Kansas assistant coach Kurtis Townsend turned his head around, facing freshman forward Billy Preston in front of the Fountain of the Four Rivers on the Piazza Navona.
“Billy, andiamo!”
An amused KU coach Bill Self turned to Townsend after he heard the phrase.
“What was that?”
“We’ve got to teach them something,” Townsend said with a smile.
“Andiamo!” — Italian for “Let’s go!” — worked this time, as the KU men’s basketball team gathered quickly to head back to the team bus following a walking tour of Rome on Wednesday morning. The itinerary included stops at the famed Colosseum, Pantheon and Venti Fountain.