KU

Milton Doyle, a senior guard from Chicago, concluded an official two-day campus visit to Kansas on Tuesday, but he returned home with his future still unknown.

Doyle’s mom, Lisa Green, said that while the KU coaches had expressed interest in her son, it became apparent Tuesday that the staff preferred that Doyle wait.

A formerly under-the-radar Chicago shooting guard has popped up as a possible late target for Kansas. Milton Doyle, a 6-foot-4 senior guard from Chicago-Marshall, is taking a visit to KU today, according to the Chicago Sun-Times.

Doyle appears to slot into the category of late-bloomer; he committed to Florida International (and then-coach Isiah Thomas, a Chicago native) last fall despite missing his entire junior senior with a broken wrist. He responded by averaging 19 points, eight rebounds, five assists and five steals while earning third-team All-State honors from the Chicago Tribune.

Tyshawn Taylor is working out for the NBA Draft in Houston.

Maybe it wouldn’t be the most controversial idea the Missouri House of Representatives would ever hear. But if a Jayhawk is involved, well, you never know, right?

During the past few years, the University of Kansas Alumni Association has put plans in motion to make a KU license plate available in the state of Missouri. But wait a second: The bill won't even be available to be voted on until next year, according to Rep. Charlie Denison, a Republican who is also chairman of the legislature’s Joint Committee on Transportation.

But first, you may be asking yourself: How did this happen?

LAWRENCE | For Kansas and Bill Self, the trip may come at the ideal time. The Kansas basketball team will take a nine-day trip to Europe in August, welcome news for a program that will be introducing at least six freshmen to the squad during the 2012-13 season.

Kansas, which unveiled details of the trip Thursday, will play two exhibition games against Switzerland’s national team on Aug. 7 and 8 in Fribourg, Switzerland, before finishing the trip with two games against French professional teams on Aug. 11 and 12 in Paris.

Kansas is cutting ties with men’s golf coach Kit Grove.

Grove’s contract is up in June, and KU will not renew it. The Jayhawks finished 10th out of 10 teams last month at the Big 12 Men's Championships at Whispering Pines Golf Club in Trinity, Texas.

Grove, a 1998 graduate of Kansas, recently concluded his fifth season as head coach at KU. He took over in 2007 following the retirement of former coach Ross Randall. He also served as an assistant for one season.

| rdodd@kcstar.com

KU will have a Final Four rematch with Ohio State next season.

Covering Kansas over the final few months of the season meant getting reacquainted with one of the game’s great coaching minds, Larry Brown. He traveled with Kansas over the final couple weeks of the regular season and throughout the NCAA Tournament.

Brown couldn’t get away from the game, KU Coach Bill Self would say, and now he’s back in feet first. He’s set to be named SMU’s head coach. ESPN and former Star reporter Jason King, citing sources, broke the story Tuesday afternoon. The Dallas Morning News called Brown the Mustangs’ top candidate on Monday.

That’s 71-year-old Larry Brown.

The KU football program secured a commitment from St. Louis-area linebacker Kellen Ash on Monday, according to Rivals.com.

Here’s video of Ash on the field:

Kansas coach Bill Self received some good recruiting news today. Andrew White, a 6-foot-6 guard from Chester, Va., signed his national letter of intent on Monday evening, officially becoming the fourth member of the Jayhawks' 2012 recruiting class.

White signed his letter at a ceremony Monday at the Miller School in Charlottesville, Va. It was the culmination of a two-year rise for White, who repeated his junior year when he arrived at the Miller School in 2010, re-classing into the class of 2012.

KU football coach Charlie Weis continues to raid his old roster at Notre Dame. The KU football program announced Friday that linebacker Anthony McDonald, a senior at Notre Dame, will transfer to KU and be eligible for the 2012 season.

McDonald, a native of Burbank, Calif., will graduate from Notre Dame next month and have one season of eligibility remaining.

With his announcement on Monday, Thomas Robinson became the latest Kansas’ underclassman to declare for the NBA Draft. How did those before him fare?

1958 Wilt Chamberlain (Jr.)
Philadelphia Warriors, 1st round, 1st pick
Comment: Things worked out OK for the player who retired as the NBA’s career scoring leader and still holds the record for points in a season.

