Section B
The University Daily Kansan
Meglomania at its finest
Sports
Paul Allen, Microsoft cofounder and owner of two professional teams, bought The Sporting News yesterday. Apparently Sports Illustrated wouldn't accept stock options.
Inside: Sophomore Marlon London is the do-it-all guy for the 'Hawks — defense, offense and attitude.
SEE PAGE 3B
Inside: Forward Toni Kukoc was traded form the Chicago Bulls to the Philadelphia 76ers in a three-way trade yesterday. Sriram FP
THURSDAY FEBRUARY 17, 2000
SEE PAGE 5B
Sports Columnist
WWW.KANSAN.COM/SPORTS
sport @kansan.com
Jason Walker
Marcus Fizer too tough for Jayhawks
Marcus Fizer is a large man.
Marcus Fizer is intimidating. At the Kansas men's basketball game last night against Iowa State, even sitting in the stands, I was leery of his presence on the basketball court.
Marcus Fizer is scary. He looks mean, he acts mean and he plays mean. He could be the best player in the Big 12 Conference. His Iowa State Cyclones have only one Big 12 defeat, a double-overtime loss at Oklahoma.
Marcus Fizer beat the Jayhawks. Not only did he record 15 points and ten boards, he was the man who made an off-balance 18-footer with ten seconds left in the game that drove the nail in the coffin of the Jayhawks.
It was a shot that Kansas coach Roy Williams said was representative of the way Marcus Fizer plays the game.
"Fizer is just so big," he said. "He made a tough shot, and it beat us."
That's not to say that Fizer wasn't helped by his teammates to crush Kansas' hopes. But it was Fizer who set the tone with his touch play, confidence and overall ability.
In fact, even the Kansas players seemed to feel Fizer's confidence on the court. Forward Drew Gooden said that although he wasn't intimidated by Fizer's reputation and play, he could tell that Fizer knew all along his team could win the ball game.
"He knocked it down when they needed it," Gooden said. "And it was like when he knocked it down he said, 'I told you so.'"
Fizer has something the Jayhawks lack — confidence that at any time in the ball game, no matter how the game is going, his team can win.
Gooden put it all in perspective when he offered a way to stop Marcus Fizer.
And he knows that when the game is on the line, he's getting the ball — Fizer is the go-to guy for the Cyclones. He's reminiscent of Kansas two years ago when the game was on the line and coach Williams needed someone to call, he'd dial up Paul Pierce or Raef LaFrentz. Williams doesn't have that luxury anymore. Cyclone coach Larry Eustachy does.
"Don't let him catch the ball," he said. "He's just a great player. I thought we did a great job on him."
And the 'Hawks did play great defense. They came out in the first half cutting off the lane, stopping the drive and playing great man-to-man. Then, in the second half, they went to a zone that didn't allow the Cyclones much to work with. But it was enough.
Jayhawk fans shouldn't feel bad about last night's loss. Although they didn't shoot well, Kansas played well in areas they had been lacking in, especially defense. They played in front of a loud home crowd that saw a match-up between two of the top teams in one of the top conferences in the country.
But it's hard to stop a freight train. The big, scary, freight train of Marcus Fizer's Cyclones.
And at the end of the game, Fizer showed he still had something left in the caboose.
Walker is a Mulvane junior in journalism.
Cyclones slash Big 12 title hopes for Jayhawks
Bv Shawn Hutchinson
By Shawn Hutchinson sports@kansan.com
Kansan sportswriter
The Iowa State Cyclones have been tearing up all kinds of debris lately.
The Cyclones have won 18 of 19 games, torn through five straight Big 12 Conference opponents and cleared themselves a path straight to a No. 14 national ranking.
The debris took on the tinge of crimson and last night.
Marcus Fizer hit an off-balance 18-foot turnaround jumper with six seconds left — a dagger that struck straight in the heart of No. 24 Kansas in a 64-62 loss to Iowa State at Allen Fieldhouse.
"It looked like it was going to go in and out around the rim," said Kansas forward Drew Gooden. "It was the right shot at the right time."
