When the pre-season poll was released for last year's squads, the Kansas Jayhawks embraced the No. 1 ranking. The Jayhawks did return their best player Sherron Collins, and Cole Aldrich. Not to mention, freshman Xavier Henry decided he wasn't going to follow John Calipari to Kentucky and chose the Jayhawks.
With such a talented trio, along with a lot of depth, the Jayhawks stayed inside the top-5 for most of the season.
Once the NCAA Tournament came around, the Jayhawks were still the No. 1 overall team in the nation. That led to the No. 1 overall ranking in the tournament, and many media outlets selecting them as National Champions.
The Jayhawks started off the tournament with an easy win in the first round against LeHigh.
However, their second-round action wasn't a cake walk. The Jayhawks couldn't get the job done against ninth ranked Northern Iowa, and was sent home after a 69-67 loss to the Panthers.
After the season, both Aldrich, and Henry decided their career as a Jayhawk was over. Both bypassed another year of eligibility and entered the 2010 NBA draft. Collins, also entered the 2010 NBA draft after finishing his final year of eligibility.
But the Jayhawks did return significant players from last year's squad, while acquiring one of the best recruits in the 2010 class.
"I think this team has a chance to be very good," said Head Coach Bill Self. "I don't think that very often you lose two lottery picks and your best player and you are suppose to get better."
The Jayhawks will have a lot of new faces on the court once the season starts. However, that didn't effect their ranking at all. The Jayhawks were tabbed as the No. 7 team in both the coaches and AP poll.
One reason, was this year's leader Marcus Morris. "Marcus was our most consistent player last year," said Coach Self.
"He (Marcus) may not have been our best player in every game, but he was probably our second or third best player at worst in most every game. He is consistent."
Coach Self will also expect a lot of contributions from Tyshawn Taylor, Travis Releford, and Mario Little.
"Mario is probably a three-four, kind of a bad matchup big guy or a big guard. And Travis is definitely a tall guard. But I see them being in our rotation and both having an impact," said Coach Self.
The Jayhawks will open up their season on November 12, 8:00 PM against the Longwood Racers. They could possibly be without their freshman Josh Selby, but that will not stop the Jayhawks from rebounding.
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