1976 Norm Cook (Jr.)
Celtics, 1st round, 16th pick
Comment: Cook petitioned the NBA as a hardship candidate. He played in 27 games over two years. Cook suffered from mental illness and died in 2008 at age 53.

Kansas running back James Sims was suspended for the first three games of the Jayhawks' 2012 season by coach Charlie Weis following an arrest early Sunday for operating a vehicle under the influence.

Weis announced Monday that Sims was suspended for a violation of team rules.

“Every player on our team knows and understands our rules and regulations,” Weis said. “They also know the consequences for violations.”

Danny Manning may have left Kansas to become the head coach at Tulsa, but the Manning family will still be represented at KU basketball practices next season.

Evan Manning, son of the former KU great and assistant coach, will walk on the team next season. Manning, a 6-foot-1 guard, graduated in 2011 from Lawrence Free State, where he earned All-Sunflower League honorable-mention status as a senior.

NEW ORLEANS _ The Border War continues in national coach of the year honors.

This one goes to Kansas’ Bill Self, named the Naismith Coach of the Year by the Atlanta Tipoff Club on Sunday.

Earlier, Missouri’s Frank Haith won the Henry Iba Award as national coach of the year by the United States Basketball Writers Association, and the top honor from the Associated Press.

Self also has picked up the Rupp Award Trophy presented by the Commonwealth Athletic Club of Kentucky.

For the Naismith Award, Self beat other finalists Haith, Syracuse’s Jim Boeheim and Kentucky’s John Calipari.

Former Nebraska defensive end Josh Williams has joined the Kansas program.

Williams will transfer for Kansas in June and be eligible to play his senior season in the fall. He has completed his undergraduate work.

Williams started two games last season and appeared in 29 over three years after redshirting as a freshman.

Willams, from Denton, Tex., is the fourth player to transfer to Kansas since Charlie Weis became the coach, joining quarterbacks Dayne Crist (Notre Dame) and Jake Heaps (Brigham Young) and wide receiver Justin McCay (Oklahoma).

Thomas Robinson is an All-America, and it’s unanimous.

The final major All-America team was announced on Monday, and Robinson, fresh off a leading Kansas to a Midwest Regional championship game, joined Kentucky’s Anthony Davis, Ohio State’s Jared Sullinger, Michigan State’s Draymond Green and Creighton’s Doug McDermott on the Associated Press squad.

Robinson was the only member of the AP team to receive every first team vote on all 65 ballots. He’s the first player to receive all votes on the AP squad since Oklahoma’s Blake Griffin in 2009.

ST. LOUIS | North Carolina announced this afternoon that point guard Kendall Marshall won't play in today's Midwest Regional championship game against Kansas.

Marshall, who fractured his right wrist in the Tar Heels' third-round victory over Creighton last weekend, didn't play in Friday's regional semifinal triumph over Ohio University.

Marshall participated in practice drills on Saturday but not in a live scrimmage.

Marshall ranks second nationally in assists at 9.8 per game. North Carolina's Roy Williams has called him the best play making point guard in his coaching career.

Here's the transcript of the comments from Bill Self, Jeff Withey and Thomas Robinson after the Jayhawks' 60-57 victory over North Carolina State in the Sweet 16.

MODERATOR: We'll start with an opening statement from coach and then take questions for the student‑athletes.

Ian Naismith, the grandson of the game’s inventor James Naismith, died on Tuesday on a train to New York. His death was first reported by The Republican of Springfield. Mass. He was 73.

In December, 2010, Naismith sold basketball’s original rules through an auction to David Booth, Lawrence native and University of Kansas graduate for $4.3 million.

Naismith had recently moved from his home in suburban Chicago to North Carolina.

He was champion of his grandfather’s legacy and sportsmanship and spent much of the past 15 years promoting those ideas.

Kansas junior Thomas Robinson is a first-team All-America as selected by the National Association of Basketball Coaches.

Missouri senior Marcus Denmon, a Kansas City native, is a second team member.

First team
Anthony Davis, Kentucky, Fr.
Draymond Green, Michigan State, Sr.
Doug McDermott, Creighton, So.
Thomas Robinson, Kansas, Jr.
Jared Sullinger, Ohio State, So.

Second team
Harrison Barnes, North Carolina, So.
Marcus Denmon, Missouri, Sr.
Kevin Jones, West Virginia, Sr.
Kris Joseph, Syracuse, Sr.
Tyler Zeller, North Carolina, Sr.

