Kansas forward Landen Lucas battles for a loose ball with TCU Horned Frogs center Karviar Shepherd during the second half at Wilkerson-Greines Activity Center on Wednesday, Jan. 28, 2015 in Fort Worth, Texas. Also pictured are TCU Horned Frogs forward Chris Washburn (33) and Kansas forward Perry Ellis (34).

photo by: Nick Krug

Kansas forward Landen Lucas battles for a loose ball with TCU Horned Frogs center Karviar Shepherd during the second half at Wilkerson-Greines Activity Center on Wednesday, Jan. 28, 2015 in Fort Worth, Texas. Also pictured are TCU Horned Frogs forward Chris Washburn (33) and Kansas forward Perry Ellis (34).

Bill Self’s Kansas basketball team found ways to win both of its past two games in the Lone Star State — even if that one at TCU became a struggle late.

Now Self and the Jayhawks can put their successes behind them and focus on what’s next. The coach met with the media Friday afternoon, before No. 9 Kansas (17-3 overall, 6-1 Big 12) plays two huge games at Allen Fieldhouse — Saturday against Kansas State (12-9, 5-3) and on Big Monday against Iowa State (15-4, 5-2).

Here are some of the highlights from the press conference:

• K-State is much improved in Big 12 play, and those are the games Self has studied. Usually when you go through rough spots it’s when you labor to score. Their offense is flowing better and Nino Williams and Marcus Foster are playing well. The Wildcats are 5-3 in a great league.

• Williams might be injured and unavailable Saturday. As a fan of the game and a fan of his, Self would hope everybody plays.

• Foster was aggressive last year, but in the games Self has studied he seems even more aggressive now — splitting ball screens, making guarded shots and the like. He’ll get plenty of attention from KU, and the Jayhawks did that last year, too. Kansas did a better job guarding him in Allen Fieldhouse last season than it did in Bramlage Coliseum.

photo by: Nick Krug

Kansas forward Landen Lucas (33) is fouled on his way to the bucket while defended by TCU Horned Frogs forward Devonta Abron (23) and guard Trey Zeigler (32) during the second half at Wilkerson-Greines Activity Center on Wednesday, Jan. 28, 2015 in Fort Worth, Texas.

• Self told Landen Lucas, Svi Mykhailiuk and Hunter Mickelson prior to the TCU game they always need to be ready to play. He didn’t know the Jayhawks would have to count so much on them. All three of them played well in spurts in that game to help KU win. Guys will get an opportunity to play and need to stay ready. Lucas will be good enough to be a starter at Kansas — that’s his next step in his progression as a player. Every coach would like to have eight or nine guys who are good enough to start.

• Next year the Big 12-SEC Challenge will be at the end of January. Self thinks the challenge is good for the league, but the timing is bad. It will bring exposure to the league, which is good. There is so much competition in the world of sports in December they decided to move it. This will be different. It’s fine, but it’s certainly not the best.

• Sophomore point guard Frank Mason III didn’t do great at TCU, but he did a good job on Kyan Anderson, who can really score. Self hopes the team has multiple leaders, but Mason is the guy everybody knows needs to be on the court.

• The way KU has gotten to this point as a team is a little different than what Self anticipated. The Jayhawks aren’t far off from where he’d like them to be, it just hasn’t been a smooth road getting to this point.

• Kelly Oubre Jr. “was out of it” at TCU, because he wasn’t feeling well. They could tell he didn’t feel well at all, and that had a lot to do with his lack of production.

• KU doesn’t have any separation yet in the Big 12 title race. When KU has been behind two games late in the season, there has been pressure on them. He doesn’t know how much pressure other teams feel right now, with Kansas at the top of the standings alone. But there is no separation yet.

photo by: Nick Krug

Kansas guard Wayne Selden floats into the lane for a shot before Kansas State defenders Thomas Gipson and Shane Southwell during the second half on Saturday, Jan. 11, 2013 at Allen Fieldhouse.

• KU’s players know K-State’s players. They work with each other at camps in the summer and that sort of thing. They are rivals, but they are respected rivals. Missouri was a more hated rival.

K-State has had enough success vs. Kansas of late, the Jayhawks definitely think of the Wildcats as formidable rivals.

Everybody likes waking up in the morning disliking somebody, from that standpoint it hasn’t been great to lose one of your longtime rivals. KU is fortunate and glad to have K-State around as a rival.

• Kansas has played a lot of close games, and up until the TCU game the Jayhawks had been good at the free-throw line late. You have to win some games where you don’t play well — the players must be taking that to heart, Self joked.

• Self pays attention to successful NFL coaches, but probably more so in the regular season than the week of the Super Bowl. You have to get your guys’ heads right. That’s a part of it as much as X’s and O’s.

• Given the TCU performance, Self would like to see better energy every single game out of his players. Some games it hasn’t been there. You get to defensive position half a step late when you don’t have the mental energy and approach you need. KU can make some mistakes and make up for it with athletic ability when energy is there.

• Wayne Selden Jr. can play better, and Selden knows that. Every player can play a lot better, too. Even Mason and Ellis. KU isn’t going to play great every night. The Jayhawks are young and sometimes people forget how young they are. Selden just needs to see some shots that haven’t been going in fall through the hoop.

• When the Chicago Bulls went 72-10, there were a lot of nights they didn’t play well but they had a guy who could bail them out. Everybody struggles with maintaing a high level of play. KU has done a decent job with it. When there are less great players and more good players the playing field gets leveled out.

— Listen to the entire press conference: Bill Self talks Sunflower Showdown rivalry and absence of Missouri