THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN SPORTS
TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 22, 2005
PAGE 1B
WWW.KANSAN.COM
MEN'S BASKETBALL: 71-63
Bylap Howe/KANSAN
Kansas trampled
Senior forward Wayne Simien talks strategy with freshman forward Alex Galindo before two Oklahoma free throws during the second half. Galindo played a large portion of the second half when coach Bill Self went with a smaller lineup. Galindo committed no turnovers and hit two critical three-point shots.
BY MIRANDA LENNING
mlenning@kansan.com
mklensan SENIOR SPORTWRIVER
NORMAN, Okla. — Three straight losses are evidence that things aren't right with the Kansas Jayhawks. Although they may not be able to isolate one problem, the Kansas players and coaches certainly can pinpoint the solution.
The seniors need to fix this one.
"We might have to talk as a senior class and talk about how much it really means to us," senior guard Aaron Miles said following Kansas' 71-63 loss to Oklahoma last night. "It means a whole lot to us and we know that, but we need to talk about what we are willing to do in practice just to help everybody keep their head up."
These four seniors have been to two Final Fours and an Elite Eight. There aren't too many plays they haven't seen.
"We've been in this position before," senior guard Keith Langford said. "Last year we had eight losses going into the NCAA Tournament. This team has already handled adversity well, and this time we are going to have to respond to that again."
For the past three seasons, the Jayhawks have been able to turn it on when they had the most on the line. With their track record, it is not hard to see why the seniors expect to elevate their game when it counts. But that is not the kind of example that coach Bill Self wants to see from his leaders.
He said the seniors needed to regain their focus before they could help their teammates.
"I don't think it is the guys. I think it is the seniors." Self said. "A team is only as good as its seniors and when a team is playing well the seniors deserve the most credit and when a team is not playing well the seniors have to shoulder the responsibility with the coach.
"So I think it is me and our four seniors to drag these guys along. I don't think that we should be worried about making sure that other guys do their job until we do our jobs ourselves and I think the other guys will follow along." Self said.
Fans mourn loss to Oklahoma
Kansas dug itself into what turned out to be an insurmount-
Last night, nobody did his job. Kansas dropped to second in the Big 12 at 10-3, behind Oklahoma State.
SEE TRAMPLED ON PAGE 3B
BY RYAN COLAIAMI
rcolaiani@kansan.com
KANSAN SCRIPTWRITER
Colby Eymann was sitting alone smoking a cigarette outside of the Wheel last night.
Inside, the place was practically deserted. empty.
While the Jayhawk basketball team was left to ponder another loss on the long drive home from Norman, Okla., Kansas fans were left to ponder the team's failure, at home and alone.
Eymann, Prairie View senior,
watched the game with friends at the
Wheel, 507 W. 14th St., last night Eymann said there was no enthusiasm for the game during the first half after Oklahoma jumped out to a big lead early. Some of his friends were so upset after the first half that they left the bar.
"Everyone was pretty depressed during that first half," Eymann said as he sat alone sipping a beer. "It got a little better in the second, but that ended when they put it away in the final minutes."
The Wheel was eerily quiet just minutes after the game ended as many of the fans who came to watch were already gone to mourn the loss
at home. The ones who did remain mostly stood in ones and twos, talking quietly.
Other fans watched the game with friends at their off-campus housing and were also upset because of the loss.
"I'm in a bad mood and I feel like when I go to campus that everyone else is in a bad mood too because of the losses," Ron Montefalcon, St. Louis junior, said.
Montefalcon said he and his friends spent most of the game in silence as the Oklahoma lead grew.
- Edited by Megan Claus
INSIDE THE PARK
JACK WEINSTEIN
jweinstein@kansan.com
Langford needs firsthalf shoes
Senior guard Keith Langford has a superstition. If he plays what he believes is a sub-par first half, he changes his shoes at halftime.
This is no secret. It's widely publicized. You can't watch or listen to a Kansas basketball game without hearing an announcer describe Langford's supersitious habit.
What once was occasional has now become commonplace. I can't remember the last time Langford ran out of the tunnel after halftime wearing the same pair of shoes. Last night was no exception.
He played fair in the first half last night, scoring eight points, but it wasn't good enough. The lavhawks trailed the Sooners by 15 at halftime.
There's no doubt that Langlord is a gifted scorer. He scored 16 points last night, his season average. He has the ability to not only create his own shot off the dribble, but to beat a defender one-on-one to get to the basket in nearly any situation. Langford has the talent to take over a game, seemingly scoring at will while putting the entire team on his shoulders.
