Bill Self shares impressions of Texas' guards

Kansas will return from a week off the court with a matchup with Texas in Lawrence tomorrow. With that game comes with the challenge of what the Longhorns have in the backcourt according to Bill Self.

Self took a look at Texas in a press conference on Thursday ahead of the conference contest against them on Saturday evening. He noted their guard play as a strength by beginning with their two starters in Max Abmas and Tyrese Hunter.

“Texas’ guards? They’re good,” said Self.

“I’m a big fan of Tyrese. We tried hard to get him here when he left Ames,” Self said. “Max, to me, is one of the best scoring points or best scoring guards that we’ll face all year long.”

Over the entire season, Abmas (16.9) and Hunter (11) are the leadings scorers for Texas. They’re also No. 1 and No. 2 in assists for the Longhorns at 4.4 and 4.3 respectively. Combine the two and it’s an average that’s over half of the team’s total at 8.7.

Hunter also leads the team in steals with 1.2 per game. Meanwhile, Abmas has 40 more threes than anyone else on the roster with 73, or 2.8 a game, on 37.4% shooting from deep.

That duo isn’t all when it comes to the Longhorn guards, though. Self also singled out Chendall Weaver, a sophomore who has earned more minutes as this season has gone on, for being a do-everything kind of player in their lineup.

“The one guy I think that makes their team as much as anybody is Weaver,” said Self. “I mean he is a high energy dude that can make a lot of plays in a lot of different ways to impact games.”

All three guards, who have all transferred to Austin within the last year or two, play their part in the backcourt for Texas. They’ll now be the Jayhawks’ latest trio deal with in an important game in the conference standings.

Self still uncertain on Kevin McCullar’s status vs. Texas 

Kevin McCullar recently returned to the lineup for Kansas after missing consecutive games while dealing with a bone bruise in his right knee.

Bill Self shared the latest on McCullar, who played 35 minutes in the 67-57 win over the Sooners last weekend, after getting some time off during the Jayhawks’ past week.

“No, I do not know,” Self said. “He hasn’t done anything yet this week so we’ll probably wait and see if he’s able to do anything today. (Thursday) will probably determine if he plays on Saturday as much as anything. But I probably won’t tell you guys.”

The opening tip between Kansas and Texas is scheduled for Saturday at 6 p.m. ET on ESPN. Based on Self’s update, McCullar’s final status likely won’t be revealed until much closer to that tip-off.