10B GAME DAY THE UNIVERSITY BALY KANSAN FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 15, 2008 KU TIPOFF WHERE THE BUFFALO ROAM Jayhawks face off against lowest-ranked team in Big 12 ATAGLANCE KANSAS V5. COLORADO 12:45 p.m., Allen Fieldhouse, ESPN+ A game against Colorado in the middle of Big 12 play may seem meaningless, but the Jayhawks have plenty to prove. First, they have to show that the Buffaloes got lucky when they played well against them two weeks ago. Kansas needs to jump on Colorado from the beginning. Secondly, the Hawks need to show they are over Monday's loss and that they are ready to rebound at a high level and show more toughness. This game should be a blowout if Kansas is motivated like it should be. WHOTOWATCH Brandon Rush, 6-foot-6 junior guard The last two games were difficult for Rush. After shooting the ball well throughout most of Big 12 Will the shots start falling for the KU guards? play, he is starting to struggle. He's made two of his last nine three-pointers and eight of his last 21 field goals. He's been to the free-throw line only nine times in the past seven games. Rush can have a big game against Colorado if he wants to. The Buffaloes can't guard him well enough to take him out of the game. QUESTION MARK It's tough to say. Kansas shot the ball from three-point range better than any team for the first half of conference play. The struggles are new. Self said all teams went through lulls and would eventually snap out. Saturday could be a good time for the missing to stop. Colorado is a sub-par team, and the Jayhawks should be able to get open looks. Expect Kansas' shooting to get back on track. HEARYE. HEARYE "I think he has become a better player. I have said it all along. The ACL (injury) will allow him to become a better basketball player over time. This is where we should see it. As he gets healthy and is real close to 100 percent, the technique things and the things that he has done to get him to this position will now allow him to be a better player because he won't just rely on athletic ability." "I don't know. I'd have to say yes. I do think I'm a better overall player as far as passing the ball, making shots, getting to the hole, I do think I'm a better player. I always understand the game pretty well-I have always known the game." Bill Self on Brandon Rush —Rush on whether he thought he had become a better player because of his injury Kansas (23-2,8-2) THE PROJECTED STARTING 5 Russell Robinson, 6-foot-1 senior guard He guarded D.J. Augustin well but forgot to block out. Bill Self said the guards were as much to blame for the rebounding problems on Monday night as the big men. When all the other guards were hesitant to shoot in the second half against Texas on Monday, Chalmers fired away. It was good that he was aggressive, but he didn't make enough of his shots. Mario Chalmers, 6-foot-1 junior guard COLORADO Brandon Rush, 6-foot-6 junior guard Darnell Jackson, 6 foot-8 senior forward Jackson only scored two points in the second half of the Texas game. He needs to do more than that if Kansas is going to play at its highest level. That whole talk about him being aggressive for the rest of the season obviously wasn't true. Rush hasn't been shooting the ball enough in the second half of games. Darrell Arthur, 6-foot-9 sophomore forward If Arthur continues to rebound and score like he's done the past two games, he'll be a first team all-conference pick and a tough sell to stick around for another year instead of entering the NBA Draft. THE PROJECTED STARTING 5 Marcus Hall, 6-foot-2 senior guard The Houston native shot 3-of-6 from the three point line and had 13 points in Colorado loss to Kansas on Feb. 2. THE SIXTH MAN Marcus Hall, 6-foot-2 senior guard Sherron Collins, 5-foot-11. sophomore guard The old Jayhawks show up. You know, the team that toasted Oklahoma and made a joke out of Miami and Ohio. Kansas looked like a dominant team earlier this season. The last two weeks, the Jayhawks haven't played the same. Kansas needs to bring back the intensity and toughness it played with earlier this season and turn this Colorado game into a laugher early in the first half. Allen Fieldhouse Will Rock If... So much for being all the way back. Collins looked timid again Monday night against Texas. When he's at his best, the Jayhawks are too. The Danville, Calif., freshman has started every game, averaging 8.4 points per game. Higgins father, Rod, is the General Manager of the NBA's Charlotte Bobcats. Cory Higgins, 6-foot-5 freshman guard Mark Dent Dwight Thorne II, 6-foot-3 sophomore guard Thorne, the cousin of former Texas A&M guard Acie Law IV, is playing 14.5 