One of the best players in the NBA had one of his worst games as a collegian against Kansas University.

Steve Nash, the league’s 2005 Most Valuable Player and starting point guard for the Western Conference finalist Phoenix Suns, scored seven points and made only one of 11 shots in Santa Clara’s 76-51 loss to the Jayhawks in a second-round NCAA Tournament game March 17, 1996 in Tempe, Ariz.

The 6-foot-3 Nash, who averaged 15.5 points and 11.5 assists for the Suns during the 2004-05 regular season, missed six of seven three-point attempts while being hounded by KU point guard Jacque Vaughn, now a veteran with the New Jersey Nets.

“Playing against a guy like Steve Nash : Jacque took that personally,” recalled Jerod Haase, Vaughn’s backcourt partner at KU, who now works as an assistant coach at the University of North Carolina. “Jacque shut about everybody down.”

Busy guarding Nash, Vaughn scored just two points that game on 1-of-6 shooting with six assists. Shooting guard Haase, who also guarded Nash for a spell, scored 12 points with eight rebounds.

“If he scored seven points, he probably got five off me,” Haase quipped.

Nash did grab eight rebounds and had six assists that game, but Vaughn took him out of his game early while KU rolled to a 12-0 advantage. The Jayhawks easily advanced all the way to the Regional Championship, losing to Syracuse. Nash’s season ended, and he was off to the NBA where he was a first-round pick of the Suns.

At the time, nobody knew Nash would be an NBA standout.

“He was really good,” Haase said. “A lot of times in college, you don’t necessarily know (about NBA potential). The cream rises to the top, and, over time, he’s found his niche. He was extremely gifted back then. Put great players around him, and it makes him even that much better. He’s about getting other guys involved.”

Phoenix's Steve Nash looks for a pass during practice. Nash, who was working out Sunday in San Antonio, was shut down by Kansas University when his Santa Clara squad faced the Jayhawks in 1996.

Nash actually played one other college game against the Jayhawks, hitting for 20 points off 5-of-6 shooting in an 80-75 regular-season loss Dec. 20, 1994 at Allen Fieldhouse.

“C.B. told me he played six minutes that game and locked him up,” Haase said, laughing, referring to former KU teammate and fellow UNC assistant C.B. McGrath.

Haase said he hasn’t followed Nash’s career closely in the NBA.

“I don’t really follow anybody in the NBA unless he’s a KU player,” Haase said. “He had a great year. I’d kind of compare him to Kirk (Hinrich, another former KU guard, now with the Chicago Bulls). Everybody thought Kirk was a nice college player. I thought he’d be real good in the NBA. I didn’t know this good. There’s a place for guys who love the game, play hard all the time and are tough. Nash and Hinrich rise to the top.”

Haase’s Tar Heels were at the top of college basketball in March, winning the national title.

“To be honest with you, 98 percent of my thoughts were being happy for coach (Roy) Williams. The other two percent was being happy for the players and fans and everybody else. Such a big part of me is dealing with what happened in ’97. We thought in ’97 we’d bring coach Williams his first title and Kansas the title.”

However, KU fell to Arizona in the Sweet 16 and finished the season with a 34-2 record.

“Kansas fans understand, but it’s such a big part of life. I think of that game and that team all the time,” said Haase, who was suffering from a major wrist injury and only played 14 minutes and scored just two points versus Arizona.

“The fact we didn’t get it done has haunted me. To see coach get the championship took a lot of relief. Having said that, there were more good memories than bad at Kansas. I love Kansas.”

Haase, 31, ultimately wants to move on from North Carolina to the head coaching ranks.

“I don’t have a timeline. It’s not a job where you can do that,” Haase said. “I want to be head coach at some point and will do everything I can to make it happen. It’s not a job you can say five years I’ll be here or there. It’s a job you plug away at it and see what happens.”

He wouldn’t mind coaching in the state of Kansas.

“I follow every KU game and my wife (Mindy) knows exactly when they are playing,” he said. “If we are not playing, the TV is on, and we’re watching KU. She was born and raised in Kansas City. Our Kansas ties run deep.”