Kansas
Inside Kansas basketball’s latest road disappointment, a loss against Utah in Big 12 play
This isn’t where Kansas basketball is supposed to be.
The Jayhawks entered this season as one of the favorites to win not just a Big 12 Conference title, but a national championship. In fact, they were the preseason No. 1 team in the country. They entered the campaign with an enviable collection of returning veterans, and added quite a bit of talent to that group through the transfer portal and elsewhere.
But on Saturday, after a road game against Utah, No. 20 Kansas is having to grapple with a 74-67 defeat that could have been a win had it executed better late. It’s a loss that both forces the Jayhawks (17-8, 8-6 in Big 12) to deal with the reality that they are not just drifting away from relevance in the Big 12 regular season title race, but dropping down in where they could be seeded in both the Big 12 and NCAA tournaments. Utah (14-11, 6-8 in Big 12) became the latest team to force an analysis of where Kansas should stand in the national landscape.
“We were awful,” Kansas coach Bill Self said on the Varsity Network postgame show. “They played really well early, and then of course we didn’t have any answers for them defensively. And obviously it was, I mean — people that are listening probably watched it. So, we didn’t do very well. And then we had the game tied and they beat us on every toughness play down the stretch.”
To call this loss for Kansas a stunning moment would be an understatement, because it came in a stretch in which the Jayhawks were supposed to put together multiple victories due to an advantageous schedule. For all of the issues of consistency KU dealt with in recent weeks, there seemed to be a realization of what needed to happen next ahead of the current road trip. Whatever was said during the discussions that were had about what should happen next, the message clearly did not get across and the team never led in this game.
It seems unlikely at this point that Kansas will be ranked in the top 25 by the time the team plays again on Tuesday, on the road against BYU. It seems unlikely the Jayhawks will be favored to beat BYU either, which would have been a surprising thought some weeks ago. If soul-searching is the accurate way to describe what’s going on in the locker room at this point, that search better find its answers quickly.
On Saturday against Utah, Kansas couldn’t overcome forward KJ Adams fouling out late in a close game. The Jayhawks couldn’t overcome an uncommon offensive performance from center Hunter Dickinson, who still nearly led his team in scoring — collecting 12 points on 4-for-12 shooting from the field and 3-for-4 shooting from the free-throw line. It wasn’t just that guard Rylan Griffen had another quiet performance, it was that when KU went to its bench it didn’t get much beyond him either.
Kansas is 0-3 in its last three Big 12 road games, with each one, stretching to defeats at Kansas State and Baylor, coming by their own disappointing reasons. The Jayhawks were lackluster when it came to turning the ball over and allowing offensive rebounds. Kansas turned the ball over 12 times and allowed 22 points off of that, while scoring just seven points off of seven Utah turnovers, and allowed 14 second chance points off of 16 Utah offensive rebounds while scoring only nine points off of its own six offensive rebounds.
“I’ve obviously done a (expletive) job getting these guys to understand the way we have to play in order to give us a chance to win,” said Self, who described the team as frustrated and not being ready to play when the game began. “We left a lot of points on the board, especially in the first half, and then catching the ball in tight and not delivering. But even with all that being said, we still had a chance to win on the road and didn’t close. So, that is — that’s disappointing. And certainly we’re going to stay out here three more days and we need to — I’m tired of regrouping. We don’t need to regroup. What we need to do is basically be men as an entire organization and go out and do what our job is to do and accept responsibility for everybody — players, coaches, everybody — when we don’t do it well.”
Jordan Guskey covers University of Kansas Athletics at The Topeka Capital-Journal. He is the National Sports Media Association’s sportswriter of the year for the state of Kansas for 2022. Contact him at jmguskey@gannett.com or on Twitter at @JordanGuskey.
Stormont Vail Healthcare is in a legal battle with the state government, alleging the Medicaid program was wrong to refuse payment for the hospitalization of a pregnant patient with complications.
At issue is a disagreement between the Topeka hospital and the Kansas Department of Health and Environment over whether inpatient health care services were medically necessary for the Medicaid patient’s last two weeks of pregnancy.
