2B
SPORTS
THE UNIVERSITY OF DAILY KANSAN
TUESDAY MARCH 10,2009
QUOTE OF THE DAY
"Darrell is a kid who has always had his spiritual life in order. That was something he has helped other guys with who came to college not knowing where they were spiritually or morally."
— Dave Doeren,
former Kansas recruiting coordinator
FACT OF THE DAY
Junior safety Darrell Stuckey has started 30 games in his Kansas career. Last season he led the team with five interceptions and ranked second with seven pass break-ups.
TRIVIA OF THE DAY
Q: Where does Darrell Stuckey's sister, Denae, play basketball?
A: Iowa State. Against Kansas on Saturday, Denae, a junior, played 13 minutes and recorded four rebounds, one point and one assist.
Are Texas'19 recruits worth it?
COMMENTARY
It's ten oclock. Do you know where your children are? If they can throw a half-decent spiral and are old enough to drive, chances are they may be near a University of Texas football recruiter.
A perennial powerhouse on the recruiting trail, the Longhorns have found themselves ranked in Rivals.com's top
five recruiting classes four times since 2002. Texas' class of 2009 includes three five-star athletes and 11 four-star recruits
Brown
fifth-overall ranking.
With National Signing Day in the rearview, the Longhorns already have 19 verbal commitments for the class of 2010. Astonishing stuff. There are two perspectives here. One is that the Longhorns do such a bang-up job of recruiting that they can complete 85 to 90 percent of their 2010 class while this
year's top recruit remains undecided — the Bryce Brown Circus is expected to continue until Thursday when the Wichita East running back finally announces his college choice.
The other, of course, is the question of whether one can really produce a fair and accurate assessment of athletes before they even play their senior seasons. The only thing I could picture myself signing as a 16-year-old cart pusher at Hy-Vee would be a check or my parents' signatures on a permission slip.
ALI OF THE OCTAGON
Quintin "Rampage" Jackson (30-7) effectively set up a Light Heavyweight Championship showdown with titleholder Rashad Evans (13-0-1) after Jackson earned a unanimous-
decision victory over Keith Jardine (14-5-1) at UFC 96 Saturday.
After screaming, "I want my belt back!" Jackson engaged in a
trash-talking with Evans.
At one point,
Evans dropped the f-bomb a few times, prompting Jackson to say, "Don't say that Rashad.
Jackson
Don't saaay that." Stop by the Full Monty blog where we are streaming this video.
The heavyweight title unification fight between champion Brock Lesnar and interim champ Frank Mir, originally slated for May 23, was reset for July 11 because of an injury to Mir. Evans' title defense was set for that date but now swaps spots. Jackson must now decide whether to take on his third fight in three months. If not, the title shot goes to undefeated Lyoto Machida (14-0).
Considering his face-off with
Evans on Saturday, it's tough see either Jackson or the UFC backing off this fight, as the two already gift-wrapped a promotional video for buildup.
MARCH MADNESS
REQUIRED READING
Looking for something to read other than the fine print on your office pool? Easy: John Feinstein's "A Season on the Brink." Feinstein had the balls and energy to accompany Bobby Knight in his profanity-laced, coaching prime with the 1985- 86 Indiana Hoosiers. The result: One of the best sports books of all time.
— Edited by Melissa Johnson
BASEBALL Jayhawks add another game to their schedule
After playing only three of the four scheduled games against Northwestern this weekend because of rain and lightning delays, coach Ritch Price and the Jayhawks have filled in their schedule with a game today at 3 p.m. against Division II Missouri Valley College.
The Jayhawks will be the Vikings' first Division I opponent of the season. Missouri Valley College has struggled to a 2-11 record so far this year, including two double-digit shellackings at the hands of Oklahoma City University.
The matchup will likely amount to a warm-up game for Kansas before a brutal stretch starting Wednesday against perennial power Wichita State. The game should serve as an opportunity for Price to get a look at some of the new Jayhawks in game situations.
Freshman Lee Ridenhour, who has played well for the
Jayhawks in three appearances this year, is slated to start Wednesday against the Shockers. Junior Brett Bollman will start against the Vikings today. Bollman made his first appearance of the season Sunday, going one inning with one hit and no runs scored.
