The Big 12 Conference race is tightening with three weeks to play, and Kansas finds itself squarely in the middle of it.
The Jayhawks are 9-3 in conference play, tied with Iowa State and Texas Tech and sitting two games back of first-place Houston (11-1). Arizona is one game off the lead at 10-2. Five teams are separated by just two games at the top, underscoring why many around the sport believe the Big 12 is again college basketball’s deepest league.
Here are the current Big 12 men’s basketball standings (2025–26):
- Houston — 11-1 (23-2 overall)
- Arizona — 10-2 (23-2)
- Kansas — 9-3 (19-6)
- Iowa State — 9-3 (22-3)
- Texas Tech — 9-3 (19-6)
- BYU — 7-5 (19-6)
- West Virginia — 7-5 (16-9)
- UCF — 6-6 (17-7)
- TCU — 6-6 (16-9)
- Cincinnati — 6-7 (14-12)
- Arizona State — 4-8 (13-12)
- Oklahoma State — 4-8 (16-9)
- Colorado — 4-9 (14-12)
- Baylor — 3-9 (13-12)
- Kansas State — 1-11 (10-15)
- Utah — 1-11 (9-16)
Kansas has already experienced the league’s dominance. The Jayhawks are dominant at Allen Fieldhouse but have taken their share of road bumps, a trend that mirrors the rest of the conference. Houston and Arizona each have multiple league losses despite ranking among the nation’s best teams. No one is immune.
ESPN analyst Seth Greenberg recently praised the culture and intensity across the league.
“There’s not a better culture in the country than Kansas, not better than Houston, not better than Iowa State,” Greenberg said, referencing comments from Houston coach Kelvin Sampson. “Playing on the road in this league, those aren’t games. They’re events.”
That reality looms of Big 12 play even larger down the stretch. Over the next three weeks, the top six teams will repeatedly face one another. Arizona and Iowa State each have four games remaining against that group. Houston and BYU have three. Kansas and Texas Tech have two.
The closing stretch promises a tight finish and losses are coming, even for the league’s best.
“It’s a good chance it’s going to happen again. It’s a good chance Iowa State will lose again. It’s a good chance Arizona will lose again,” Kansas head coach Bill Self said after the Jayhawks fell on the road to Iowa State on Saturday. “This league is good, especially away from home.”
Self’s message to his team is less about avoiding losses and more about responding correctly.
“How do you think we’ll react? God, I hope we react like men,” Self said. “In February when you play conference games and you play away from home, there’s a great chance even the best teams leave unhappy. We just can’t let one become two.”
For Kansas, that mindset could determine whether it climbs into contention for a regular-season title or settles into the crowded middle. In a conference where every arena and road feels like a postseason test, surviving February may be the ultimate separator.