SPORTS
TUESDAY, MARCH 8, 2005
PAGE 10A
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Langford's ankle not broken
Rvlan Howe/KANSAN
Senior guard Keith Langford defends Missouri senior guard Jason Conley during the opening minutes of the game Sunday. Langford severely sprained his left ankle and left the game after playing only three minutes. He is questionable to play in the Big 12 Tournament on Friday.
Senior's rehabilitation will determine status for weekend's Big 12 Tournament
BY MIRANDA LENNING
mlenning@kansan.com
KANSAN SENIOR SPORTSWITER
Exhale, Kansas fans. Keith Langford's ankle is not broken.
Whether he will play in the Big 12 Tournament this weekend, though, is still questionable.
end, though, is still within Kansas coach Bill Self confirmed yesterday that the ankle was not cracked or fractured. Langford's progress after going through rehabilitation this week will determine his status for this weekend.
"It is a severe sprain that will allow him, hopefully, to rehab this week," Self said. "We'll evaluate this weekend whether he can play. He thinks he can, and we hope that he can, but that remains to be seen. He is not lost for the season, which the medical staff originally thought could be the case."
Langford originally hurt his left ankle in practice March 3 and had not worked out with the team before playing Missouri. He re-injured the ankle in the opening minutes of
Saturday's 72-68 loss at Missouri. After driving the lane for a lay-up and drawing the foul, he fell on the foot of Missouri's Brian Dailey. He did not return for the rest of the game.
"There is a chance that he could play this weekend, but there is also a great chance that we will hold him out, too, because we want him to be 100 percent next week," Self said. "If he can get to the point where he is 80 or 90 percent than we will play him. If not, then we will definitely hold him out."
Self said Langford would be on crutches for the rest of the week. He said he didn't know whether he would play Langford this weekend or allow him more time to get ready for the NCAA Tournament.
If that is the case, Self said senior guard Mike Lee would start in place of Langford. Lee replaced J.R. Giddens in the starting lineup on Sunday, but Self said Giddens would start whether Langford played.
Giddens scored 13 points
against the Tigers while Lee went scoreless in his 24 minutes.
Self also said junior guard Jeff Hawkins would have to step up in Langford's absence. Hawkins' eight points and defensive intensity helped the Jayhawks stay in Sunday's game. Self said.
Self was forced to put in some players who haven't seen a lot of minutes recently. Freshman guard Russell Robinson played 11 minutes on Sunday, and freshman forward Alex Galindo played 12 minutes. In Kansas' last eight games, Robinson has played a combined 12 minutes, while Galindo has played 32.
"We picked a bad time, when Keith went out, to have guys not used to playing," Self said. "We just need guys to step up and be players like they are. We are capable of that. I don't really know where we will turn to yet. Keith is such a big part of what we do, but I know we won't change much."
Edited by Ross Fitch
Top seed still goal
BY MIRANDA LENNING
mlenning@kansan.com
KANSAN SENIOR SPORTWRITER
The Jayhawks' loss to the Missouri Tigers cost them the outright Big 12 Conference title. Instead, they share the title with the Oklahoma Sooners. Because the Sooners defeated them on Feb. 21 in the head-to-head matchup, the Sooners will receive a No. 1 seed in the conference tournament.
play the winner of the Kansas State and Texas A&M game at 6 p.m. on Friday at Kemper Arena in Kansas City, Mo.
As the No. 2 seed, Kansas will still receive a first-round bye, meaning they don't have to play on Thursday. Kansas will
If they win that game, the Jayhawks will most likely have to beat the No. 3-seeded Oklahoma State Cowboys on Saturday to advance to Sunday's championship game.
Kansas coach Bill Self said that would have to be the scenario if the Jayhawks wanted to be considered for a No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament. Kansas still has a chance for a top seed after three other top 10 teams, Illinois, Kentucky and Duke,
lost Sunday. A large portion of NCAA seeding will be based on this weekend's conference tournaments.
Self said the Jayhawks had a lot of work to do and would need more upsets like the ones on Sunday to gain a No.1 seed.
"It means a lot for me and for our players too, but the reality of that is we are on the outside looking in big time. We would probably have to win our tournament to have a shot at that," he said. "It is a goal, but it can't be our immediate goal."
— Edited by Ross Fitch
WOMEN'S BASKETBALL
Tournament team's postseason
BY PAUL BRAND
pbrand@kansan.com
KANSAN SPORTWRITER
The women's basketball team's chances for running the table in the Big 12 Tournament are probably slim. If it can't, the season will probably not last past the weekend.
While five other league teams will probably make the NCAA Tournament, Kansas will not, barring a tournament title. So what is there to play for?
"This is our postseason," Kansas coach Bonnie Henrickson said.
And the postseason starts today, with a noon tip-off against No. 9 seed Missouri, 10-17 (4-12 Big 12). Even though the winner of the game will potentially face Baylor, the regular season Big 12 champion, the players still see prestige in the tournament coming from playing, and winning a game or two.
"We're playing like this is our NCAA Tournament," junior guard Erica Hallman said. "We're going to go out hard, try to get some wins and go as far as we can."
With the brief "season" just getting under way, Kansas will have quite a bit of work ahead.
All they did this year was sweep the Missouri Tigers, including a 60-42 victory on Feb. 5 in Columbia, Mo. The second contest with Missouri featured an improved performance by Kansas, 12-15 (5-11 Big
"It's really about doing what we did all year." Henrickson said.
Erica Hallman junior guard
"We're playing like this is our NCAA tournament. We're going to out hard, try to get some wins and go as far as we can."
MORE BASKETBALL
kansan.com Take a look in the minds of No. 9 seed Missouri as they prepare to take on No. 8 seed Kansas.
12) , in which a torrid start led to an 18-2 lead early in the game.
Junior forward Crystal Kemp said she was sure the team would have a solid performance.
"The third time we're going to make it even better." Kemp said.
Kemp's confidence is well-founded, as the Jayhawks have routinely played better against their opponents during the second season meeting. On average, Kansas has scored nine points more in their second face-off and has held SEE WOMEN ON PAGE GA
SEE WOMEN ON PAGE 6A
Kansan file photo
Junior forward Crystal Kemp looks for an open lane around Kansas State freshman forward Shana Wheeler.during both teams' final regular season game last Saturday. Kansas begins postseason play in the Big 12 Tournament against Missouri at noon tomorrow at Kemper Arena in Kansas City, Mo.
INSIDE THE PARK
JACK WEINSTEIN
jweinstein@kansan.com
Offensive unity needed for victories
Vo
The Kansas men's basketball team left Mizzou Arena Sunday afternoon with more unanswered questions about the state of this team than at any point this season.
son! I don't care that Sunday's game was in Columbia, Mo., and it was a "rivalry" game. Kansas never should have lost that game. Missouri is an underachieving, less talented team than Kansas. The Missouri Tigers are a bad team, and there is no excuse for losing that type of game as the Jayhawks prepare to make runs in the Big 12 and NCAA Tournaments.
P
point this season. When will this team start playing as a cohesive offensive unit? When will the freshmen big men step up? Where is the toughness and heart that guided this team to gritty wins earlier in the season? When will they start playing consistently?
Don't tell me that Keith Langford's absence was the reason they lost. Yes, Langford's ankle injury was a factor, but Kansas had a chance late in the game to take the lead and didn't. I don't want to hear about Missouri going eight-for-10 from behind the arc in the first half. They missed all eight of their three-point attempts in the second half.
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