2008-2009 KANSAS BASKETBALL
17
FEBRUARY 23, 2009
Collins shoots Kansas past No.3 Oklahoma
BY CASE KEEFER
ckeefer@kansan.com
NORMAN, Okla. — Two blue blurs raced across the floor at the Lloyd Noble Center as the buzzer sounded on Kansas' 87-78 victory against Oklahoma.
It was junior guard Sherron Collins running up the sideline smiling and freshman guard Tyshawn Taylor sprinting toward the middle of the court. Eventually, the two paths of celebration met.
They shared a quick exchange, telling each other "good game," before Collins added an extra message.
"He was like, 'Man, this is what we've been waiting for,' " Taylor said.
Collins, Taylor and the Jayhawks are done waiting now Kansas (23-5, 12-1) is in sole possession of first place in the Big 12 Conference and three victories away from winning its fifth straight Big 12 regular season championship.
The Jayhawks have Collins, Taylor and sophomore center Cole Aldrich to thank for it. Aldrich might not have had the energy to sprint across Oklahoma's gym after the game, but his presence was as important as anyone's.
After all, Aldrich recorded a career-high 20 rebounds. Taylor set a career-high with 26 points. Statisticians don't keep career-highs of big shots, but Collins would have certainly passed his.
"This was a great win," Kansas coach Bill Self said. "You don't see this too often from young kids."
But Self didn't want to take too much credit. Heck, he wasn't even the one calling the shots by the end of the game.
At least three times, Collins waved off the plays Self wanted from the bench with the game on the line. Self was helpless.
"I have no choice," Self said. "He's got the ball."
Not that Self would want it any place else. Collins reaffirmed that when he tied a career high with 26 points.
The Jayhawks appeared to be in a position where they could coast to victory with 11 minutes remaining and their lead at a game-high 20. It wasn't that easy.
Twice, the Sooners trimmed the Jayhawk lead to three points within the final five minutes.
Both times Collins refused to run the
Jayhawks' offense. He took three-point shots from the top of the key and swished them to ensure Oklahoma wouldn't get any closer.
"He feels like it's his team," Self said. "I'm really proud of him. He's been great."
Collins' biggest shot came with 2:30 remaining. The crowd had reached deafening levels after Oklahoma freshman Willie Warren — who had a team-high 23 points — swished a three-point shot to make the score 74-71.
The next possession, Collins received a pass from Taylor and made one of his own. Oklahoma never got it down to a one-possession game again.
Of course, Kansas may have never been in that position without Taylor.
Oklahoma opened the game on a 22-8 tear. At that point, Collins gathered the team and told them not to let this one slip away.
Taylor must have listened. He made three three-point shots before the end of the half to finish the first 20 minutes with 16 points. Kansas went into the locker room with a 36-29 lead.
"I told him it was his game," Self said. "He was great. Tyshawn — best game he's had in college."
Weston White/KANSAN
Junior guard Sherron Collins hits one of his five three-pointers against the Sooners. Collins finished with 26 points, including three crucial three-pointers in the final five minutes.
MARCH 1,2009
Kansas exacts sweet revenge on Missouri
Weston White/KANSAN
BY CASE KEEFER ckeefer@kansan.com
Call it perfection. Call it revenge. Call it a statement.
Really, Kansas' 90-65 victory against No.11 Missouri (24-5, 11-3) was a combination of all three.
Kansas coach Bill Self said the first half, where No. 15 Kansas (24-5, 13-1) flew out to a 45-19 lead, was the best he had seen the Jayhawks play since last year's 84-66 Final Four victory against North Carolina. Junior guard Sherron Collins said the performance came out of anger of the way Kansas lost to Missouri 62-60 earlier in the season. Whatever it was, Kansas' victory put
Freshman forward Marcus Morris hits a shot in front of the basket, drawing the foul for a three-throw attempt. Morris missed the free throw, finishing with four points in the Jayhawks 35-point victory against the Tigers to avenge an earlier defeat.
it alone in first place in the Big 12 Conference and one game away from clinching the regular season championship.
"We expected to win," Collins said. "But who knew the score would be like this?"
Actually, freshman guard Tyshawn Taylor did. Taylor hated thinking about last month's defeat at Mizzou Arena. He said he knew Kansas was better than Missouri. He said he knew the Jayhawks would prove it Sunday.
"I thought the score was going to be like this the whole time," Taylor said. "I just felt that we were better than before to be honest with you."
That much was obvious. Kansas began to separate itself from Missouri almost immediately. Two minutes into the game, the Jayhawks trailed 4-3. That was the last time Missouri was ahead.
Collins — who scored 25 points with six assists and five rebounds in the game — keyed an 18-1 run over the next six minutes with an open three-point shot and a layup following a viper-like slither through the lane.
Alongside Collins, Taylor was the one initiating the attack. His most significant play came in the final seconds of the first half.
Collins fired Taylor the ball on the right wing and he connected with a three-point shot to make the score 45-19. Taylor felt the shot signaled that the game was over. But at halftime, Self reminded his team how they managed to let a 14-point halftime lead slip away the first time against the Tigers.
"We kind of gave one up in Columbia," sophomore center Cole Aldrich said. "Coach said, 'Hey, we're in the same predicament we were in up in Columbia.' We knew they were going to make runs."
Only the Tigers didn't. They couldn't because Aldrich made every attempt irrelevant, scoring 13 of his 19 points in the second half and also finishing with 14 rebounds.
All the layhawks were smiling after the game. They knew how important the victory was and how a number of themes surrounded it.
THE UNIVERSITY DIRY KANSAN
APRIL 27,2009