2B SPORTS
THE UNIVERSITY DIARY HANSAN
THURSDAY, MARCH 26, 2009
QUOTE OF THE DAY
"Similar to us, they've had big wins down the stretch. They are so different. I started with the most recent film and then went backwards and it got to the point where I said 'Let me start over at the beginning again because they don't look like that anymore.' But they are literally a completely different team."
Coach Bonnie Henrickson on Arkansas
FACT OF THE DAY
Arkansas' women's basketball team is 1-3 against the Big 12 this season.The Razor-backs suffered regular-season defeats to Missouri (56-55), at Kansas State (55-56) and at Texas Tech (75-60) before defeating Oklahoma State (61-60) in the WNIT second round on Monday.
Arkansas Athletics
TRIVIA OF THE DAY
Q: When's the last time the women's basketball team defeated Arkansas?
A: On Dec. 9, 1989, Kansas defeated Arkansas 56-51 in Fayetteville, Ark. The teams last met in 1998 when the Razorbacks' 79-63 victory ended the Jayhawks' season in the NCAA Regional Semifinals.
KU Athletics
The guide to the Sweet Sixteen
COMMENTARY
life in March is a funny thing. Office sick days go up. Production
goes down. Beer consumption goes up. Test scores go down.
Gambling debts go up. Marriage counseling bills go up . well, up.
Anyway, the point is there's nothing like the KU campus in March. You know, I love that feeling when everyone has one collective thought on his or her mind. On Facebook right now, I think there are about 700 million statutes about KU basketball.
And after a three-day break, the big dance is back. The Sweet Sixteen round starts tonight with regional semifinals being played in the West and East Regions. And of course, Kansas plays Michigan State at 8:37 p.m. on Friday at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis.
Here's the Morning Brew's 10-minute guide to the Sweet Sixteen.
COACH SPEAK
It's really no big secret that coaches are the stars of college basketball. Of course, you've heard the argument that coaches are one part CEO, one part general manager, one part coach, one part parent, one part recruiter and so on. Of course, coaches have always been stars. Just go back to Dean Smith and John Wooden and Knight and Rupp and Allen and so forth.
And so here we are in the Sweet Sixteen, and we have a collection of coaches that would rank up there with any in the history of the game. Yep, this year it's truly about the guys in Armani.
just look at this list.
1. Duke: Mike Krzyewski - 3
titles, 10 Final Fours
2. North Carolina; Roy Williams - 1 title, 6 Final F
3. Louisville: Rick Pitino - 1 title,5 Final Fours (And the only coach to take three different teams)
4. Michigan State: Tom Izzo, 1
title, 4 Final Fours
5. Syracuse: Jim Boeheim - 1
title, 3 Final Fours
6. Connecticut: Jim Calhoun
2 titles, 2 Final Fours
7. Kansas: Bill Self, 1 title, 1
Final Four
8. Memphis: John Calipari, 0 titles, 2 Final Fours
LOUISVILLE SLEEPER
If Kansas can knock off Michigan State in the Sweet Sixteen, the Jayhawks will most likely have a date with No. 1 seed Louisville in the Elite Eight.
The Cardinals' season has taken on a interesting narrative. A trendy Final Four pick in October, Louisville scuffled in November and December, losing games to Western Kentucky, Minnesota and UNLV. And of course, the Cardinals were quickly resigned to the college basketball scrap heap.
Now three months later. Louisville has a Big East regular season championship and postseason tournament title on its resume, and the Cardinals are the tournament's overall No. 1 seed.
So how did Louisville do it?
Well, of course, there's not one answer. But much of the turnaround should be credited to the brilliant play of senior forward
Terrence Williams.
Williams is a rare species in the college game. He's a hybrid point-forward, who has the abil- jump
start Louisville's offense from the forward position. Williams, a 6-foot-6 forward, averages just 12.7 points per game, but rebounds remarkably well for his size — 8.7 rebounds per game
—and hands out five assists per contest. He doesn't have gaudy stats like Blake Griffin, he isn't a physical specimen like Deluan Blair, and he isn't worshipped by ESPN like Tyler Hansbrough. But Williams may just be the most valuable player in the country.
Williams
WHO'S CUTTING DOWN THE NETS?
Therea a great story about Russell Robinson after Kansas beat Davidson and advanced to the Final Four last year. The lavhays took
There's a
Robinson
their time and snipped down the net at one end of the court.
