Kansas beat Michigan State 77-69 at Champions Classic, but it definitely wasn’t pretty. Both teams struggled through large stretches of the game, but the Jayhawks made enough plays late to come out the victors.

Bill Self said on the radio postgame that he had a weird feeling going into the game. He also talked about Zeke Mayo and Rylan Griffen’s impact and his thoughts on passing Phog Allen as the all-time winningest coach at Kansas.

Something didn’t quite feel right pregame

Self said he told coaches before the game that something didn’t quite feel right heading into the matchup against Michigan State. Kansas lived up to those feelings for stretches of the game but was able to grind out a win.

“The way the game started, it was great, and then the way the game continued for about 10 minutes, it was, oh, my God, maybe my feelings were real,” Self said “And then we finished the half right, gave up a four-point play. We'd been up 10. And then the second half, we started off terrible. And then we really played pretty well after they tied the game with about 10 minutes left [and] played pretty well, down the stretch.”

Zeke Mayo and Rylan Griffen make impact plays but need to shoot better

Mayo’s stats won’t pop off the page, but he impacted the game at a high level. He had just six points, but had 10 rebounds and seven assists and gave great effort on the defensive end. Outside of a late turnover, Self was impressed by his play.

“He's a good player and he made one bonehead play that last play. He'd been better off just eating the ball rather than throwing it away and giving the layup, but we'll learn from that,” Self said. “But [he] defensive rebounded, and he was good and he's smart, he gets it.”

Griffen’s game was a similar story. He finished with 10 points but only shot 4/10 from the floor. However, he hit a big three late, which sparked a run and helped the Jayhawks secure the win.

“I thought it was the biggest shot,” Self said. “Anything with Rylan’s by design. I think he just, you know, when he doesn't think and he just pulls it he's a pretty good shooter and I think that's what he needs to do.”

Self added that Mayo, Griffen, AJ Storr, and David Coit need to be shotmakers and Kansas has to shoot the ball better.

Self feels old after passing Phog Allen

When asked about passing Phog Allen as the all-time winningest coach at Kansas, Self said he felt elderly. He’s reiterated many times that he believes Allen is still the best to ever coach at Kansas. However, the night marked a celebration, as the team soaked Self with water in the locker room after the game.

“I didn't have any idea what was going on,” Self said. “I'd go back there and I figured it'd probably be the guys that are most pissed off at me that got me the most.”

Self added that he was happy for everyone who came out and supported the team on Tuesday. Frank Mason and Mario Chalmers were in attendance along with other important figures.

“It was great. And having Frank here and Rio here, obviously, those two guys have been pretty good for KU,” Self said. “And then we had several key donors here and stuff, and Chancellor and Travis and everybody. So it was nice. I didn't expect anything.”