Kansas Basketball coach Bill Self gets emotional dedicating team’s recent win to late staffer Scott Ward

It was an emotional win for the Kansas Basketball Team. Not because of the last-minute comeback in overtime, but also owing to the unfortunate passing away of a former staffer, Scott Ward. Ward breathed his last just 3 days before Kansas Basketball faced the TCU Horned Frogs. Coach Bill Self was the one who decided to dedicate the win to Ward during a post-game interview.

Born in 1966, Ward gave more than 30 years of his life to the team. His unfortunate demise was announced by his wife on Facebook. Even the official page of the Kansas Basketball team shared a tribute post honoring the legacy of the legend. Ward passed away on Saturday, January 3. Now dedicating the shocking last-minute win to Sott makes the entire thing very emotional.

Bill Self dedicates the Kansas Basketball Team’s shocking overtime comeback to former staffer Scott Wart during the post-game interview

The Kansas Basketball Team was lagging behind the TCU Horned Frogs by 9 points. There was still a minute to go for the game to be over. It was at this moment that the freshman athlete Darryn Peterson stepped up to score three back-to-back free throws, all three-pointers. Peterson was fouled on a 3-pointer with just 1.7 seconds left. Both teams went into overtime and TCU’s missed dunks and KU’s on-time inbounds helped the latter secure a win with a 3-point lead. It was a dramatic win for the team. Right after the game ended, Melvin Council Jr. pointed towards the SW patch on their jerseys and said, “Do it for Scooter, man. Scooter was with us today.”


Coach Bill Self, during a post-game interview, decided to officially dedicate the win to the late Scott Ward. He stated, “Whatever the announced attendance was tonight, we had plus-one, and I think that probably had as much to do with it as anything.” The coach further added, “Maybe our No. 1 fan for the last quarter-century was looking down on us.” The entire university mourned the death of the legend during the game in the stadium. Students were seen holding up his name, honoring the late athlete.

What was Scott Ward’s role within the Kansas Basketball Team?

Scott Ward completed his bachelor’s, master’s and doctoral degrees at the Kansas University. Immediately after this, he joined the athletic department's academic support program in the summer of 2003. Since then, both Ward and Bill Self have worked together. Ward worked primarily with the Men’s basketball and volleyball teams. He served as a mental performance coach and coordinator of support services. Ward also served as the KU’s Athletics Director of peak performance and leadership.

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