Everyone seems to have a prescription to cure Kansas’ basketball struggles—including the players.

“We just have to stay tough-minded,” senior guard Russell Robinson said. “Stay focused on the game and do what we need to do to contribute to the team.”

Senior forward Darnell Jackson thinks the Jayhawks need to get on the same page.

“You have to know your role every game,” Jackson said. “You cannot come into one game and not know what to do. Everyone has to bring something to the table.”

Kansas players have solutions, but still some wonder: What is the matter with Kansas?

The Jayhawks—once seemingly unbeatable at 20-0—have stumbled to a 4-3 record in their last seven games.

The swagger displayed so prominently in every early season blowout seems to have vanished into the Allen Fieldhouse “phog.”

Bill Self said he sees this every year. Top-ranked college basketball teams always seem to get caught looking ahead to March and the NCAA tournament.

If that’s the reason for Kansas’ shocking 61-60 loss to Oklahoma State on Saturday, Kansas coach Bill Self is not happy about it.

“It really is a sad commentary if it’s occurring with us,” Self said.

For one, Kansas is aiming for a fourth consecutive regular season title­—one that seemed guaranteed a month ago. But after Kansas’ loss to Oklahoma State, the Jayhawks find themselves looking up at Texas in the Big 12 standings. The Jayhawks, at 9-3, are one game behind the 10-2 Longhorns.

“Right now there are a lot of teams where the regular season doesn’t mean much,” Self said. “But to us it means a ton. We are playing for an opportunity to win a league championship.”

But as Kansas tries to refocus, Self admitted Monday that Kansas’ weaknesses have been magnified during the last few weeks.

“I got a list,” Self said.

That list includes defensive breakdowns, closing out games and committing turnovers—problems that were on full display against Oklahoma State.

“The reason we are not playing near as well right now is strictly intangibles,” Self said. “Things that have nothing to do with putting the ball in the basket. It has a lot to do with the mindset of putting the ball in the basket.”

A prime intangible is confidence and Jackson said the Jayhawks’ confidence had lowered.

“I think we are still confident, but not at the level where we used to be at the beginning of the season,” Jackson said.

With their confidence shaken, sophomore Darrell Arthur said he saw only one solution.

“We have to go back into the gym and get back to work,” Arthur said.

—Edited by Nick Mangiaracina