Third team

Kentucky is the No. 1 overall seed in the NCAA Tournament, playing in the South Region. Syracuse, in the East, North Carolina, in the Midwest in St. Louis, and Michigan State, in the West, are the other top seeds.

The South Regional champion will play the West champion in the national semifinals at the Final Four in New Orleans. The Midwest and East champs will play in the other semifinal.

Kansas will anchor next season’s CBE Classic at Sprint Center.

The Jayhawks will join Texas A&M, Washington State and Saint Louis University for the games that will be played on Nov. 19-20. The brackets haven’t been established.

KU played in the 2008 CBE Classic, losing to Syracuse in the championship game after defeating Washington in the semifinals.

Last season, Missouri won the CBE, beating California for the title.

Missouri coach Frank Haith and KU junior forward Thomas Robinson led the U.S. Basketball Writers' all-District VI team released Tuesday. District VI covers Missouri, Iowa, Kansas, Oklahoma, Nebraska North Dakota and South Dakota.

PLAYER OF THE YEAR
Thomas Robinson, Kansas

COACH OF THE YEAR
Frank Haith, Missouri

ALL-DISTRICT TEAM
Marcus Denmon, Missouri
Doug McDermott, Creighton
Rodney McGruder, Kansas State
Joe Ragland, Wichita State
Ricardo Ratliffe, Missouri
Thomas Robinson, Kansas
Garrett Stutz, Wichita State
Tyshawn Taylor, Kansas
Royce White, Iowa State

Mizzou senior Marcus Denmon and KU junior Thomas Robinson are among the 15 finalists for the Wooden Award, given to the college basketball player of the year by the Los Angeles Athletic Club.

The 15-player ballot will be mailed to Wooden Award voters this week. Voters have until Monday, March 19 to return their ballots.

John R. Wooden Award Finalists

Isaiah Canaan, 6-0, Jr., G, Murray State

Jae Crowder, 6-6, Sr., F, Marquette

Anthony Davis, 6-10, F, Kentucky

Marcus Denmon, 6-3, G, Missouri

Draymond Green, 6-7, F, Michigan State

Kevin Jones, 6-8, Sr., F, West Virginia

KU's Bill Self was chosen national coach of the year by The Sporting News, which also picked KU junior forward Thomas Robinson as a first-team all-American.

MU senior guard Marcus Denmon made the second team and KU senior guard Tyshawn Taylor made the third team.

Kentucky freshman Anthony Davis was Sporting News' player of the year. Davis and Robinson were joined by Michigan State senior forward Draymond Green, Murray State junior guard Isaiah Canaan and Ohio State sophomore center Jared Sullinger as first-team all-Americans.

The Big 12 has come up with additional tickets for next week's men's tournament at Sprint Center, undoubtedly from schools that didn't sell their allotment.

Here's the release from the Big 12:

"The purchasing opportunity begins at 9 am CT...while supplies last.

"Fans may visit sprintcenter.com for the opportunity to purchase up to four all-session tickets. Each ticket includes all sessions for the four-day championship and are $225 each.

Hearing plenty of numbers about KU’s eighth straight Big 12 championship team, about how Tyshawn Taylor logged 2,700 career minutes entering this season and the rest of the returning players combined for 2,400. About how Bill Self now has more Big 12 championships (eight) than home losses (seven) in his Kansas tenure.

All good stuff. There will be more this week as honors _ All-America, All-Big 12, individual awards _ are deliberated.

Kansas picked up the 22nd member of its 2012 recruiting class Monday when defensive end Neal Page of Birmingham, Mich., signed with the Jayhawks.

Page, 6 feet 5 and 220 pounds, set records at Seaholm High School in tackles for a loss, tackles by a defensive lineman and most quarterback pressures. He finished his high school career ranked third at Seaholm with 20 1/2 sacks. He chose KU over Bowling Green, Central Michigan and Illinois.

Bill Self was asked after Kansas’ 66-58 victory over Texas A&M whether Saturday’s showdown with Missouri was the biggest game in Allen Fieldhouse history.

Self said no, and he’s right in one sense.

Saturday’s game won’t determine a Big 12 championship. The winner will sit in the driver’s seat but the crown can’t be clinched. If KU wins, it can finish no worse than tied for first but will need one more victory or one more Mizzou loss to clinch an outright championship.