"There's not many players out there that can do a lot of the things that he can do," coach Bill Self said.
Langford has demonstrated his capacity to be a key player. He scored the winning basket in the Georgia Tech game, and tied both the Texas Tech and Iowa State games to send them in to overtime.
But where is this "give me the ball and get the hell out of my way" mentality during the first half? Why does he only score when he wants to or has to, putting his team in a position to come from behind to win a game?
Recently Langford was quoted as saying he had a "button" he could turn on at any time during a game. A switch when flipped to the "on" position turns him into the scorer his team needs him to be.
In consecutive victories against Nebraska and Kansas State earlier this season, Langford was challenged by Self to put together two complete halves. In those games he scored 27 and 24 points, respectively.
What the (insert favorite profanity),
KEITH??!
With the exception of those games and a few earlier in the season, Langford has stunk in most first halves this season. He has started cold. In many games this season, Langford has been nearly invisible in the first half, only to come back in the second to light up the scoreboard.
“His aggressiveness is what we look for each and every night,” Self said. “His lack of aggressiveness leads us to become stale at times.”
Regardless of what happened last night, he still has to be consistent in both halves. He needs to come out scoring right away.
SEE WEINSTEIN ON PAGE 3B
WOMEN'S BASKETBALL
Women's team wants crowd enthusiasm
BY BJRAINS
brains@kansan.com
KANSAN SPORTWRITER
It's the biggest game of the season, and the Kansas women's basketball team is asking for the help of the KU student body.
Kansas will host No. 6 Baylor 7 p.m. tomorrow at Allen Fieldhouse. Since February 2001, the women have lost 33 games in a row to teams ranked in the Associated Press Top 25. The Jayhawks are hoping for a monumental upset.
To pull off the upset, the players and coaches say they need students to step up as the sixth man and come cheer them on to victory.
"We need that true home court advantage, which is the noise and energy that the fans bring into the building," coach Bonnie Henrickson said. "Allen Fieldhouse is a historic building, but that's not what helps us win.
It's the fans that do that."
The team already overachieved this season. Members of the Big 12 media predicted it to finish 11th in the Big 12 Conference. The Jayhawks are in eight place with only two weeks left in the regular season.
The Jayhawks had an energetic and enthusiastic crowd when they upset Nebraska 67-53 on Sunday. The excitement in the stands carried over to the Jayhawks' play on the court, something that they hope can happen again against Baylor.
"It's a huge game," said junior guard Kaylee Brown. "They are No. 7 in the country. We need the students to come out and pack the fieldhouse."
Now, after disproving the skeptics several times this season, they want to do it one more time tomorrow night.
After playing Baylor, the Jayhawks will hit the road for the final two games of the sea.
Not only is tomorrow's game against a Top 10 opponent, it's also the Jayhawks' last home game of the season. Henrickson said she thought that that should also be a reason for fans to come out to the fieldhouse.
son. Both are away games against ranked teams Kansas State and Iowa State.
"It's Senior*Night, the last home game of the year," Henrickson said. "It will be their last chance to see us play until next season."
Henrickson can be excused for wanting some of the home court advantage that the men's team possesses. Since 1997, the men's team has had the highest home winning percentage in the country. It's not a coincidence that every game in that timespan has been a sellout.
Henrickson said she thinks that if a big crowd comes out tomorrow night to support the women, they can help her team
"Their enthusiasm and energy enhances our chances to be successful." Henrickson said.
pull off the upset. Not only does the crowd need to be big, it needs to be energetic, she said.
The team looks as if it as prepared as it can be to pull off an upset. The women practiced so well on Monday that Henrickson called off practice 30 minutes early. As the team left the weight room, junior forward Crystal Kemp summed up tomorrow night's game in four words.
"We're out for blood." Kemp said.
The team said the same phrase before the Nebraska game, and ended up dominating one of the conference's better teams en route to the upset. With the help of the students, Kemp and her teammates hope history can repeat itself tomorrow night.
— Edited by Megan Claus
Kansas file photo
Kansas'
Aquanita
Burras, senior guard, drives toward the basket past Texas Tech's Erin Grant, junior guard, during the first half of the game against Texas Tech Wednesday.
The layhawks will take on Baylor in Allen Fieldhouse for Senior Night tomorrow at 7 p.m.
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