BASKETBALL: More photos from the Missouri game. See page 6B. GRADES: How student-athlete GPAS measure up.See page 3B.
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THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
TUESDAY, JANUARY 29, 2002
COMMENTARY
Brian Hanni bhanni@kansan.com
Strong players makes choices at last-minute easier for Roy
It all comes down to this.
Ten seconds left on the clock, the home team trails by one. They'll need a huge shot right here. They get it into the hands of their go-to guy. He drives baseline. The shot is on its way...swish! The ball game is over. What a finish!
We all know this scenario. It may not always be a buzzer-beater or even a game winner, but a good portion of basketball games end with someone taking the all-important, game-deciding shot.
From peach baskets to break-away rims, no matter where or how the game is played,the final seconds of a tight game are always the most important and most exciting.
LAURIE SISK/KANSAN
While fans hang on the edge of their seats anxiously awaiting the final shot, the team that's trailing is coming up with a play to get their most reliable player a good opportunity to score.
Inside a typical huddle, the coach explains who's going to get the ball. If Plan A is sealed off, perhaps there's a second option for who will take the big shot. Some teams may even have three players of equal value down the stretch, but usually there's only one Mr. Clutch.
Now, let's go inside the Kansas huddle and see what coach Williams has to work with this year. As Roy gets out the dry-erase board and draws up the play he's likely staring at four McDonald's All-Americans and what could be the National Player of the Year. His options are anything but limited.
As Roy decides which Jayhawk will get the ball, the opposing coaches in the other huddle are pulling out their hair, wondering who will try to beat them this time.
Kansas junior guard Kirk Hinrich laughs it up with ESPN broadcaster Dick Vitale before last night's game with Missouri. Hinrich scored 23-points while holding Missouri's leading scorer Kareem Rush to just 13 points.
"Will it be Kirk Hinrich, whom they cleared out for in the final seconds of the first half against Oklahoma? How about Jeff Boschee? He hit that huge shot up in Ames, and remember his freshman year at home against Colorado? That's true, but it has to be Drew Gooden. He's their leading scorer and has so many moves inside to free up an open look. Then again, maybe it's Nick Collison. After all, he hits more of his shots than anyone else."
As Roy's boys break huddle, heads are still spinning on the other sideline. It's an advantage that few teams have and one that could pay huge dividends come tournament time when every game starts to get tight.
With Boschee, who's already hit his share of game-winners, and three juniors—Collison, Gooden and Hinrich—who have poise beyond their years, Kansas is loaded when the game is on the line.
Fans have every reason to be excited and opposing teams have plenty of reasons to be intimidated as this year Kansas has four players with both the experience and confidence to hit the big shot during crunch time.
The fifth spot on the floor remains a bit of a concern, as freshmen Aaron Miles and Keith Langford are still working on their confidence and consistency. But Kansas still has three more options than most teams do when the game is on the line.
As the season goes on and tournament time approaches, I think we'll see that fifth spot solidified with more savvy from both Miles and Langford. In the meantime though, relax and enjoy the ride. Let the other teams do the sweating, and take confidence in a lineup that's loaded with last-second weapons. I know Roy is.
Hanni is a Topeka senior in journalism. Contact him at bhanni@kansan.com
Hinrich's heroics
KANSAS' JUNIOR GUARD MAY BE UNDERRATED NATIONALLY BUT FEW WILL FORGET HIS 23-POINT EFFORT LAST NIGHT
Bv Brent Wasko
Kansan sportswriter
ESPN analyst Dick Vitale couldn't talk enough about Kansas guard Kirk Hinrich before the Jayhawks' 105-73 victory against Missouri last night at Allen Fieldhouse.
"Don't you think he's the most underrated player in the country?" Vitale kept asking anyone who would listen in the media room before the game. "Don't you think he gets lost in the spotlight with Gooden and Collison on the team."
Although Hinrich didn't hear what Vitale was saying about him, he played like he wanted to validate the famous broadcaster's comments. The junior scored a season-high 23 points against Missouri and held the Tigers' leading scorer, Kareem Rush, to just 13 points.
"I thought I played one of my most complete games," Hinrich said. "I try not to listen to what other people are saying about me, but I guess what there are saying is a compliment."
"Hinrich is unbelievable," he said. "Just the passion that he shows and the way that he plays is everything that you want out of a player. I really feel that he
is the best player in the conference."
Missouri coach Quin Snyder had nothing but compliments for Hinrich after the game.
Hinrich stepped up big on Big Monday. His 23 points were just three shy of his career high. He drained 4-of-5 from behind the three-point line, made 8-of-11 from inside the arch and was a perfect 3-of-3 from the free-throw line.
"I got really pumped up for this game," Hiarich said. "I had a big time challenge in front of me, and I wanted to show that I could beat it. I know how important this game is for our fans."
Kansas junior forward Nick Collision said Hinrich's play as a point guard made a big difference against the Tigers.
"I think his play helped get the game under control," Collision said of Hinrich's 13-point, 3-assist second-half showing. "When you have a player that is so strong handling the ball and can make plays like he does for us, it makes everyone else a little more sure of themselves."
Hinrich said he was more pleased his play defensively against Missouri. He was assigned to guard Rush, the Big 12 Conference's Preseason Player of the Year. Rush, who averages 19.4 points per game, scored just 13 points. He made only 1-of-7 from outside, where he is typically most dangerous as a shooter.
