Illinois will play host to Kansas in a charity exhibition basketball sport on Oct. 29 at State Farm Middle in Champaign, Illinois, that can elevate cash for the continued reduction efforts after the tragic wildfires in Maui, Hawaii. The preseason sport was set to be a closed scrimmage between the 2 packages however it should now be open to the general public for followers to attend.
The confirmed demise toll from the wildfires has surpassed 100, in keeping with CBS Information, with greater than 1,000 individuals unaccounted for as of earlier this week. The catastrophe has destroyed greater than 2,200 constructions.
“For many years, the Maui Invitational and town of Lahaina have been essential to varsity basketball and our ideas and prayers go to that total neighborhood as they recuperate from such a tragic occasion,” Kansas coach Invoice Self mentioned in a launch saying the occasion. “Brad (Underwood) and I mentioned how our non-public scrimmage might turn out to be an exhibition sport to boost cash to profit the so many affected by the latest catastrophic fires in Maui. We each felt this might be an effective way for our packages to create consciousness to assist this trigger.”
Self will probably be returning to the sidelines for the primary time for the reason that finish of the 2022-23 common season after lacking the Large 12 and NCAA Event resulting from well being points. Kansas assistant coach Norm Roberts served because the appearing head coach and the Jayhawks fell to Arkansas within the second spherical to finish their season.
Self has been the coach at Kansas since 2003 however beforehand spent three seasons because the coach at Illinois earlier than he was employed by the Jayhawks.
“It’s heartbreaking to see the lack of life and devastation from the fires which have ravaged Lahaina,” Underwood mentioned in one other launch. “The Maui Invitational is an integral a part of faculty basketball, and we’re pondering of everybody on the island of Maui who’ve felt the influence of this tragedy. Invoice and I talked instantly about how we might come collectively to assist, and turning our closed scrimmage right into a charity exhibition is a approach we will use our sport to make an influence. The highlight of this sport, heightened by Invoice’s return to Champaign, ought to elevate significant {dollars} that can go immediately to assist the neighborhood of Lahaina.”
Kansas enters the season as one of many prime preseason groups within the nation. The Jayhawks added former Michigan star Hunter Dickinson by way of the switch portal and return Dajuan Harris, Kevin McCullar and KJ Adams Jr. As for Illinois, they return one of many oldest rosters within the nation, together with veteran starters Coleman Hawkins and Terrence Shannon Jr. from a group that completed 20-13 and reached the NCAA Event.