Playing without their head coach, Bill Self, for a second straight game, the top-seeded Jayhawks were stunned by No. 8 seed Arkansas, 72-71, at Wells Fargo Arena in Des Moines, Iowa.
Kansas was bidding to become first the repeat men’s champion since Florida won the tournament in 2006 and 2007. Instead, the Razorbacks advanced to the round of 16 in Las Vegas against the winner of Sunday’s game between Connecticut and St. Mary’s in Albany, N.Y. Arkansas (22-13) finished tied for ninth in the Southeastern Conference, while Kansas (28-8) was the Big 12 regular-season champion.
The Jayhawks became the second No.