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FRIDAY, JANUARY 20, 2012
THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
KANSAS TIPOFF
AT A GLANCE
The Jayhawks are fresh off their most impressive victory of the season, a decisive 92-74 drubbing of Baylor on Monday at Allen Fieldhouse. Now they face a Texas team that is less talented than it was last year, but still capable of pulling off the upset. Junior forward Thomas Robinson and senior guard Tyshawn Taylor can't play much better than they have been, but coach Bill Self said that there are others who can still improve. Junior center Jeff Withey is still learning how to play a more complete game, rather than dominate in brief spurts. Self would love to see Withey play aggressively for a full 40 minutes in Austin.
PLAYER TO WATCH
Jeff Withey, center
When Withey is fired up, the Kansas defense is nearly impossible to beat in the paint. The problem: Withey isn't always
fired up. Self has said that Withey usually plays with more aggression after he or a teammate makes a big play. Withey's 10 rebounds. 3
Withey
双旋翼发动机可用于固定翼，固定翼发动机
blocks and immeasurable number of altered shots against Baylor might have been the difference in the game. It was typical Withey stepping up against a great team. Will he do the same against a mediocre Texas team or play without passion?
QUESTION MARK
Will Kansas find an early lead or let Texas hang around?
The Jayhawks have more talent and momentum than the Longhorns, but anything can happen on the road. At Oklahoma, they trailed 34-33 going into halftime. At Texas Tech, they trailed 18-17 with 5:46 left in the first half. Kansas ended up winning both games, but these are the only two examples of this team on the road, and they weren't all rosy. The Jayhawks would benefit from a hot shooting start, allowing their defense to carry them through the rest of the game. The energy that fuels this team shouldn't be too hard to find against an unofficial rival that won in the fieldhouse last season.
Hear ye, Hear ye: "I didn't really like them much and they didn't really care for me much, up until after Christmas."
HEAR YE HEAR YE
Coach Bill Self on his team
BIG JAY WILL CHEER IF...
the Jayhawks find an early lead, continue their defensive effort and get into the fast break regularly.
KANSAS (15-3,5-0) STARTERS
Taylor
TYSHAWN TAYLOR, GUARD
He's never had back-to-back performances that were this good, so now Taylor must avoid a letdown. Similar to junior guard Travis Releford, he doesn't need to score 28 points to play well. Taylor turned the ball over five times against Baylor and will continue to try to decrease that number. Hovering around two or three turnovers per game would be ideal.
★★★☆
ELIJAH JOHNSON, GUARD
Johnson has settled into his role as a multidimensional threat quite nicely. When he doesn't have the pressure to score, the rest of his game rounds out. He tallied 11 points, 5 rebounds and 3 assists and a steal against Baylor—numbers that Self would take any day. By not forcing shots or passes, Johnson plays with a greater sense of comfort. He's averaged just 1.7 turnovers in his past 11 games.
Releford
TRAVIS RELEFORD, FORWARD
Releford's persistent energy and knack for doing the little things has helped his team escape the dangers of the road. He dives for loose balls, rebounds with strength and determination and turns his defense into fast break scoring chances. He's reached double-figure scoring in five of the past six games, helping a once struggling offense turn things around.
★★★☆
Another Texas showdown Jayhawks face unofficial rival in Austin
THOMAS ROBINSON, FORWARD
the national player-of-the-year chirps get louder every day. After outplaying Baylor forward Perry Jones III on Monday, posting 27 points and 14 rebounds, Robinson is on top of the college basketball world.
Only a blowout would prevent Robinson from his 14th double-volume of the season.
NO. 7 KANSAS VS. TEXAS
3 P.M., FRANK ERWIN CENTER, AUSTIN, TEXAS
Robinson
★★★★★
Kabongo
TEXAS
(12-6, 2-3)
STARTERS
MYCK KABONGO,GUARD
Withey might have been the biggest reason that Baylor's length and size didn't overpower the Jayhawks. He started the game with an often uncommon aggression, and finished with 10 points and 10 rebounds, his second double-double of the conference season. Another quick start from Withey could space the lead before halftime.
The No. 26 ranked recruit by Rivals.com last season, Kabongo has started every game of his Longhorn career. He's averaging 9.8 points and 5.5 assists per game. Even as a true freshman, he's been a steady contributor all season and teams with Brown as one of the better guard duos in the conference.
Brown
JEFF WITHEY, CENTER
J'COVAN BROWN,GUARD
Lewis
Brown's 19.2 points per game are the best in the Big 12, and while he takes a liberal amount of shots he's still a great scorer. He's played at least 20 minutes per game in each of his three seasons in Austin and has improved in nearly every offensive category every season. His scoring though, he seen the biggest spike.
★★★★★
JULIEN LEWIS, GUARD
The freshman guard was a fourth-team All-American last season as voted by Parade Magazine. He's appeared in every game this season, starting 13 and is averaging 8.4 points per game. His shooting percentage isn't great at 34.4 percent and he's been held to five points or fewer seven times this season.
★★☆☆
Withey
JONATHAN HOLMES, FORWARD
Yet another true freshman in the starting lineup, Holmes is one of the leading rebounds for the Longhorns and is playing over 20 minutes per game in his debut season. He's averaging 8.8 points per game and has reached double-digit points in Big 12 play on two occasions.
★★★☆☆
Wangmene
★★★☆☆
AT A GLANCE
TEXAS
TIPOFF
It's definitely been a down year for coach Rick Barnes and his Texas squad. The Longhorns are 12-6 on the year and have struggled out of the gate in the Big 12, losers of two straight. They're 2-3 in the conference with both wins coming against Oklahoma State and Texas A&M, another pair of struggling schools. Just three of the 12 wins have come against BCS conference opponents and they have struggled to shoot the ball, coming in at just 45 percent from the field on the year. The Longhorns trailed Kansas State just one at the half Wednesday night in Manhattan, but eventually fell to the Wildcats, 84-80 to fall under .500 in the Big 12. They are 11-0 at home this season, however, and that's where you'll face Kansas Saturday afternoon.
PLAYER TO WATCH
Brown has been a scoring maching for the Longhorns this season. The 6-foot-1 junior guard has
J'Covan Brown, guard
Brown
scored at least 20 points on nine occasions this year with two 30-point performances mixed in. He's not afraid to shoot, either.
In the 84-80 loss to Kansas State Wednesday night, he took 28 shot attempts and finished with 22 points. Hardly effective, but he's looked upon to carry much of the scoring load for the Longhorns this season. In last season's victory over Kansas, Brown shot 60 percent from the field and had a game-high 23 points. He currently leads his team with 19.2 points per game.
QUESTION MARK
Can Texas bring back some of the magic?
Kansas and Texas have had some memorable games in the last handful of years. Rick Barnes won three of his first four over Self and Kansas but Self has had the upper hand since, winning seven of the last nine meetings. They've played in the Big 12 tournament Final three times in the Bill Self era, with Kansas winning all three. Last season, Texas came into Allen Fieldhouse and knocked off Kansas, 74-63, ending the 69-game home winning streak held by the Jayhawks. Kansas returned the favor in the Big 12 tournament Final with a 85-73 victory. This season, the teams will play two regular season games and possibly one more in the conference tournament in Kansas City.
HEAR YE HEAR YE
Hear ye, hear ye: "I can't tell you how much respect I have for Bill [Self]. He's one of the best. He's the model of consistency and one of the best."
Texas coach Rick Bames last season
BABY JAY WILL WEEP IF...
Prediction:
J'Covan Brown whoops the Jayhawks once again with his hut shooting hand.
Kansas 81, Texas 68