Post by MizzouTiger on Feb 25, 2008 22:46:01 GMT -5
www.kansascity.com/166/story/502844.html
Cowboys expose KU's flaws, eke out a win
By J. BRADY McCOLLOUGH
The Kansas City Star
STILLWATER, Okla. | Maybe Russell Robinson is right. Maybe it isn’t all that important who wins the Big 12 championship.
After all, what good has it done for the Jayhawks the last three years?
“I’m not worried about it,” Robinson said. “Coach obviously is. But you know as well as I do that the most important thing is the postseason, and we gotta prepare to win those games. As much as we want to win the league and those types of things, our most important goal is to play in San Antonio.”
Certainly Kansas’ latest road stumble, a 61-60 defeat at the hands of the surging Oklahoma State Cowboys, isn’t going to hurt KU in its quest to make the Final Four and play games in April. But it won’t help either. The flaws in this fourth-ranked Kansas team, which slipped a game behind Texas in the Big 12 standings, are becoming more apparent with each loss.
And the Jayhawks and their fans are left to wonder:
•What if junior guard Brandon Rush could play two halves? Rush went scoreless in the first half, missing all five of his shots, as KU fell apart offensively with 14 turnovers.
Credit Rush with going against his passive nature and continuing to shoot the ball in the second half. He made five of 11 shots and helped KU fight its way back into the game with 12 points. But it wasn’t enough: He missed a game-winning three-point attempt at the buzzer.
“I didn’t help my team out,” Rush said. “I didn’t rebound the ball, I had a few turnovers. It was really tough for me at halftime.”
Rush’s second-half resurgence didn’t register with KU coach Bill Self.
“He had a terrible day,” Self said.
•Speaking of Rush’s final shot, what if KU could get a decent look on a potential game-tying or game-winning possession? With 9 seconds remaining, KU center Sasha Kaun fouled Byron Eaton as he drove the lane. Eaton made the first of two free throws for a 61-60 lead, but missed his second attempt.
With a chance to win the game, KU went to basically the same play that failed in the closing seconds at Texas. Robinson handed to Mario Chalmers, who dribbled into traffic. He kicked the ball out to Rush, who fired up a contested three-pointer when all the Jayhawks needed was a two.
It certainly wasn’t pretty.
•What if KU sophomore forward Darrell Arthur could stay out of foul trouble? Arthur, considered the Jayhawks’ most talented offensive weapon, played 17 minutes, scoring six points on one-of-three shooting.
“One of these days,” Self said, “we’re going to get a consistent 27 to 30 minutes from him.”
Arthur, who has spent too much time on the bench during Big 12 play, was called for a technical foul with 15 minutes left in the first half that served as his second personal. He would foul out at the 6-minute mark while hedging on a screen 22 feet from the basket.
“I couldn’t get in any flow of the game,” Arthur said.
•What if the Jayhawks, 24-3, 9-3 in the Big 12, had a guy like Eaton, a player with free rein to dominate?
Eaton willed the Cowboys, 14-12, 5-7, to their improbable victory. All 11,978 fans at Gallagher-Iba Arena knew the reigning Big 12 player of the week was going to drive each time down the floor and make something happen. Eaton finished with 26 points and made 16 of 18 free throws.
The Jayhawks may have one of the most talented group of guards in the country, but nobody has emerged as the go-to guy. It’s a tired refrain.
Eaton “was the man of the game,” KU forward Darnell Jackson said. “He got it in his mind that he was going to take over the game, and that’s what he did.”
Rush tried to do the same for Kansas, but it turned out to be too late.
Now the Jayhawks find themselves in an awkward position, pulling for a Texas loss and hoping that they can find a way to win their last four games, two of which are on the road — at Iowa State and Texas A&M. KU is 3-3 in Big 12 road games.
But Robinson, one of KU’s senior leaders, isn’t worrying too much about the league race. He’s seeing a much bigger picture.
“We’re going to find out what kind of a team we are now,” Robinson said. “You’re going to lose games. We gotta be able to tough it out and turn it around and finish.”
