four appearances on ESPN’s Big Monday, as announced by the Big 12 Conference Wednesday.

KU’s first Big Monday contest of 2016 will be featured inside historic Allen Fieldhouse and will kick off the season on Jan. 4 against Oklahoma. The Jayhawks will then hit the road for its next Big Monday matchup at Iowa State on Jan. 25. Kansas will also play host to Oklahoma State on Feb. 25 and at Texas on Feb. 29 in Big Monday battles.

In the Big 12 era, Kansas and Oklahoma have faced each other on ESPN’s Big Monday nine times, while the Jayhawks have played Iowa State and Texas on seven occasions. KU and OSU have met six times on Big Monday.

Since the inception of the Big 12 in 1996-97, Kansas is 54-19 all-time on ESPN’s Big Monday (31-1 at home, 23-18 on the road), including 35-11 under head coach Bill Self. Additionally, KU has won 24-straight Big Monday games in Allen Fieldhouse, which includes a 20-0 mark under Self.

2016 Big 12 Men’s Basketball Schedule on ESPN’s Big Monday
All games televised on ESPN and available on WatchESPN.com
Date – Game(s), All Times at 8 p.m. CT

January 4 – Oklahoma at KANSAS

January 18 – Oklahoma at Iowa State

January 25 – KANSAS at Iowa State

February 1 – Texas at Baylor

February 8 – Texas at Oklahoma

February 15 – Oklahoma State at KANSAS

February 22 – Iowa State at West Virginia

February 29 – KANSAS at Texas

— KU Athletics —

GWANGJU, Korea – In an epic battle of undefeated teams, the USA pulled together to beat Germany 84-77 in double overtime to win the gold medal of the 2015 World University Games (WUG) at Yeomju Indoor Gymnasium in Gwangju, Korea, Monday evening.

With the win, the USA (8-0), which consists mainly of University of Kansas student-athletes and staff, claimed its first gold in the World University Games since 2005 and its first WUG medal since a bronze in 2009. The USA has now won 14 gold medals in the World University Games which began in 1965. Germany fell to 6-1 in the 2015 Games.

“It’s a huge thrill, a huge honor,” USA head coach Bill Self said. “Our team really bonded and came together. To win it the way we won it – playing against a Germany team that outplayed us a majority of the game – we were dead tired, no legs, no lift, couldn’t make a shot and willed ourselves to win. I’m really proud of our guys and proud to be part of a very special event.”

USA guard Wayne Selden, Jr., hit a three-pointer off a feed from fellow guard Frank Mason III with 1:02 remaining in the second overtime to put the Americans up 78-77. USA crafty guard Nic Moore then stole the German inbounds pass, was fouled immediately and the SMU product drained both charity shots to put the Americans up, 80-77. Scrapping, Mason stole a Germany ball with 46 seconds and after being fouled made both free throws to put the game out of reach 82-77. Selden sealed the final score with another pair of free throws with 14 seconds left to play.

“We don’t want it easy,” Selden said of the come-from-behind victory for the gold. “They were a tough team. They battled down the stretch, but we never got down. We fought to the end. Frank was able to make some big plays and then he found me on the wing and I was able to make the big shot.”

Germany opened the first overtime on a 6-2 run to go up four at 72-68. USA pulled within one on a forward Perry Ellis drive and reverse lay-in to tighten the score at 72-71 with 38 seconds remaining. Following a Mathis Moenninghoff free throw by the Germans, Mason made another one of his driving layups to tie the contest at 73-73 with 9.5 seconds remaining and send the battle to its second overtime.

The game was tied at 54-54 heading into the fourth quarter and the two teams traded baskets for the first three minutes of the period with four lead changes. Germany built a five-point advantage at 64-59 with 4:29 to play, but then Mason scored five of USA’s final seven points, including two free throws with 21.7 seconds remaining to tie the score at 66-66 and send the contest into its first overtime. Ellis sandwiched in two free throws between Mason’s charity-tying shots.

“Coach just told me to stay aggressive and my teammates told me to stay aggressive – so that’s what I did,” Mason said of forcing the game in overtime and then a second one. “I went out and tried to make plays for them first, for me second. I made plays.”

Selden led all scorers with 22 points, while Ellis recorded a double-double with 19 points and 10 rebounds. Mason scored 11 of his 18 points in the fourth quarter and the two overtimes. Mason and Selden each pulled down nine rebounds, which were one ahead of forward Landen Lucas’ eight. Mason also had a team-high six assists – with the one to Selden in the second overtime being the game changer. Moore ended the night with seven points, six rebounds and three steals, while forward Carlton Bragg, Jr. scored eight points for the Americans.

Down 2-0, USA went on a 14-0 run to open the game. Ellis scored USA’s first seven points in the run, while Mason made a floater and forward Hunter Mickelson a traditional three-point play. Mickelson ended the contest with seven points and five rebounds which included a pair of tip-ins during the second quarter. Late in the first quarter, Germany made seven free throws and guard Kevin Bright’s three-pointer as time expired narrowed the USA lead to 20-13 at the end of the period.

Selden opened the second quarter with a three-pointer, giving the USA a 10-point lead at 23-13. The Americans maintained the 10-point cushion until the 2:26 mark when guard Konstantin Klein made a three-pointer to chip away at the USA lead. With 20 seconds before half, Mason drove the lane off an offensive rebound to put USA up 38-31 but for the second-straight quarter, Germany made a buzzer beater. This time Hans Brase followed a three-point miss with a dunk and the USA held a 38-33 lead at intermission.

Germany seized the moment in the third quarter after USA built a 50-42 lead on a pair of Selden free throws. The Germans went on a 12-2 run to take a 54-53 lead on a Bright three-pointer. Mason made a free throw with 2.9 seconds to tie the score at 54 after three quarters, setting up the fantastic finish.

“This right here, it’s my first one of these,” Selden said of the gold medal around his neck. “We are really happy about these and we’re going to cherish this moment.”

— KU Sports Information —