Tim Dwyer
WOMEN'S GOLF Team takes first as six place top 15 in Arizona
For the first time this season, the Kansas women's golf team brought home a first-place finish this weekend.
The team traveled to Rio Verde, Ariz., for the Duramed Collegiate Invitational at the Rio Verde Country Club. The final team score for Kansas was 294-295-294-883, which made them the only team to stay under 900 for the three-day tournament.
Junior Meghan Gockel led the team with scores of 73 on Friday, 72 on Saturday and 73 on Sunday. Gockel's score of
218 tied her for first on the final day but she medaled for first place at the first playoff hole. This was the first individual title for Gockel and her career best score for a three-round tournament
Kansas had four other athletes finish in the top 15 of the tournament.
Junior Emily Powers, sophomore Meghna Bal
and freshman Kalynd Carson tied for tenth place with a final score of 225. Powers went 74-75-76, Bal went 78-75-72, and Carson went 72-80-73. For Carson and Wilson this was also a career best performance. Sophomore Sydney Wilson tied for 15th place with a score of 75-73-78 with a final score of 226.
The next tournament for Kansas will be the Liz Murphey Collegiate Classic in Ahtens, Georgia, March 27-29.
Gockel
Out in a snap
Hallie Mann
Team South Korea catcher Park Kyung-oan breaks his bat and pops out to first against Team Japan in the third inning of the World Baseball Classic game at Tokyo Dome in Tokyo, Japan, on Monday.
ASSOCIATED PRESS
THIS WEEK IN KANSAS ATHLETICS
Men's golf
Louisiana Classics
Lafayette, La.
Baseball Missouri Valley College, 3 p.m. awrence
WEDNESDAY
Women's basketball Nebraska, 1:30 p.m Oklahoma City, Okla.
Baseball Wichita State, 6 p.m. Lawrence
THURSDAY
TODAY
Men's basketball
Baylor/Nebraska
11:30 a.m.
Oklahoma City, Okla
Softball Missouri State, 2 p.m. Springfield, Mo.
FRIDAY
Tennis
Nebraska, 3 p.m.
Lincoln, Neb.
Baseball
Arizona State,
5:30 p.m.
Surprise, Ariz.
Swimming & diving
Zone Diving
Championships
All Day
Track & field
NCAA Indoor
Championships
college Station, Texas
SATURDAY
Tennis
lowa State, 3:30 p.m.
Ames, Iowa
Jaseball
Arizona State,
5:30 p.m.
Surprise, Ariz.
Swimming & diving
Zone Diving
Championships
TBA
COLLEGE BASKETBALL UNCranks No.1 in poll; Kansas falls to No.11
frack & field NCAA Indoor Championships College Station, Texas
North Carolina edged Pittsburgh for 1. In the Associated Press' college basketball poll on Monday in one of the closest votes ever.
The Tar Heels (27-3), who were a unanimous No. 1 in the pre-season poll and for the first seven weeks of the season, moved up one place to reclaim the top spot after beating Duke on Sunday to win the Atlantic Coast Conference regular-season title.
North Carolina received 35 first-place votes and 1,734 points from the 71-member national media panel. Pittsburgh was No. 1 on 33 ballots and had 1,731 points.
Kansas, the Big 12champion dropped two spots to No.11.
Pittsburgh (28-3) moved up one place after beating Connecticut for a second time this season when the Huskies were ranked No.1. The Panthers finished tied for second in the Big East with Connecticut, one game behind Louisville.
On Jan. 27, 1981, Oregon State and Virginia tied for No. 1, the only time that has happened since the poll began in the 1948-49 season.