The Kansas Court of Appeals did not resolve that dispute, but it did side with Stormont Vail in a May 8 decision. The unanimous three-judge panel reversed a decision by Shawnee County District Court Judge Thomas Luedke and vacated an order from KDHE’s State Appeals Committee. The matter now goes back to the appeals committee for reconsideration.
The appellate panel was comprised of Judges Jacy Hurst, Thomas Malone and Stephen Hill, which heard oral arguments on Aug. 5. Hurst wrote the court’s opinion.
The lawsuit stems from a 2018 case of a pregnant patient, who is not named in appellate court documents. She was 28 years old at the time and had an intellectual disability among other complications, including rapid weight loss caused by hyperemesis gravidarum.
The woman was originally admitted at Newman Regional Health in Emporia before she was transferred to Stormont Vail. Part of the hospitalization during her third trimester was covered.
But the final two weeks were not because Sunflower Health Plan, one of the managed care organizations in the state’s privatized Medicaid program known as KanCare, refused to reimburse for the patient’s continued hospitalization through the day the child was born via cesarean section.
“We are here because the Kansas Medicaid program has wrongfully refused to pay for some of an inpatient hospitalization while a Medicaid beneficiary was at Stormont Vail,” said Amanda Wilwert, an attorney for the hospital, during oral arguments. “Stormont believes the inpatient care was medically necessary as defined by the Kansas Medicaid regulations.”
Court records and oral arguments show the state expected Stormont Vail to look into having a home health agency care for the patient in Emporia instead of continued hospitalization — even though home health generally does not take care of pregnant patients and her doctors believed the expectant mother was not stable enough to discharge.
“The way it’s supposed to work,” said Darren Sharp, an attorney representing KDHE, “is the managed care organization, in this case Sunflower Health, on behalf of KDHE reviews the medical records, asks about the appropriate level of care and whether there’s any other interventions that would be more cost effective or appropriate depending on the level of or depending on the patient’s records and the patient’s status.”
Sharp argued medical records showed the patients was getting better because of total parenteral nutrition, or TPN.
“This is when a tube, a PICC, is inserted and your minerals and your electrolytes and all of your nutrition is then intravenously provided,” Sharp said.
He said the treatment “was eliminating her vomiting, her diarrhea, she had no fever, her glucose levels were stabilized.”
In their ruling, the judges indicated the KDHE appeals committee primarily cared about the cost saving of using home health versus hospitalization while disregarding the treating physician for insufficient reasons and ignoring evidence on potential benefits or harms to the patient.
But the judges declined to resolve the dispute. Rather, unless the decision is appealed to the Kansas Supreme Court, the matter goes back to the KDHE administrative process.
There, the agency’s appeals committee must reconsider the case consistent with the Court of Appeal’s ruling. The published decision sets new precedent interpreting state laws and regulations on the Medicaid program.
“While this court provides no opinion on whether the disputed inpatient healthcare services met the definition of medical necessity,” Hurst wrote, “the record shows that some of the (appeals committee’s) factual findings were not supported by the record as a whole and that the (appeals committee) inaccurately applied the law when it failed to consider (the patient’s) individual characteristics and assess the harms and benefits of the healthcare intervention.
“In making a medical necessity determination, the reviewing agency must make an individualized determination based on the record as a whole.”
Jason Alatidd is a Statehouse reporter for The Topeka Capital-Journal. He can be reached by email at jalatidd@usatodayco.com. Follow him on X @Jason_Alatidd.
The Kansas Lottery offers several draw games for those aiming to win big.
Here’s a look at May 7, 2026, results for each game:
Winning Pick 3 numbers from May 7 drawing
Midday: 6-2-2
Evening: 0-5-9
Check Pick 3 payouts and previous drawings here.
Winning 2 By 2 numbers from May 7 drawing
Red Balls: 07-15, White Balls: 02-16
Check 2 By 2 payouts and previous drawings here.
Winning Millionaire for Life numbers from May 7 drawing
05-08-21-44-48, Bonus: 01
Check Millionaire for Life payouts and previous drawings here.
Feeling lucky? Explore the latest lottery news & results
Are you a winner? Here’s how to claim your lottery prize
All Kansas Lottery retailers will redeem prizes up to $599. For prizes over $599, winners can submit winning tickets through the mail or in person at select Kansas Lottery offices.