points per game. He started his third game of the season against Oklahoma last Saturday. ★★★☆★ Richard Roby, 6-foot-6 senior guard Rogers is a former Kansas recruit and a former high school teammate of Darrell Sherron Collins Arthur. He's also Baylor's only scoring option in the frontcourt. Marcus King- Stockton, 6-foot-9 senior forward King-Stockton is Colorado's only starter over 6-foot-6. The Denver native was limited to three points in Colorado's first game against Kansas. Xavier Silas, 6-foot-5 sophomore guard Silas has started 19 games, but came off the bench against Oklahoma last Saturday, scoring six points in 20 minutes. Rustin Dodd Phog Allen Will Roll Over In Over In His Grave If... Richard Roby puts on a show in his last game at Allen Fieldhouse. Hard to believe but Roby will finally be gone. He went from outstanding freshman to super sophomore to forgotten upperclassmen. He still a good player but like Russell Robinson said two weeks ago, "He's not as good as he was his freshman year." Perhaps Roby will put on a final show and score 30 or more points. It's unlikely but not impossible. If he does, Colorado might have a small chance to win. CU TIPOFF AT AGLANCE WHO TO WATCH The Buffaloes surprised some folks the last time they faced Kansas. Colorado and Kansas were tied up at halftime, 30-30, before Kansas pulled away for a 72-59 victory. Colorado's surprise performance against might have been a much-needed confidence booster. In its last two games, Colorado lost narrowly at Oklahoma State 64-63, and upset Oklahoma in Boulder, Colo., 72-58. Senior guard Richard Roby — who scored 22 points against Kansas on Feb. 2 — is averaging 17.8 points per game in his last five games. But will any of that matter on Saturday? Colorado hasn't won at Allen Fieldhouse since 1983. Richard Roby, 6-foot-6 senior guard The easy answer is Roby, and that's because most of the Roby bullies just aren't worth watching. Anytime an NBA talent comes into Allen Fieldhouse, fans should take notice. Roby's critics screamed for years about how he's underachieved during his four-year career, but he still has the size, skill and athleticism to make millions of dollars playing basketball. He's Colorado's leading scorer at 17.1 points per game, and his tomahawk dunk against Kansas Feb. 2 was definitely YouTube-worthy. QUESTION MARK Who's the worst team in the conference? The Buffs are sitting in 12th place in the Big 12 after Oklahoma State upset Baylor on Thursday. Colorado is also the only team in the conference with a losing record. First-year coach Jeff Bzdelik inherited a downtrodden program, and he's got the coaching skill to turn Colorado around. But right now, Colorado is living in lastplace-ville, population: one. HEAR YE. HEAR YE "I really feel like Colorado, when you look at their scores, they've played better at home, but they're one of the teams that has gotten a lot better on the road. They lose to Texas by a basket, they lose to Oklahoma State by one, they've made gradual improvement the whole time. Even though we won the game by 13 out there, I don't think our players will think that was easy, because they made us play the entire 40 minutes." — Bill Self on playing Colorado AYHAWK STATS
PlayerMinsFG-FGA3FG-3FGARebsPts
00 Arthur, Darrell23.4145-2702-116.014.0
32 Jackson, Darnell24.8121-1892-56.912.4
25 Rush, Brandon27.7100-23045-1095.112.3
15 Chalmers, Mario29.295-18338-862.912.1
04 Collins, Sherron23.068-14623-651.99.4
24 Kaun, Sasha17.670-1100-03.97.4
03 Robinson, Russell27.651-12723-732.67.4
05 Stewart, Rodrick13.432-653-142.63.4
45 Aldrich, Cole8.427-520-03.22.9
02 Teahan, Conner3.515-2511-180.62.9
14 Reed, Tyrel7.215-309-210.52.3
10 Case, Jeremy5.012-356-200.31.5
11 Bechard, Brennan1.84-82-50.31.2
54 Kleinmann, Matt2.32-60-00.60.4
22 Buford, Chase1.81-90-60.50.2
40 Witherspoon, Brad1.70-30-20.20.0
PREDICTION 86-58 Kansas This game won't even be close.The Jayhawks have to prove they are still a dominant team and the team to beat in the Big 12. Witherspoon Meter Will senior walk-on Brad Witherspoon get the opportunity to play tonight? This meter tells all. BUFFALO STATS Player Mins FG-FGA 3FG-3FGA Rebs Pts 23 Roby, Richard 33.9 135-267 35-83 6.4 17.1 01 Hall, Marcus 36.8 109-233 39-99 3.9 12.9 13 Silas, Xavier 30.2 66-167 19-60 3.2 9.9 11 Higgins, Cory 32.7 68-148 21-58 4.1 8.4 24 Knutson, Levi 16.9 36-86 20-58 1.3 4.7 31 Jackson-Wilson, Jermey 18.6 44-93 0-2 4.2 4.5 12 Thorne II, Dwight 14.5 22-54 7-25 1.4 3.4 32 King-Stockton, Marcus 15.8 18-37 0-2 3.2 2.4 21 Patterson, Caleb 8.7 6-26 1-10 1.4 1.5 25 Zehnder, Andrew 2.8 2-3 1-1 0.0 1.3 44 Beckley, Trent 3.2 0-0 0-0 0.3 0.3 14 Coney, Javon 2.8 1-4 0-3 0.2 0.3 . 1