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Volume 128 Issue 78
kansan.com
Monday, February 16, 2015
THE UNIVERSITY DAILY & ANSAN
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COMMENTARY Ellis among the scoring greats
Matt Corte
@Corte UDK
Edited by Kayla Schartz
"I think I can still get better," Ellis said. "I mean there's ball-handling and even shooting better, I feel like I can improve on that more ... so I feel like there's still more to learn."
On Valentine's Day, when the motto is all about love, junior forward Perry Ellis was shown just a bit more than the rest of his Jayhawk teammates.
Then again, it's not every day that a player crosses the 1,000 point threshold for his career.
"It's a great accomplishment, and I'm just blessed to be in this situation," Ellis said. "I'm just trying to get better and better, and just keep winning."
Playing against Baylor on Saturday, Ellis became the 56th player in Kansas basketball history to do just that, scoring 18 points to put his career total at 1,015.
Known for his quiet nature and humble attitude, Ellis briefly acknowledged his achievement after the game before quickly reverting back to what's most important: winning.
Coming into the game with 997 career points, Ellis passed the 1K mark on a mid-range jumper with 12:06 left in the first half, a foul sending him to the line in the process.
Sophomore guards Wayne Selden Jr. and Brannen Greene celebrate after a few big points in the win against Baylor on Saturday, Feb. 14.
Having allowed Baylor 21 points in under eight minutes of play, and still down 11 after his jumper, no Kansas player or coach was celebrating Ellis' achievement quite yet.
Instead of basking in the spotlight, Ellis kept his usual demeanor and hustled back after missing the free throw opportunity.
Why stop at No. 15 though?
As a player, you constantly have to give more effort than what's expected. The great thing about Perry Ellis is that he always does.
Not surprisingly, even Ellis himself mentioned the milestone was a non-factor during the contest.
"I wasn't really trying to think about it during the game," Ellis said. "But after, my teammates, they were all really happy for me, and I just tried to soak it in."
'ROUND THE MOUNTAIN
In scoring 18 points on 7-of-11 shooting, Ellis passed former Jayhawks Norman Cook and Rodger Bohnenstehl on the Kansas all-time scoring list, pushing him to No. 54.
By the numbers, Ellis would have to average only 12.2 points per game based on a 35-game schedule. Considering he already averages 13 points per contest this season, it looks like Self could be correct with his assumption.
Self's not just blowing smoke either. Former three-point specialist Jeff Boschee sits at No. 15 all-time with 1,560 career points. In other words, that position is well within reach.
With more games to play this season and an all-but-guaranteed return for his senior year, Ellis can climb even higher on that list, coach Bill Self said.
"If he were to stay all four years, hed put himself in a situation where he could be one of the 15 leading scorers ever in the history of the school, which would be pretty cool." Self said.
BEN LIPOWITZ/KANSAN
No.8 Kansas to face off against No.21 West Virginia for first time this season
BEN FELDERSTEIN
@Ben_Felderstein
Following a comeback victory against Baylor, No. 8 Kansas travels to No. 21 West Virginia to take on the Mountaineers for the first time this season.
Kansas has won of six of its past seven games and come into play with a 21-4 record. West Virginia enters with a 19-6 record having lost three of its four previous games.
The Jayhawks have a twogame lead atop the Big 12 at 10-2, while West Virginia sits in third place at 7-5. West Virginia posts a 9-3 record at home this season.
Senior guard Juwan Staten leads West Virginia in scoring this season, averaging 14.2 points per game while shooting 41 percent from the field. Sophomore forward Devin Williams leads the Mountaineers with 8.2 rebounds per game, adding 11.4 points as well. Staten recorded 16 points while Williams pulled down nine boards in their last loss to Iowa State.
Kansas sophomore forward Landen Lucas is coming off of his most productive game of the season. Lucas recorded nine points in 14 minutes, with four rebounds and strong defensive play.
Junior forward Perry Ellis and freshman guard Kelly Oubre Jr. led Kansas in scoring with 18 points. The two also pulled down a team-high of six rebounds. Oubre was 4-6 from behind the three-point line as well.
Kansas has not yet faced West Virginia and its full-court pressure defense. West Virginia tends to press for most of the game, which has given Kansas trouble this season. The Jayhawks have recently struggled with getting the ball up the court when a team has the press on.
Kansas sophomore guard Frank Mason III's steady ball handling will be a key in Monday night's matchup. Mason just snapped his streak
of 20-straight games with double-digit points. Mason is due for a bounce-back effort against WVU.
Kansas has defeated West Virginia three out of its past four matchups since the
Mountaineers have joined the Big 12. West Virginia is currently ranked second in the Big 12 scoring, putting up 75 points per game, but is ninth in the conference in scoring defense, allowing 65.8 points.
Kansas will need to play to its strengths Monday, as it leads the Big 12 in three-point percentage while West Virginia is last in three-point defense, allowing its opponents to shoot 36 percent from deep.
Up next, Kansas will host TCU on Saturday, Feb. 21. Kansas defeated TCU 64-61 in its previous matchup this season in Fort Worth, Texas.
Edited by Laura Kubick
Kansas falls to Texas for third straight loss
Senior Forward Chelsea Gardner shoots a layup in the game against Texas on Saturday. The Jayhawks lost 74-63.
ALI DOVER/KANSAN
Senior guard Natalie Knight reached the 1,000 point mark of her career with a bucket late in the game. Knight needed 10 points to surpass it.
"It's a great opportunity for her. She has worked hard for it," senior forward Chelsea Gardner said.
Knight is the 11th player in coach Bonnie Henrickson's era to join the 1,000-point club and 28th overall in program history.
"She's done special things for us, and I'm glad she did it in front of her family and the home crowd," Henrickson said.
DYLAN SHERWOOD
@dmantheman2011
Falling 74-63, Kansas could not keep up with Texas (16-8, 5-8), unlike the last matchup between the two. Kansas (13-13, 4-9) lost its third straight game, two of them being at home, and Texas snapped a four-game losing streak with the win.
The second half saw a swing in momentum. Early on, Kansas was in control scoring 10 points within the first three minutes. After that, Texas took control of the contest.
"I thought we had better patience in the second half when Kansas went into the zone defense," Texas coach Karen Aston said.
This was a back-and-
"We've had other players step up in her place. Others are giving us good minutes," Aston said.
Texas, which was without its leading scorer, senior forward Nneka Enemkpali, did not see any weaknesses without her on the floor after losing its past four games.
forth game for the first 20 minutes where neither team had a lead greater than seven points. Texas' largest lead was seven points, while Kansas's was at three points for the first half.
One struggling stat for the Jayhawks was rebounding, as they were outrebounded 50-27. Sixteen rebounds
were given up to Texas
junior Imani McGee-
Stafford.
"We just had players standing at the three-point line and had four go in for the offensive rebound, but could not get to it." Henrickson said.
The closest Kansas would get in the second half was a three-pointer by senior guard Asia Boyd, making the game 52-49 with 9:03 remaining.
"We started out slow against West Virginia and thought we could get better than that in our next game." Boyd said.
Kansas shot 21-of-57 for 37 percent,6-of-20 from three for 30 percent and were 15-of-19 from the line for 79 percent.
Both Gardner and Boyd led the way for Kansas scoring 16 points each.
Kansas will have back-toback road games next week, starting with a road-task against TCU on Tuesday.
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Edited by Lane Cofas
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