By mail, send a winner claim form and your signed lottery ticket to:
Kansas Lottery Headquarters
128 N Kansas Avenue
Topeka, KS 66603-3638
(785) 296-5700
To submit in person, sign the back of your ticket, fill out a claim form, and deliver the form along with your signed lottery ticket to Kansas Lottery headquarters. 128 N Kansas Avenue, Topeka, KS 66603-3638, (785) 296-5700. Hours: 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday through Friday. This office can cash prizes of any amount.
Check previous winning numbers and payouts at Kansas Lottery.
When are the Kansas Lottery drawings held?
- Powerball: 9:59 p.m. CT Monday, Wednesday and Saturday.
- Mega Millions: 10 p.m. CT Tuesday and Friday.
- Pick 3 Midday/Evening: 1:10 p.m. and 9:10 p.m. CT daily.
- 2 By 2: 9:30 p.m. CT daily.
- Lucky for Life: 9:38 p.m. CT daily.
- Lotto America: 9:15 p.m. CT Monday, Wednesday and Saturday.
- Super Kansas Cash: 9:10 p.m. CT Monday, Wednesday and Saturday.
- Millionaire for Life: 10:15 p.m. CT daily.
This results page was generated automatically using information from TinBu and a template written and reviewed by a Kansas editor. You can send feedback using this form.
Kansas
Kansas City, Kansas, becomes sister city to Concepción, Argentina, ahead of FIFA World Cup 2026
KSHB 41 reporter Fernanda Silva covers stories in the Northland, including Liberty. She also focuses on issues surrounding immigration. Share your story idea with Fernanda.
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Kansas City, Kansas, is now a sister city to Concepción, in the Tucumán province of Argentina.
The connection that carries deep personal meaning for members of the Kansas City area’s Argentinian community, with less than six weeks until Lionel Messi and their national team play at Kansas City Stadium (GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium).
Kansas City, Kansas, becomes sister city to Concepción, Argentina, ahead of World Cup
The official Sister Cities Agreement was signed Wednesday at Sporting Park, in a ceremony that also served as the kickoff of a broader cultural and economic initiative connecting Argentina and Kansas.
Federico Carmona has lived in the United States for more than two decades. He spent Wednesday afternoon cheering and smiling.
“This is my dream,” Carmona said.
For Carmona, the moment was personal — a merging of the two places he calls home.
KSHB/ Brian Luton
“This is a blessing,” Carmona said.
He continued, “Argentina is my heart. I was born in Argentina. I have so much passion for soccer. I used to play, my kids play. We never thought that Argentina was going to be in Kansas City. So that was a big, big surprise for us.”
Claudia Luna West, chair of the Sister Cities Association and a native of Concepción, Tucumán, was one of the driving forces behind the partnership.
“It means the world to me,” Luna West said.
KSHB/ Brian Luton
She described the pairing of the two cities as a natural collaboration — like the ingredients of a perfect recipe coming together.
“Everything collaborates to be this great thing,” Luna West said.
That recipe metaphor extended to food. The event featured the announcement of a partnership between Kansas BBQ Empanadas and Jack Stack BBQ — a culinary symbol of the two cultures meeting.
“Now, empanadas aren’t going to be just an ethnic food. They’re going to be a landmark of Kansas,” Luna West said.
Mayor/CEO of the Unified Government of Wyandotte County and KCK, Christal Watson, said the designation reflects the city’s diversity and its ability to connect with the world.
KSHB
“I think it’s important that we set a global stage on how diverse we are and how beautifully, wonderfully made we are with all the different cultures,” Watson said.
Watson said shared experiences — including food — are what bring communities together.
KSHB
“Food is a common link. Those are the things that get us engaged… those are the things that help us grow and be a better community overall,” Watson said. “We already have a flavor going on.”
Jake Reid, president and CEO of Sporting Kansas City, said the timing of the sister city announcement — with the FIFA World Cup 2026 approaching — felt right.
KSHB/ Brian Luton
“We’ve been planning this for so long. I think to have it on the doorstep now and be probably a month out is becoming very real and exciting,” Reid said. “They’re meant to be from… kind of everything we’ve got going on right now, for sure.”
For Carmona, the day was a long time coming.
“We can’t wait for all this to happen,” Carmona said.
This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
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