No. 2 KANSAS 105,
No. 22 MISSOURI 73
"Kirk's our best defender," Kansas coach Roy Williams said. "He was
MISSOURI 73
MISSOURI (15-6)
Bryant 2-2-0 4, Rush 6-19-0 0-13,
Johnson 3-11-1 7, Gilbert 7-15-0 19,
Paulding 7-14-2 3-19, Stokes 2-4-
0-0.5, John 0-1-0.0, Gage 0-1-0.0,
Kroenke 0-1-2.2, Ferguson 1-1-0.0,
Echols 1-3-0.2, Totals 29-72-5 6-
73
KANSAS (18-2)
Gooden 11-16 4-4 26, Collison 6-11
1-1-13, Hinrich 8-11 3-13 2, Miles 3-6
1-2-7, Boschee 5-8 0-1 13, Langford
1-4-4 5, Nash 1-1 0-03, Carey 2-2
0-0-4, Simien 2-2 6-6 10, Lee 0-2 0-0
O. Totals 39-63 19-21 105.
sensational out there tonight. Kareem Rush is almost impossible to guard, but Kirk did a great job on him."
Hinrich said he placed most of his focus on shutting down Rush. He hoped his positioning and quickness would compensate for his lack of height compared to Rush.
"I was just trying to make it tough on him," Hinrich said. "I was trying to limit his touches and make his work for every shot. I think I did a pretty decent job."
Contact Wasko at
bwasko@kansan.com. This story was edited by Sarah Warren.
Kansas looks to end losing streak tonight
By Jessica Scott
Kansas sportswriter
Practice has not made perfect for the Kansas women's basketball team so far this season.
The Buffaloes are looking to continue their five-game winning streak while Kansas has the opportunity to snap the longest losing streak in school history.
The Jayhawks (5-16, 0-8 Big 12 Conference) had only one home practice session before traveling to Boulder, Colo., yesterday to prepare for tonight's match up against Colorado (15-6, 5-3).
"It's very difficult when you're not winning to come back every single game and try to break through," coach Marian Washington said.
The effort the team has shown in practice has yet to translate into success on the court, according to Washington.
"We work harder in practice than I saw us work out there today," Washington said after her team's 73-48 loss to Oklahoma State last week. "It's tough to win a lot of ball games when you can't get it from some of your key players."
Senior guards K.C. Hilgenkamp and Selena Scott have been the Jayhawks' backbone for most of the season. This tandem has been Kansas' top two scorers in 15 of 21 games this season, yet inconsistency has plagued the pair recently.
Scott has scored seven or fewer points in three of the last four games, while Hilgenkamp has reached double digits in two of the past five games.
"There's a lot of frustration with all of them," Washington said. "They work hard in practice. They've just got to be able to put it on the floor."
Senior center Nikki White said she shares her coaches' frustration.
"We practice really well." White said.
"We just need to learn how to carry it over."
The Jayhawks continue to struggle defensively, particularly on the boards. Against Oklahoma State, Kansas had a considerable height advantage yet was out rebounded 48-26. The Cowgirls grabbed 20 offensive rebounds and scored 17 second-chance points.
Kansas also had rebounding woes in its first meeting with the Buffaloes this season. In the 55-point defeat — one of the worst losses in Jayhawk history — the 'Hawks were out rebounded by the smaller Buffaloes, 49-27.
Washington said the problem on the glass is something on which her team is still focusing.
"It's really clear that we're just not hustling on the boards like we need to and it's not that we're not putting in the time," she said. "We work hard on it but these young players have got to put it in ball games."
Contact Scott at jscott@kansan.com. This story was edited by Angela Cox.
Kansas swimmer to finish career, come back in fall
Ali Brox
Kansan sportswriter
Kirkham, a senior captain of the Kansas swimming and diving team, was looking for a sport to try after her ninth-grade volleyball season. She went out for swimming and was on the varsity team by her sophomore year.
By her second year in college, Kirkham was swimming at the 2000 U.S. Olympic Trials in the 50-meter free, where she placed 48th out of 110 swimmers.
If volleyball had been a year-round sport in high school, Carrie Kirkham might never have started swimming.
"She's always been one of our top sprinters from the day she arrived," coach Cathy Burgess said. "And she's improved every year since she's been here. She's a leader in the pool and outside the pool."
Kirkham, a native of Houston, visited both Texas A&M and Texas before deciding to come to Kansas. A coach for her Houston club team, The Fleet, had coached at Kansas and knew
with the final home meet this Saturday at the Robinson natatorium, Sportswriter Ali Brox will be profiling each of the four senior woman's swimming and diving team members on different days this week.
about the program.
"Iliked what KU offered," Kirkham said.
Kirkham's swimming career will end after this season, but she'll be back in Lawrence next fall to finish her exercise science degree. She has high expectations for her last season. First, there's the final home meet on Saturday against Arkansas. Then she'll face two more meets in Iowa to help prepare for the conference meet. Finally, she hopes that a relay team will qualify for NCAAs.
"As a team we want to place better at conference and be able to race with the top teams," Kirkham said.
Contact Bros at xbox@kansan.com.
This story was edited by Cafardo Fortau.
JOHN NOWAK/KANSAN
Senior swimmer Carrie Kirkham practices her freestyle Monday at Robinson Center. Kirkham, alongside teammates Molly O'Cannor, Rebecca McFall and Carolyn Horwitz makeup the four seniors on the women's swimming and diving team.
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