Post by MizzouTiger on Jan 21, 2008 2:04:56 GMT -5
www.columbiatribune.com/2008/Jan/20080120Spor010.asp
Scratch, claw, clank
Tigers fight hard but can’t connect against No. 3 KU.
By STEVE WALENTIK of the Tribune’s staff
Published Sunday, January 20, 2008
Missouri lore remained unchanged last night.
There was no one stripping the ball to preserve a victory the way John Woods once did, no one knocking down game-clinching foul shots à la Simeon Haley and certainly no unlikely hero hitting an unforgettable shot the way Corey Tate once had.
The story of the latest installment in the Missouri-Kansas rivalry, told from the Tigers’ point of view, included an effort that, though valiant, was not quite good enough to stop the third-ranked Jayhawks from remaining unbeaten with a 76-70 victory at Mizzou Arena.
"We just couldn’t get it done," MU junior DeMarre Carroll said. "We got it down to the last minute. That’s the time when we’re really supposed to show up."
What Missouri, trailing 70-63 heading into that final minute, really needed was a rally along the lines of what Thomas Gardner orchestrated three years ago at Mizzou Arena, but the Jayhawks wouldn’t allow it. They made the last six of their 28 free throws - in 45 attempts - in the final 58.3 seconds to close out the victory in less than dramatic fashion.
Few figured the Tigers (11-7, 1-2 Big 12) would even be within praying distance heading into the last minute.
This Kansas team looked as dominant as any to come to Columbia in the past decade. The Jayhawks (18-0, 3-0) had won their first 17 games by an average of more than 25 points and had dismantled Oklahoma by 30 points in front of a national television audience on Monday night in Lawrence.
There was little reason to believe Missouri could match up with Kansas’ roster of high-school All-Americans. Its guards were too poised and quick, its forwards too big and athletic, and it was assumed Kansas eventually would find a way to exploit a Tigers’ team that had troubles controlling the glass or locking up opponents on the defensive end.
The Tigers teased a sell-out crowd of 15,061 by jumping out to a 7-1 lead.
When Vaidotas Volkus, thrown into the starting lineup in place of the struggling Leo Lyons, knocked in his first jumper, then contributed an assist and another basket in the first four minutes, some surely thought this might turn out to be Missouri’s night.
But it takes 40 minutes to beat a team as talented as the Jayhawks, and the Tigers did not do nearly enough the rest of the night to pull off the upset.
It took Kansas barely more than a minute to erase Missouri’s advantage. The Jayhawks had tied it up at 9 with 16:50 left and would never trail by more than five again the rest of the game.
A 3-pointer from Russell Robinson erased the Tigers’ final advantage with 1:17 left in the opening half, putting KU ahead 36-34, and Darnell Jackson’s bucket with 37 seconds left gave the Jayhawks a 38-36 lead at intermission.
Missouri didn’t make enough shots to ever really mount a charge in the second half. The team that a week earlier shot better than 70 percent in the second half to upset Texas made only 34.1 percent against the Jayhawks. They shot just 4 for 10 from the foul line after intermission.
"I think we got lucky tonight, to be real candid, in that they missed some shots that they would normally make," KU Coach Bill Self said.
Stefhon Hannah finished with a game-high 23 points but was only 7 for 20 from the field. DeMarre Carroll had only five points on 2-for-11 shooting. Matt Lawrence finished 2 for 10 and missed eight 3-pointers.
Collectively, the Tigers finished the game shooting 38 percent.
"I know I didn’t make any shots, especially in crunch time," Lawrence said. "We’ve got to shoot the ball well, and we’ve got to get to the free-throw line."
Kansas did. That’s why it didn’t matter that Tigers held the Jayhawks to 40 percent shooting, their second-worst performance of the season, or kept them from making a field goal in the final 7:23. Every time they needed points, they got them on the free-throw line.
Mario Chalmers scored eight of his 18 points from the free-throw line. Brandon Rush got nine of his 13 there in 14 attempts.
Coach Mike Anderson was clearly bothered by the number of foul shots the Jayhawks attempted.
