Big 12: Kansas Jayhawks’ Cliff Alexander Now Facing Eligibility Issues

Nov 28, 2014; Kissimmee, FL, USA; Kansas Jayhawks forward Cliff Alexander (2) claps and reacts against the Tennessee Volunteers during the second half at HP Field House. Kansas Jayhawks defeated the Tennessee Volunteers 82-67. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports

Sometimes, adversity shows up on your doorstep at a very inopportune time and leaves you with no choice but to deal with it on the fly.

That became the case for the Big 12-leading Kansas Jayhawks on Saturday afternoon, as only hours before they were set to host a desperate Texas Longhorns team in Allen Fieldhouse, the news broke that the Jayhawks’ former five-star recruit and freshman power forward Cliff Alexander would be held out of action as a precautionary measure, due to some possible concerns with Alexander’s eligibility.

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Kansas’ athletic director released the following statement with an update on Alexander’s eligibility, via CBSSports.com:

“The NCAA has alerted us to an issue that could affect Cliff’s eligibility,” Kansas athletic director Sheahon Zenger said in a statement. “As a precautionary measure Cliff will not take the court until we have resolved the issue.”

Head coach Bill Self also spoke on the matter and indicated the manner in which Kansas will handle Alexander’s elgibility issue during this process:

“We are committed to NCAA rules compliance and we want to make sure that we take every precaution to minimize the impact on Cliff.”

Despite not having Alexander available in a crucial game against Texas on Saturday – where the Longhorns were in desperate need of a win and featured a front line that could pose some issues for the slumping Jayhawks, who had lost three of their last six – Kansas managed to get enough from the rest of their key guys to defend their home court in a controversial 69-64 finish over the Horns.

The Jayhawks now gets to close out their regular season stint with a rematch against a tough, physical No. 20 West Virginia team that feature Devin Williams and Jonathan Holton in the paint, before heading to Norman to face the No. 16 Oklahoma Sooners, who have now won eight of their last nine.

One could argue that Alexander, who has practically been a non-factor for the Jayhawks as of late, as he’s averaged only 3.7 points and 3.7 rebounds over the last nine games, which includes a total of six points in Kansas’ last four games.

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There’s no denying that Alexander hasn’t lived up to his potential during this recent stretch, and it’s not even close.

But there’s also no denying that there’s a lot on the line for the Jayhawks as the regular season winds down and March Madness quickly approaches, with Kansas seeking their 11th straight Big 12 regular season title, as well as some momentum heading into the Big 12 tournament and ultimately, the NCAA tournament.

Kansas gets to close their regular season with two-straight ranked opponents, and they’ll likely see more of the same in the Big 12 tourney. From there, it becomes a survive-and-advance situation and the projected No. 2-seed Jayhawks could certainly use Alexander’s big, physical presence when the games matter most, regardless of how inferior his performance as of late has been.

There’s still no word as to how long Alexander could be out for Kansas, but he has been cleared to practice with the team.

Was just told that Cliff Alexander is allowed to practice with the team. #kubball
— JayhawkSlant (@JayhawkSlant) March 1, 2015

Alexander has averaged 7.1 points, 5.3 rebounds and 1.3 blocks in 17.6 minutes per game as a freshman.

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