KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Texas guard Myck Kabongo was forced into a different role while serving a 23-game NCAA suspension this season. Kabongo was at peace with the ordeal, he said Tuesday, which allowed him to view the game from a coach’s perspective.
“I learned a lot about basketball,” he said. “I took it as a chance to see the game from a different perspective. I got to sit on the sideline and really watch and observe things as a coach, really. That’s what I felt like, an assistant coach. Seeing things about basketball that I hadn’t seen before. When you get to sit down you get to see a different side of the game.”Would he want to coach when his playing days are over?“Maybe,” he said. “I don’t know, if I’m going to have gray hairs like Coach [Rick Barnes].”What All-Big 12 team?TCU coach Trent Johnson said he didn’t know who was named to the All-Big 12 basketball team and indicated he wasn’t in a hurry to look up who made the team and who didn’t. TCU guard Kyan Anderson was the Horned Frogs’ best player this season, but did not make the team. His exclusion wasn’t a surprise, with numerous guards having excellent seasons and the Horned Frogs struggling in last place.“I don’t even know who’s on it,” Johnson said. “All I know is this: winning is everything. The better player you are, the more games you win. And it’s no different with a coach. That’s how I look at those kinds of things.”No one left behindTCU brought its entire roster to the Big 12 Championships, including injured players Amric Fields, Aaron Durley and Jarvis Ray. Trent Johnson said it was always his plan, a way to give thanks to walk-on players who’ve helped during practice all season.“This is their first experience [at the Big 12 Championship] and for some guys it could be their last, whether they’re a senior or not,” Johnson said. “It’s a lot of these guys’ last experience in college basketball.”Stefan Stevenson 817-390-7760 Twitter: @FollowtheFrogs