"I’ve never seen so many block-charges and none of them went our way," he said. "As a coach, that’s hard to take."
Scratch, claw, clank
Tigers fight hard but can’t connect against No. 3 KU.
By STEVE WALENTIK of the Tribune’s staff
Published Sunday, January 20, 2008
Missouri lore remained unchanged last night.
There was no one stripping the ball to preserve a victory the way John Woods once did, no one knocking down game-clinching foul shots à la Simeon Haley and certainly no unlikely hero hitting an unforgettable shot the way Corey Tate once had.
The story of the latest installment in the Missouri-Kansas rivalry, told from the Tigers’ point of view, included an effort that, though valiant, was not quite good enough to stop the third-ranked Jayhawks from remaining unbeaten with a 76-70 victory at Mizzou Arena.
"We just couldn’t get it done," MU junior DeMarre Carroll said. "We got it down to the last minute. That’s the time when we’re really supposed to show up."
What Missouri, trailing 70-63 heading into that final minute, really needed was a rally along the lines of what Thomas Gardner orchestrated three years ago at Mizzou Arena, but the Jayhawks wouldn’t allow it. They made the last six of their 28 free throws - in 45 attempts - in the final 58.3 seconds to close out the victory in less than dramatic fashion.
Few figured the Tigers (11-7, 1-2 Big 12) would even be within praying distance heading into the last minute.
This Kansas team looked as dominant as any to come to Columbia in the past decade. The Jayhawks (18-0, 3-0) had won their first 17 games by an average of more than 25 points and had dismantled Oklahoma by 30 points in front of a national television audience on Monday night in Lawrence.
There was little reason to believe Missouri could match up with Kansas’ roster of high-school All-Americans. Its guards were too poised and quick, its forwards too big and athletic, and it was assumed Kansas eventually would find a way to exploit a Tigers’ team that had troubles controlling the glass or locking up opponents on the defensive end.
The Tigers teased a sell-out crowd of 15,061 by jumping out to a 7-1 lead.
When Vaidotas Volkus, thrown into the starting lineup in place of the struggling Leo Lyons, knocked in his first jumper, then contributed an assist and another basket in the first four minutes, some surely thought this might turn out to be Missouri’s night.
But it takes 40 minutes to beat a team as talented as the Jayhawks, and the Tigers did not do nearly enough the rest of the night to pull off the upset.
It took Kansas barely more than a minute to erase Missouri’s advantage. The Jayhawks had tied it up at 9 with 16:50 left and would never trail by more than five again the rest of the game.
A 3-pointer from Russell Robinson erased the Tigers’ final advantage with 1:17 left in the opening half, putting KU ahead 36-34, and Darnell Jackson’s bucket with 37 seconds left gave the Jayhawks a 38-36 lead at intermission.
Missouri didn’t make enough shots to ever really mount a charge in the second half. The team that a week earlier shot better than 70 percent in the second half to upset Texas made only 34.1 percent against the Jayhawks. They shot just 4 for 10 from the foul line after intermission.
"I think we got lucky tonight, to be real candid, in that they missed some shots that they would normally make," KU Coach Bill Self said.
Stefhon Hannah finished with a game-high 23 points but was only 7 for 20 from the field. DeMarre Carroll had only five points on 2-for-11 shooting. Matt Lawrence finished 2 for 10 and missed eight 3-pointers.
Collectively, the Tigers finished the game shooting 38 percent.
"I know I didn’t make any shots, especially in crunch time," Lawrence said. "We’ve got to shoot the ball well, and we’ve got to get to the free-throw line."
Kansas did. That’s why it didn’t matter that Tigers held the Jayhawks to 40 percent shooting, their second-worst performance of the season, or kept them from making a field goal in the final 7:23. Every time they needed points, they got them on the free-throw line.
Mario Chalmers scored eight of his 18 points from the free-throw line. Brandon Rush got nine of his 13 there in 14 attempts.
Coach Mike Anderson was clearly bothered by the number of foul shots the Jayhawks attempted.
"I’ve never seen so many block-charges and none of them went our way," he said. "As a coach, that’s hard to take."