John Gress / Reuters

Kansas's Sherron Collins drives against Kentucky in last year's NCAA tournament.

“I’m proud of the man Sherron has become,” Self said. “He’s improved in so many areas, but he gets in his own way a little bit. That makes it challenging, but a little bit fun. Since school started, he’s been as good as anybody could be — great leader, great worker, really has realized and accepted responsibility for things that are going on. This past year has really helped him mature.”

Aldrich didn’t have nearly the impact as Collins, at least most of the season.

The 6-foot-11 center was a highly touted freshman a year ago, earning respect from teammates and coaches for his practice battles against Arthur, Jackson and Kaun. He had a knack for blocking shots and grabbing rebounds right away, but looked hurried, even a little confused offensively in the early part of the season.

Aldrich seemed to learn from those in-house skirmishes, though.

Against North Carolina in the Final Four, he put in a career performance against Tyler Hansbrough, roughing up the national player of the year, finishing with eight points, seven rebounds and four blocked shots in the Jayhawks’ 84-66 victory.

“Last year my role was basically learning,” he said. “Coming in from high school, I didn’t really know anything, still flustered with the speed of the game at the beginning of the season. Then finally things started slowing down. This year, the whole role has done a 180.”

The Big 12’s coaches picked Kansas to finish fourth — behind Oklahoma, Texas and Baylor — mostly because of its young roster, full of unproven players.

The Jayhawks have aimed a little higher.

They already know what Collins and Aldrich can do. This year’s recruiting class is considered one of the best in the country, filled with talented players like twin forwards Marcus and Markieff Morris, speedy guard Tyshawn Taylor and athletic junior college transfers Mario Little and Tyrone Appleton.

Slideshow   The Week in Sports Pictures A kayaker flips out, a racehorse eyes the Triple Crown and more. more photos

“Every year, the goal is to win the league and it should be a goal here. Doesn’t mean it’s going to happen, but it should be a goal and there’s no reason we should accept anything less than that,” Self said. “At the end of the day, we want to play as close to our ceiling as possible and if our ceiling doesn’t allow us to get there, then it won’t. But certainly, there’s no reason not to set bar high.”

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