photo by: AP Photo/Matthew Putney

Kansas head coach Bill Self directs his team during the first half of an NCAA college basketball game against Iowa State, Saturday, Feb. 14, 2026, in Ames, Iowa.

Each game gets magnified as the end of the season draws nearer, as Kansas coach Bill Self sees it.

“When we can see the finish line, things that happen closer to the finish line are more important,” Self said, “because just like a game, you can make a mistake in the first five or 10 minutes and there’s time to recover. You get under the five-minute mark and whatever, there may not be time to recover. It’s the same thing in seasons and scheduling, too.”

That makes Wednesday’s road date at Oklahoma State a particularly significant one, as KU enters the final third of its league schedule and looks to kick off a new winning streak after its eight-game run ended in resounding fashion with a 74-56 loss at Iowa State on Saturday.

“People saying ‘wake-up call’ and all that stuff, you don’t have wake-up calls after every loss,” Self said. “That’s not real. But can we learn from it and can we be better next time out, that’s what I’m focused on.”

The opportunities for KU to cement its position among the top seeds in the Big 12 and nationally are becoming fewer and fewer. The Jayhawks will have the privilege of home-court advantage when they take on Cincinnati and No. 2 Houston in consecutive games in the days ahead, but first they must again test their mettle on the road, this time at Gallagher-Iba Arena. Once something of a house of horrors for KU, it hasn’t presented as much of a challenge for the Jayhawks in recent years, but this will be their first visit since Steve Lutz took over the Cowboys.

This year’s OSU team garnered some buzz amid a 12-1 nonconference slate that included victories over Texas A&M and Northwestern. The Cowboys have since spent much of their second Big 12 campaign under Lutz on the tournament bubble. OSU’s resume is as inconsistent as that of any team in the league, as it includes wins over UCF and most notably BYU but also losses to Baylor and Arizona State.

One player who has been quite consistent throughout is Anthony Roy, a 42.2% high-volume 3-point shooter averaging 17.8 points in league games to lead the Cowboys. A sixth-year senior at his sixth school, Roy dazzled in a brief stint with Green Bay last year before suffering a season-ending injury; now he’s transferred his high level of production to the Big 12. Self compared his touch and range to that of Iowa State’s Milan Momcilovic and called him one of the league’s best shooters and scorers.

“He’s basically averaging going 4-for-9 (from deep) every game,” Self said. “That’s something we’re going to certainly have to contend with.”

Roy and another skilled shooter, Vyctorius Miller, who has not produced as much in league play, accompany the rotating point guards Kanye Clary and Jaylen Curry in the backcourt — Clary starts and Curry makes an impact off the bench.

“They’re good and they’re fast,” Self said, “and their other players are quick and athletic, but I’d say the biggest thing that stands out is their speed and their ability to make plays when nothing’s there.”

The Iran native Parsa Fallah, an Oregon State transfer, is scoring 15.4 points per game in Big 12 competition and grabbing 6.2 rebounds, and Christian Coleman provides another big body beside him in the paint.

The Cowboys’ defense has been an issue at times. OSU surrenders more points per game in Big 12 contests, 84.6, than anyone else. (Their KenPom defensive rating of 103rd does put them a bit closer to the middle of the pack in the league.) They have conceded the second-most made 3-pointers in the league at the third-highest rate. They don’t get much rim protection either from Fallah and the frontcourt, although Clary and Curry do generate a fairly high quantity of steals.

Another issue is rebounding, where Fallah is the only Cowboy picking up more than 4.1 boards per game in league play and OSU is getting outperformed by 5.3 rebounds per game.

The Cowboys aren’t the best team KU will face during the home stretch of the season, but taking them down at Gallagher-Iba, where Self is 9-8 as the Jayhawks’ head coach, will inevitably be a significant challenge.

Saturday’s loss to Iowa State demonstrated that KU has plenty of work to do as it prepares for the postseason. As Self said on Monday, the Jayhawks can become tougher, more consistent defensively, more fluid offensively and generally better at understanding what it takes to win away from home.

“I think we can get better in all facets,” Self said. “I don’t think that we’re where we need to be in any area yet.”

OKLAHOMA STATE COWBOYS (16-9, 4-8 BIG 12) VS. NO. 8 KANSAS JAYHAWKS (19-6, 9-3 BIG 12)

• Gallagher-Iba Arena, Stillwater, Oklahoma, 8 p.m.

• Broadcast: Peacock

• Radio: Jayhawk Radio Network (in Lawrence, KLWN AM 1320 / K269GB FM 101.7 / KKSW FM 105.9 / KMXN FM 92.9)

KEEP AN EYE OUT

Hockey assists: Self has said KU needs more out of Darryn Peterson. That isn’t a surprise given that the freshman star is coming off his two worst scoring performances of the season. One recent topic of discussion, though, has been Peterson’s ability to potentially create more plays for his teammates. He has three total assists in his last five games. Self pointed out that it’s difficult for Peterson to get countable assists when double teams (of which he has faced so many) are chasing him far away from the basket, but he did say that the Jayhawks playing behind those double teams can get better at generating so-called hockey assists where Peterson passes the ball to someone else who in turn sets up a bucket.

Root of the problem: Tre White missed a lot of practice time in the lead-up to Iowa State due to a root canal. He played against the Cyclones, but for the first time all season did not make a shot from the field. The senior forward’s return to form still has yet to arrive after he spent much of the season, particularly earlier in the year, as one of KU’s most consistent multi-level scorers.

Back from the break: In the period between halftime and the first timeout of the second half, KU has been outscored in each of its last five games by a total margin of minus-29. That includes two games — Utah and Iowa State — in which Self had to call a relatively quick timeout to stop the bleeding. Those sorts of runs can be particularly difficult to contend with on the road, and if the Jayhawks and Cowboys are anywhere close coming out of the break, KU might not be able to afford that kind of disadvantage early in the second half.

OFF-KILTER OBSERVATION

Fallah provided eight points and eight rebounds off the bench for a Southern Utah team that nearly beat the Norm Roberts-led Jayhawks at Allen Fieldhouse on Nov. 18, 2022.