AP men's top 25
Poll as of Monday, with first-place votes in parentheses
Associated Press
| | Record | Points | Prev. |
| :--- | :--- | :--- | :--- |
| 1. North Carolina (35) | 27-3 | 1,734 | 2 |
| 2. Pittsburgh (33) | 28-3 | 1,731 | 3 |
| 3. Connecticut | 27-3 | 1,592 | 1 |
| 4. Memphis (2) | 28-3 | 1,544 | 5 |
| 5. Louisville (1) | 25-5 | 1,513 | 6 |
| **6. Oklahoma** | **27-4** | **1,399** | **4** |
| 7. Michigan State | 25-5 | 1,349 | 8 |
| 8. Wake Forest | 24-5 | 1,246 | 10 |
| 9. Duke | 25-6 | 1,237 | 7 |
| 10. Villanova | 25-6 | 1,108 | 11 |
| **11. Kansas** | **25-6** | **1,038** | **9** |
| 12. Gonzaga | 25-5 | 978 | 14 |
| 13. Washington | 24-7 | 910 | 16 |
| **14. Missouri** | **25-6** | **779** | **15** |
| 15. UCLA | 24-7 | 752 | 20 |
| 16. Butler | 26-4 | 536 | 22 |
| 17. Clemson | 23-7 | 528 | 18 |
| 18. Syracuse | 23-8 | 518 | 25 |
| 19. Xavier | 24-6 | 465 | 17 |
| 20. LSU | 25-6 | 461 | 12 |
| 21. Marquette | 23-8 | 453 | 13 |
| 22. Florida State | 23-8 | 333 | 24 |
| 23. Arizona State | 22-8 | 199 | 21 |
| 24. Purdue | 22-9 | 169 | 19 |
| 25. BYU | 24-6 | 158 | — |
Others receiving votes: Illinois 131, Texas A&M 63, Saint Mary's, Calif. 56, Utah 11, West Virginia 17, Auburn 9, Dayton 7, Utah St. 6, Va. Commonwealth 6, Weber State 5, Creighton 4, N. Iowa 3, Oklahoma State 3, Siena 3, California 2, New Mexico 2, Penn State 2, Texas 2, American U. 1, Ohio State 1, Tennessee 1.
Montreal head coach fired with 16 games left in season
NHL
ASSOCIATED PRESS
Canadiens, 5-4-1 in their previous 10 games, won 3-1 at Dallas on Sunday in their last game with Carbonneau as coach.
MONTREAL — Guy Carbonneau was fired as coach of the Montreal Canadiens, hockey's most historic franchise, which is in danger of missing the playoffs in its 100th season.
Carbonneau officially became an NHL head coach for the first time on May 5, 2006, after serving as an associate to Gainey for the final 41 games of the 2005-06 season. Gainey took the job after firing coach Claude Julien. He announced then that Carbonneau would take over as head coach the following season.
The timing of Monday's move was a bit surprising because the Canadiens are currently in a playoff position and there are only 16 games left in the regular season.
Montreal (35-24-7) went into a free fall in late January and February, losing 10 of 13. The
General manager Bob Gainey, who handed the coaching duties over to Carbonneau three years ago, will return behind the bench when Montreal hosts Edmonton on Tuesday.
The Canadiens started Monday in fifth place in the Eastern Conference, but they were only two points above the postseason cutoff. What was supposed to be a season of celebration has turned into one of difficulty.
In 230 games with the Canadiens over three seasons, Carbonneau was 124-83-23. He is the seventh NHL coach fired this season, and the fourth in five weeks.
Last season, the Canadiens finished first in the NHL's Eastern Conference with a 47-25-10 record and 104 points, but were bounced from the playoffs in the second round by Philadelphia. Carbonneau was a finalist for the Jack Adams Trophy as coach of the year in 2008.
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A-Rod hip surgery a success; return may take 3 months
Other options considered were a more aggressive surgery that would have
TAMPA, Fla. — Yankees third baseman Alex Rodriguez had arthroscopic surgery Monday to repair a torn labrum in his right hip. His projected timetable for recovery is six to nine weeks.
Dr. Marc Philippon performed
the 1-nour,
20-minute
procedure
at Vail Valley
Surgery Center
in Colorado.
"There is no doubt in our minds that this was the best option," Philippon said. "This was the best option for Alex and the Yankees."
General manager Brian Cashman expects the three-time AL MVP back on the field "sometime in May." Rodriguez will need a more extensive operation after the season, and Philippon said Rodriguez would be ready for spring training in 2010.
sidelined Rodriguez up to four months and a conservative approach that would have included rest and treatment.
Rodriguez was to start his rehab Monday. He was to perform range of motion drills and ride a stationary bike.
"Alex is doing well," Philippon said.
Philippon said he found a small impingement and the lining of a cyst that was removed last week. The labrum was repaired.
Rodriguez was expected to be released from the hospital later Monday.
Associated Press
.