4B
THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
SPORTS
THURSDAY, JANUARY 20, 2005
Jayhawks emerge from break battle-tested
BY MIRANDA LENNING
mlenning@kansan.com
mlenningSWATERSTWER
The No. 2 Kansas Jayhawks are sitting pretty at 14-0 after last night's victory against the Nebraska Cornhuskers. They may be one of only four undefeated teams in college basketball. They may have survived their first road stretch without a loss
But while school was out for winter break, their season took a few unexpected twists.
The most serious was the injury to All-American candidate Wayne Simien. The senior forward suffered ligament damage to his left thumb in Kansas' 64-60 victory against South Carolina on Dec. 18 and underwent surgery on Dec. 20.
Simien missed games against Wisconsin-Milwaukee, Georgia Tech, Texas A&M and Kentucky.
Simien's injury led to another twist, but this one was or the better.
Enter C.J. Giles, Alex Galindo, Sasha Kaun and Darnell Jackson.
Kansas' four freshman big guys, who had struggled in the Jayhawks' first seven games, stepped up to help Kansas win four straight in Simien's absence.
"I thought if we did what we were supposed to do, like win at home, we'd be OK," Coach Bill Self said. "But when we lost Wayne, I said, 'Let's just keep it together.'"
Kansas proved it was a legitimate National Championship contender in pressure situations, which included games against No. 9 Georgia Tech and No. 8 Kentucky without its best player.
The Jayhawks did more than keep it together. They improved their team chemistry, displayed senior leadership and received major contributions from their freshmen.
Kansas 73, Wisconsin-Milwaukee 62
WHILE WE WERE OUT
Kansas 73, Wisconsin-Milwaukee 62
Kansas played its first game away from Allen Fieldhouse on Dec. 22 when it traveled to Kansas City, Mo., to take on Wisconsin-Milwaukee.
Freshman Darnell Jackson started in place of the injured Simien but ended up playing only six minutes because of early foul trouble.
Experimenting with a smaller line-up. Self gave freshman forward Alex Galindo an opportunity to show his skills.
Senior guard Keith Langford showed that he was out of his early season slump for good. He scored 21 points and pulled down seven rebounds.
Galindo rose to the challenge scoring 14 points in 17 minutes of play and pulling down seven rebounds. Freshman guard Russell Robinson contributed 12 points to the Jayhawks' victory.
Aaron Miles dished out six assists, becoming the Big 12 Conference's all-time assist leader.
Kansas 70, Georgia Tech 68 OT
Rylan Howe/KANSAN
On a day most known for watching BCS Bowl games, the Kansas Jayhawks were the lead story on SportsCenter.
Kansas avenged last year's Elite Eight loss to Georgia Tech in a game that mirrored last year's contest for most of the afternoon.
The Jayhawks trailed by as many as 16 in the first half, but they were able to pull within seven at the half.
But the Jayhawks came out firing in the second half. They pulled within a possession several times in the second half, but they weren't able to tie the game until Langford hit a three-point shot that tied the game at 61 with just more than a minute left to play.
Georgia Tech guard Will Bynum missed the front end of a one-and-one that would have given the Yellow Jackets the lead. Regulation expired with the game still tied at 61.
Keith Langford, senior guard, went airborne past Damion Staple, Iowa State senior forward, Wednesday at midfield. Coliseum, Langford led the Jayhawks with 18 points during the 71-66 victory against the Cyclones.
The lead changed three times during the overtime, but Langford hit a jumper, giving Kansas a one-point lead with just under a minute left in the extra period.
After Georgia Tech guard Isma'il Muhammad hit one of two free throws to tie the game at 68. Langford once again hit the game-deciding shot.
"I told Aaron to give me the ball and everyone else to get out of the way," Langford said of the game-winning shot.
With three seconds left in the game, Langford nailed a pull-up jumper from the free throw line to give the Jayhawks the 70-68 win.
Miles dished out his 808th assist, giving him the Kansas record.
Kansas 65, Texas A&M 60
Kansas kicked off its Big 12 schedule against a muchimproved Texas A&M team.
game for Kansas.
The fact that the game was sandwiched between games against top-10 opponents appeared to weigh on the lavhawks' minds.
The game exposed Kansas' biggest weakness: rebounding. The Aggies outrebounded the Jayhawks 33-27.
It took a key shot from freshman Alex Galindo with 40 seconds left in the game to seal the
Kansas 65, Kentucky 59
Kansas looked to legitimize its undefeated record by winning on the road on Jan. 9, but what a place to open the road season.
More than 24,000 fans crammed into Rupp Arena in Lexington, Ky., to root against the layhawks.
Kansas trailed at halftime 25-21, but it came out of the locker room energized and took the lead with about 15 minutes left in the game.
In what is becoming typical Kansas fashion, the game came down to the wire. With Kansas clinging to a slim lead, senior guard Mike Lee nailed a baseline three-point shot that put the lavhawks up 61-56.
A Kentucky three-point shot on the ensuing possession made things interesting, but the Jayhawks won their first road game, 65-59.
The Jayhawks left Lexington battered and bruised. Langford suffered a severe concussion while diving for a loose ball late in the second half of the game and missed the deciding minutes of action. Junior forward Christian Moody sprained his ankle and did not return to the game. Robinson took a shot to the eye and suffered from a scratched cornea.
Kansas 71, Iowa State 66
Kansas came into its second straight road game pretty beat up. It was questionable whether Langford would play because of his concussion, and Christian Moody was not expected to play.
Kansas fans had nothing to fear. Several weeks earlier than expected, senior forward Wayne Simien returned to the lineup and played 37 minutes. He had to play with a bulky splint on his left hand, but that didn't seem to bother him too much.
He scored 13 points and pulled down nine rebounds leading the Jayhawks to their second straight road win.
After the game Self chuckled at the status of his team's health.
"We are the walking wounded," he said. "We just have to keep on trucking."
Kansas 76, Colorado 61
In just his second game back, Wayne Simien put up a whipping 23 points and tied his career high in rebounds with 17.
But the only problem for the Jayhawks was that Simien seemed to be the only one rebounding.
Colorado boasted a 13-4
advantage on the offensive boards at halftime, causing Self to go ballistic on his team in the locker room.
"That is what kept them in the game," Self said of the rebounding situation.
The Buffaloes certainly got themselves in the game in the second half after trailing for all of the first. They pulled within one point with about 11 minutes left in the game.
all of his 11 second-half points in a five-minute stretch that gave the Jayhawks a 62-56 advantage. Kansas won the game 76-61.
But the Kansas seniors showed some toughness, scoring all of the Jayhawks' next 18 points. Langford took the game into his own hands. He scored
The Jayhawks have shown that they can win in pressure situations. Senior leadership combined with an improving freshman class have made Kansas successful thus far.
They proved themselves by beating two nationally ranked opponents and winning on the road. They have also put themselves in good position in the Big 12.
But for some reason, they always find themselves in a close
game.
"We have to do a better job of putting the foot on someone's throat when we have a chance to blow the game open." Moody said.
Self said that's because his team is still not where it needs to be.
"By no means do I consider us a finished product or have what it takes to win on the road," Self said. "We want to play our best ball in February and we are working to that goal each game."
— Edited by Kim Sweet Rubenstein
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