The most anxious moments came after an MRI test, Kansas center Udoka Azubuike awaiting a diagnosis on his knee. “I had so many thoughts going through my head,” he would say.
It was two days before KU was set to open the postseason, a fact not lost on Azubuike. He had missed this opportunity one year earlier, a wrist injury robbing him of the final half of his freshman season.
In particular, the details of March 25, 2017 remained fresh: Kansas losing to Oregon in the Elite Eight at the Sprint Center and squandering a potential trip to the Final Four.