Kansas held an 11-point lead halfway through the second half and was up 59-53 with 3:06 remaining. Then the Cyclones went on a vicious run, sparked by three steals, which helped them tie the game at 59-59 with 1:43 remaining.
From there, the Jayhawks' fortunes dropped like a ton of rocks. Kansas guard Jeff Bosche missed a three-point shot, and the rebound was corralled by Iowa State guard Michael Nurse. Nurse was fouled by Kansas forward Nick Collison and hit both free-throws. That gave Iowa State a 61-59 lead with 1:11 remaining.
On Kansas' next possession, Kenny Gregory missed a jumper with 47 seconds left and Nurse again got the board — one of five rebounds on the night.
Instead of fouling, Kansas opted to let Iowa State milk the clock. That decision proved costly when Fizer's shot hit the bottom of the net and gave the Cyclones a 63-59 lead.
Kansas was able to pull within one-point when Jeff Boschee canned a three-pointer, but that was too little too late.
"I think it's obvious how much it
hurts," Collison said. "They made some plays and grabbed it from us."
Other than Fizer's miracle heave, the Jayhawks were killed with their inability to keep their poise down the stretch.
"We turned it over three straight times, and they went down and scored every time." Williams said.
Because the Jayhawks were unable to make those plays, they dropped to 18-7 overall and out of the Big 12 title race at 7-4. Iowa State improved to 22-3 and 10-1.
The night wasn't a good one for Kansas in terms of foul trouble, and it was even worse for Boschee. Boschee, who started his second straight game at off-guard, shot a horrendous two-for-17 from the field, while the Jayhawks committed 26 personal fouls.
The foul problems sent the Cyclones to the charity stripe 28 times, and they converted 15 of those opportunities.
The loss snapped a 12-game home winning streak.
“It’s frustrating and one I will remember for a long time,” Williams said. “I really wanted our team to do something special tonight. It’s been a tough year in a lot of ways.
"We're going to keep trying and see what happens."
NO. 14 IOWA ST. 64.
NO. 24 KANSAS 62
IOWA ST. (22-3)
Fiter 7-16 1-8 15, Johnson 2-3 1-2 5, Horton 1-8 0-
3, Tinsley 4-6 4-6 12, Nurse 3-12 4-12, Hawkins
2-6 1-2 5, Nursey 4-5 4-8 12, Totals 23-56 15-28 64.
KANSAS (18-7)
Gooden 4-9 2-1 11, Collison 1-3 2-2 4, Hinrich 4-6
0-0 8, Boschene 2-17 2-2 7, Gregory 3-9 4-6 10,
Nooner 0-0 0-0 0, Bradford 5-6 1-1 11, Carey 0-0 0-
0, London 2-5 0-0 4, Johnson 0-1 0-0 0, Chenowith 3-
8 0-6 0. Totals 24-64 11-13 62.
Halftime—Kansas 26, Iowa St. 25, 3-Point goals—
Iowa St. 31 (Fizer 0-7, Horton 1-6, Tinsley 0-1,
Nurse 2-8), Kansas 3-11 (Gooden 1-2, Boschere 2-9),
Fouled out—Collison, Hinrich, Rebounds—Iowa St.
38 (Fizer 10), Kansas 34 (Gooden 10), Assists—
Iowa St. 15 (Tinney, Nurse 5), Kansas 13 (Hinnick 4)
Total fouls—Iowa St. 15, Kansas 26, A-16,300.
Above: Kirk Hinrich pulls down the ball after faking a shot against Iowa State's Jamaal Tinsley. Hinrich had eight points and four assists. Photo by Jay Shepend/KANSAN
Left: A frustrated Roy Williams tells his players to settle down after a controversial call by the referee during the first half of play against Iowa State. The Jayhawks squandered an 11-point lead late in the second-half and fell to the Cyclones 64-62. Photo by Matt J. Daugherty/KANSAN
Chenowith steps up, but game slips away
Bv Matt Tait
sports@kansan.com
Kansan sportswriter
Before last night's game, Kansas center Eric Chenowith said that his main goal was to stop Iowa State stud Marcus Fizer.
he did shoot it, we were swarming him."
