Kansas Uniforms by the Numbers

The Kansas basketball program wore a total of six different uniforms this season and we’ll break down how KU did in each uniform and what their signature win and (in some cases) signature loss was.

Home Whites

Of course, playing in these uniforms usually means that KU is playing inside the friendly confines of Allen Fieldhouse, so naturally, the win loss ratio is going to be sky high.

Overall Record: 13-1

Best Win: Utah in Kansas City’s Sprint Center. I’m choosing the Utah win because it was outside of Allen Fieldhouse, and for the spectacular first half that Kansas put together in that game. Also, Utah is in the Sweet 16 and deservedly so.

Worst Loss: It has to be against Wichita State on Sunday. The lone loss in these uniforms was also the most heartbreaking.

"Chalk" Uniforms

These uniforms are sweet and KU usually plays pretty well when wearing them. This season, Kansas was undefeated although the sample size was very low.

Overall Record: 2-0

Best Win: The home win against Oklahoma featured these uniforms and Kansas played an almost perfect first half while wilting in the second.

"Phog" Uniforms

These are KU’s only uniform that has been used as a home and road uniform in recent years. In fact, the only other time I can recall it happening is with the red alternates that were sometimes worn at home and were worn on the road against Missouri to close down the Hearnes Center in style.

Overall Record: 3-0

Best Win: I’m taking a road game here and choosing KU’s win over Texas Tech. The Kent State and Rider home games also featured the beautiful "Phog" set.

"Heritage Classic" Uniform

Kansas only wore these pseudo-throwbacks to the 1988 champions one time and that was in a win over Texas in February. I love these uniforms and I hope they make at least one appearance next season.

Tournament "Specials"

Kansas won two games wearing the inner tube inspired templates that Adidas forced upon all their prominent tournament teams. Kansas beat TCU and Baylor while wearing these duds, but lost to Iowa State in the championship of the conference tournament.

Overall Record: 2-1

None of the wins or the loss was particularly significant, so the question is would you rather KU have worn these or their perfect looking whites when it came time to play in the NCAA tournament? Louisville, UCLA, and NC State might look stupid, but they are still playing. I guess what I’m saying is I’d rather wear these and keep playing than lose in the round of 32. Maybe these hideous uniforms would’ve distracted Wichita’s these-point shooters. We’ll never know.

Road Blues

Here’s where the record goes south. Now, simple deductive reasoning will tell you that these are the uniforms that KU wears on the road, so this is the uniform they will be wearing when most of their losses take place. But when you look at it, some of KU’s finest wins of the season came while wearing these uniforms as well.

Overall Record: 6-7

Best Win: This one is a toss up for me. I considered the Texas game in Austin which, according to Bill Self at the time, was KU’s most complete game, but I nixed that idea when I realized that Texas sucks. I also considered the game at Baylor since the Bears play pretty well in Waco, but again, came to my senses, especially considering KU beat Baylor handily three times.

That left me with the championship of the Orlando Classic against Michigan State. This win will look even better if the Spartans continue to win in the NCAA Tournament.

Worst Loss: Again, contemplation occurred here. I almost chose the K-State loss at Bramlage, but thought better of it. Then I contemplated the destruction at the hands of Kentucky, but that game was not even a game really, so I settled on the game in Morgantown, West Virginia. To me, that game away to West Virginia was the worst loss of the season. It stuck with me the longest. KU had no business losing that game. I’m mad just typing this sentence.

It’s all pretty simple. Kansas wins at home where they wear a variant of white and the road is a little bit more of crap shoot. It’s to be expected. I personally love the blues but love the "Phog" set as well. I’d like to see Kansas wear those grey uniforms when they travel to places like Ames and Stillwater when they know the opposition will wear yellow or orange as a home uniform. So, what do you think?