PAGE 6
THURSDAY, MARCH 15, 2012
THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
COMMENTARY
GRAPHIC BY HANNAH WISE
No need to dread Detroit
team's underachieving in the NCAA tournament, specifically about how they've lost to teams seeded at least eight spots below them, four times in Bill Self's tenure.
On Selection Sunday, ESPN ran a graphic about the Kansas men's basketball
This year Kansas drew a feisty Detroit Titans team that some analysts, such as Dick Vitale, thought were better than the 15 seed they received. Many analysts have noted that Detroit has more McDonald's All-Americans on their roster than Kansas (Detroit has one in a sophomore guard Ray McCallum Jr.).
In their Big 12 tournament loss to Baylor last week, the Kansas shooters once again went cold, hitting just two of 13 three-pointers.
In the tournament loss to Virginia Commonwealth last season, Kansas shooters went cold, hit ting just two of 21 three-pointers.
But when looking at the statistics, it is clear that Kansas will not be the first No. 2 seed to lose to a 15 seed since Iowa State lost to Hampton in 2001.
And in the Maui Invitational final, Kansas only made two three-point shots, but that number can't be taken at face value because the Jayhawks only took eight three-point shots all game.
Detroit's defense won't be nearly as solid against the three. They allow opponents to make 36.8 percent of their three-point shots. Kansas' offense is 11th in the nation in field goal percentage, making 48.5 percent of their shots.
Another similarity in the VCU and Baylor losses was the alarmingly high amount of three-point shots the two teams made, with VCU making 48 percent and Baylor making 4.4 percent.
Detroit won't rely on the three-point shot nearly as much. They shoot only 30.2 percent from three-point range and of all the field goals they make, only 18.3 percent are three-point goal goals.
Of all the field goals VCU made against Kansas, 57.1 percent of them came from three-point field goals. Duke had exactly 50 percent of their made field goals come from beyond the arc, also dangerously high. Baylor's percentage of field goals from three-point range was less than VCU, but at 37.5 percent, but it is still significantly higher than Detroit's season average.
Without much depth, the Jayhawks could fall, should one of their starters get into early foul trouble, specifically frontcourt stars Thomas Robinson and Withey. Detroit is a better free throw shooting team, making 73.4 percent, while Kansas shoots a mediocre 69.6 percent from the line, but Detroit knows how to get to the line. They average 24.1 free throw attempts per game.
In Kansas' loss to Kentucky at Madison Square Garden, the Jayhawks allowed the Wildcats to shoot 51 percent from the field. But while Detroit is an above average shooting team, it shot 45.4 percent from the field, even with Ray McCallum Jr., it lacks the athleticism that Kentucky has that gave Kansas trouble early on.
All these numbers point to a Kansas advantage come Friday night, but as with any first-round matchup (I refuse to call this the second round), the biggest difference is in RPI, with Kansas coming in at six compared to Detroit's 128. The RPI is the best indicator that one team is better than the other, and on Friday night that difference should be evident.
Edited by Nadia Imafidon
Vermont ends Lamar's journey, 71-59
NCAA TOURNAMENT
ASSOCIATED PRESS
DAYTON, Ohio - Seven games ago, Pat Knight ripped his seniors.
After a bitter 71-59 loss to Vermont in the first round of the NCAA tournament Wednesday night, however, the first-year Lamar coach could barely contain his emotions of pride and gratitude toward the very same players.
"These guys did a heck of a job of leaving their legacy," Knight said, fighting back tears. "I don't know. If there are people that disagree about that, they're morons. These guys just made Lamar relevant again. And it gives us something to build on from here on out, and it puts pressure on the team next year to get something done."
After a 10-point loss to Stephen F. Austin on Feb. 22, Knight famously said his seniors were "stealing money being on scholarship." It didn't stop there. He also called it the worst group of seniors hed ever been around and added that his players had problems "off the court, on the court, classroom,
The diatribe became a YouTube standard, with some calling it the best post-game meltdown ever by a college coach.
drugs."
Yet the Cardinals (23-12) responded with six straight wins, including winning the Southland Conference tournament. But a cold-shooting night couldn't get them out of an early hole against Vermont (24-11), which advances to meet top-seeded North Carolina in the next round.
"These guys did something this year a lot of college athletes don't ever get to experience," said Knight, in his first year with the Cardinals after being fired by Texas Tech. "They're down right now. Losing hurts. But what a ride. These guys were a blast to coach all year long. It was fun. I enjoyed it and I'm going to miss them. Boy, I'll be talking about them until the day I die."
Devon Lamb and Mike James each had 16 points and Anthony Miles 14 for the Cardinals, who were on the wrong side of a 13-0 run by Vermont in the first half that gave the Catamounts the lead to stay.
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Vermont forward Brian Voelkel (23) fights for a rebound with Lamar guard Brandon Davis (20) during the first half of an NCAA tournament first-round college basketball game, March 14, in Dayton, Ohio.
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