Cowboys expose KU's flaws, eke out a win
By J. BRADY McCOLLOUGH
The Kansas City Star
STILLWATER, Okla. | Maybe Russell Robinson is right. Maybe it isn’t all that important who wins the Big 12 championship.
After all, what good has it done for the Jayhawks the last three years?
“I’m not worried about it,” Robinson said. “Coach obviously is. But you know as well as I do that the most important thing is the postseason, and we gotta prepare to win those games. As much as we want to win the league and those types of things, our most important goal is to play in San Antonio.”
Certainly Kansas’ latest road stumble, a 61-60 defeat at the hands of the surging Oklahoma State Cowboys, isn’t going to hurt KU in its quest to make the Final Four and play games in April. But it won’t help either. The flaws in this fourth-ranked Kansas team, which slipped a game behind Texas in the Big 12 standings, are becoming more apparent with each loss.
And the Jayhawks and their fans are left to wonder:
•What if junior guard Brandon Rush could play two halves? Rush went scoreless in the first half, missing all five of his shots, as KU fell apart offensively with 14 turnovers.
Credit Rush with going against his passive nature and continuing to shoot the ball in the second half. He made five of 11 shots and helped KU fight its way back into the game with 12 points. But it wasn’t enough: He missed a game-winning three-point attempt at the buzzer.
“I didn’t help my team out,” Rush said. “I didn’t rebound the ball, I had a few turnovers. It was really tough for me at halftime.”
Rush’s second-half resurgence didn’t register with KU coach Bill Self.
“He had a terrible day,” Self said.
•Speaking of Rush’s final shot, what if KU could get a decent look on a potential game-tying or game-winning possession? With 9 seconds remaining, KU center Sasha Kaun fouled Byron Eaton as he drove the lane. Eaton made the first of two free throws for a 61-60 lead, but missed his second attempt.
With a chance to win the game, KU went to basically the same play that failed in the closing seconds at Texas. Robinson handed to Mario Chalmers, who dribbled into traffic. He kicked the ball out to Rush, who fired up a contested three-pointer when all the Jayhawks needed was a two.
It certainly wasn’t pretty.
•What if KU sophomore forward Darrell Arthur could stay out of foul trouble? Arthur, considered the Jayhawks’ most talented offensive weapon, played 17 minutes, scoring six points on one-of-three shooting.
“One of these days,” Self said, “we’re going to get a consistent 27 to 30 minutes from him.”
Arthur, who has spent too much time on the bench during Big 12 play, was called for a technical foul with 15 minutes left in the first half that served as his second personal. He would foul out at the 6-minute mark while hedging on a screen 22 feet from the basket.
“I couldn’t get in any flow of the game,” Arthur said.
•What if the Jayhawks, 24-3, 9-3 in the Big 12, had a guy like Eaton, a player with free rein to dominate?
Eaton willed the Cowboys, 14-12, 5-7, to their improbable victory. All 11,978 fans at Gallagher-Iba Arena knew the reigning Big 12 player of the week was going to drive each time down the floor and make something happen. Eaton finished with 26 points and made 16 of 18 free throws.
The Jayhawks may have one of the most talented group of guards in the country, but nobody has emerged as the go-to guy. It’s a tired refrain.
Eaton “was the man of the game,” KU forward Darnell Jackson said. “He got it in his mind that he was going to take over the game, and that’s what he did.”
Rush tried to do the same for Kansas, but it turned out to be too late.
Now the Jayhawks find themselves in an awkward position, pulling for a Texas loss and hoping that they can find a way to win their last four games, two of which are on the road — at Iowa State and Texas A&M. KU is 3-3 in Big 12 road games.
But Robinson, one of KU’s senior leaders, isn’t worrying too much about the league race. He’s seeing a much bigger picture.
“We’re going to find out what kind of a team we are now,” Robinson said. “You’re going to lose games. We gotta be able to tough it out and turn it around and finish.”