AUBURN HILLS, MICH. ? Kansas University’s men’s basketball players and coaches arrived at the team hotel, the Auburn Hilton Suites, at 7 p.m. Wednesday, well in advance of Friday’s 8:30 p.m. first-round NCAA Tournament contest against Bradley.

That’s more than 48 hours prior to tip.

“I don’t like it. The late game is a bad game to play. The first game and the late game are tough games to play,” KU coach Bill Self said after hopping off the bus and hustling out of 30-degree temperatures into the lobby.

“The late game is especially (tough), because you sit around all day and don’t have much to do. We’ve got to find some way to occupy the time.”

He thinks he’s come up with a plan to have the hours fly by.

For instance, after about a two-hour charter flight to the Oakland, Mich., airport and a 15-minute drive to the hotel, the squad gathered for dinner at 8:30 p.m., then headed into a meeting room to discuss the scouting report on 20-10 Bradley.

The Jayhawks were to “sleep in” until 10 a.m. today, then practice an hour and 40 minutes at the Detroit Pistons’ practice facility. KU (25-7) also would hold a second practice from 4:10 p.m. until 4:50 p.m. Central time at The Palace of Auburn Hills. That session is open to the public.

“We’ll just shoot,” Self said. “We’ll already have practiced (earlier in day).”

All in all, “it’ll be a pretty full day,” he said.

To pass the time on game day, the players will have a morning shootaround and go over scouting reports on Bradley, heading to study hall, eating a pregame meal, then finally tipping off at approximately 8:30 p.m.

It’s the same time as last year’s loss to Bucknell – KU also played the last game of the first round a year ago in Oklahoma City.

“It’s a normal deal,” Self said of the routine on a road trip. “The guys can watch about anything they want (on TV). I don’t care if they watch the other (NCAA) games or not.”

The players likely will be confined to the hotel in their off hours, with snow in the forecast and no shops within easy walking distance.

“It’s nothing like Gilligan’s Island,” Self quipped, asked if the players would feel stranded in the suburbs of Detroit. “It’s not that bad.”

Self said he was not worried his young squad might be in “awe” being on such a big stage Friday.

“It’s something everybody has to do,” Self said. “Even our young guys, whether Sasha (Kaun) or Russell (Robinson) or Darnell (Jackson), those guys didn’t play a huge role in the tournament last year. It’s a young team, probably the youngest team in the field by far. They’ve played beyond their years, and we certainly anticipate them doing it here.”