"I thought we did a great job on him in the first half," Chenowith said. "We really limited his touches and when
"In the second half, he had one where he made the basket and got fouled, and then he hit that one at the buzzer," Chenowith said. "I mean, I deflected the ball, I don't know how it went in. He made some amazing plays."
For the first half, Chenowith and the Jayhawks were successful in doing so. They held Fizer to three points on one-seven shooting.
The second half, however, was a different story because when it counted most, Fizer delivered.
Fizer's turnaround — either the one in the second half or the one at the
buzzer that ultimately sealed the game — did not come easy.
At the break, had Kansas up 26-25. Chenowith had five defensive rebounds, two steals and two blocks.
His final numbers reflect Iowa State's surge in the second half, as he only added three rebounds and one block to his first-half numbers.
Nonetheless, Iowa State coach Larry Eustache was impressed with Chenowith's play—especially in light of the fact that Nick Collison played most of the game in foul trouble.
"I think Eric Chenowith came in and did a more than respectable job," Eustachy said.
Kansas coach Roy Williams agreed, but said that no matter how it's looked at, Kansas still lost.
"I thought he was effective," Williams said. "But you can talk about individual performances all you want. The bottom line is our team didn't win."
Cenoweth, drained and down, said he felt like he had been through a war
and that the way the game slipped away was hard to put into words. However, he maintained that the Jayhawks were not out.
“As much as it hurts right now, I think you're going to see a lot from this team down the stretch,” he said. “I have the mentality that I'm not going to give up on us. All we can do is win. Winning takes care of everything.”
The next opportunity for Kansas to win comes Sunday when Oklahoma comes to Allen Fieldhouse.
Junior forward Brooke Reves defends Cyclone guard Tracy Gahan. Reves scored 24 points in the 79-71 win against Iowa State. Photo by Rua Pokaladnik/Iowa State Daily
Jayhawks weather Cyclones, harassing fans
By Chris Fickett
sports@kansan.com
Kansan sportswriter
AMES, Iowa — The Kansas women's basketball team dissipated the vortex last night in Hilton Coliseum.
Iowa State's fans, who had spent the majority of the game arguing calls and harassing Kansas players, were either sitting on their hands or halfway home when the Jayhawks shocked the No. 10 Cyclones 79-71, ending Iowa State's 26-game home winning streak.
Senior center Heather Fletcher, who made a critical offensive rebound down the stretch, yelled and celebrated with her teammates at the half-court line. As the team filed into the locker room, senior guard Lynn Pride embraced coach Marian Washington after a Cyclone fan uttered unpleasantries.
Raymant: had 20 points for the night
Reves: finished with a game-high 24 points
"I've been in this business a long time, and Iowa State has been one of those long rivalries that I've enjoyed. And I really applaud the fact that there's so many people here supporting this team," Washington said. "I just bothers me sometimes when people are so rude and crude to young people."
"The experience we had at Texas Tech has really helped us in the long run," said Washington of her team's 76-56 loss in front of more than 13,000 Red Raider fans. "We have to find ways to maintain our composure and this team did an excellent job."
Kansas, which never trailed, was up by only five points with 1:14 left after Iowa State's Desiree Francis hit one of her two late three-pointers. Senior guard Suzi Raymont was fouled on the inbound play and made both her free throws.
Kansas, which moved to 18-6 and 9-3 in the Big 12 Conference, lost three games last season to the Cyclones, who dropped to 18-5 and 9-3. This year, the 'Hawks are 2-0, mainly because of their composure.
On the Cyclones' next possession, forward Megan Taylor threw a pass right at Raymant, which accounted
for one of Iowa State's 27 turnovers in the game. Raymant then passed the ball to junior forward Brooke Reves, who scored, and pushed Kansas' lead to nine.
Reves finished with a game-high 24 points, shot 12-of-20 from the field and grabbed seven rebounds, four of those offensive.
She was scoreless in the teams' first game this year and was coming off a seven-point performance in a disappointing defeat at Nebraska on Sunday.
On defense, the Jayhawks limited the Cyclones' powerful three-point attack by switching and covering open players. Iowa State finished the
See 'HAWKS on page 3B