It took about 25 minutes, and by the time Bill Self cut the last strands of net, the Kansas players and coaches were ready to get back to the locker room to celebrate. Robinson had another thought. His eyes were focused on the other end of the court.
Pomeroy gives Louisville a 47.6 percent chance to come out of the Midwest Region, while he gives Pittsburgh a 40.1 percent chance to come out of the East. Memphis is his pick in the West, with a 40.8 percent chance, and he goes with North Carolina in the South with just a 35.4 percent likelihood.
As for Kansas, Pomeroy gives Kansas a 26 percent chance to make it to the Final Four, but just a 5 percent chance to win it all.
*Seriously, we don't have enough ink to explain it. I know I sound a little like former treasury secretary Henry Paulson right before Congress passed the $700 billion bailout plan, but it's true.
According to Pomeroy's complicated* formula, these teams have the best odds of making it to the Final Four in Detroit.
Four teams will get to climb a ladder and cut down the nets as Regional Champs. So who will it be? Well, let's go to basketball statistics guru Ken Pomeroy at Basketball Prospectus.
"Hey," Robinson shouted to nobody in particular. "What about the other net? Can we get that other net?"
If you recall, Pomeroy gave Kansas the best odds to win it all at this time last year.
Just saying.
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FOOTBALL Team to hold practice open to the public Friday
This will be the team's first practice open to the public this spring. A March 11 practice was postponed due to cold temperatures. The team has said it plans to make up that practice but a date and time has yet to be announced.
upon entering. Parking will be available on the east side of the stadium with an entrance at the southeast gate.
- Stephen Montemayor
After its first scheduled open practice was postponed by the cold, the Kansas football team will tempt weather's fate Friday with a 3:30 p.m. practice open to the public.
Admission to Memorial Stadium will be free and the team is asking that fans don't bring cameras and turn phones off
MLB
Royals' Buck prepares for season as backup
SURPRISE, Ariz. — John Buck, the Kansas City Royals opening day catcher for the past four years, won't be in the lineup when the Royals start the season against the Chicago White Sox on April 6.
But Buck said he still views himself as a starting catcher, even after losing the starting job to Miguel Olivo.
"I don't look at myself as a
backup at all." Buck said. "I don't think the Royals want me to, either. I'm not content with it, but at the same time Miguel has been named the starter. I'm going to support him. I want him to succeed, as much as I want myself to succeed. Cause if he succeeds, that means the team is doing good. I think ultimately, we all want to get to the playoffs."
Manager Trey Hillman had promised Olivo that he would get most of the playing time behind the plate when he and the team exercised mutual contract options in November to keep Olivo in Kansas City.
EVERYTHING YOU WANT TO KNOW ABOUT LAW SCHOOL
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Associated Press
LAW STUDENT Q&A PANEL TUESDAY, MARCH 31ST 6PM
- What's the most you've had to read in one night?
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THIS WEEK IN KANSAS ATHLETICS
TODAY
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Women's basketball Arkansas, 7 p.m. Lawrence
FRIDAY
Men's basketball Michigan State, 8:37 p.m. Indianapolis
Tennis
Oklahoma, 6 p.m.
Norman, Okla.
Women's golf Liz Murphey Collegiate Classic Athens, Ga.
Baseball
Texas A&M,
6:35 p.m.
College Station,
Texas
Track & field
Missouri Relays
Columbia, Mo.
SATURDAY
Softball Texas A&M, 2 p.m. Lawrence
Soccer
Creighton, 2 p.m.
Lawrence
Baseball
Texas A&M,
2:05 p.m.
College Station,
Texas
Rowing
Oklahoma, TBA
Oklahoma City
Track & field Missouri Relays Columbia, Mo.
**Nemen's golf**
Liz Murphey
Collegiate Classic
Athens, Ga.
SUNDAY
Soccer
KU Mens
Club Team,
10 a.m. Lawrence
Tennis
Oklahoma State,
11 a.m.
Stillwater, Okla.
Baseball
Texas A&M,
12:05 p.m.
College Station,
Texas
Softball
Texas A&M, noon
awrence
Women's Golf Liz Murphey Collegiate Classic thens, Ga.
Men's Golf
Western
Intercollegiate
Santa Cruz, Calif.
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