THE UNIVERSITY DAIRY KANSAN
SPORTS
UESDAY, MARCH 3, 2009
9A
QUOTE OF THE DAY
"I don't know that you can say the quarterback position is secure. I think we've got another guy to come in and compete for the starting quarterback position. I just got off the phone with Tyler (Thippen). I told him I'm a very selfish coach. I think that's evident by Arizona and what we did. We're going to play the guys that give us the best chance to win."
Chiefs coach Todd Haley on the acquisition of quarterback Matt Cassel, from the Kansas City Star
FACT OF THE DAY
Chiefs quarterback Matt Cassel had a banner season in 2008 in his first opportunity as an NFL starting quarterback. Cassel had a QB rating of 89.4 good for 10th in the NFL. He also passed for 3,693 yards with 21 touchdowns and 11 interceptions.
— NFL.com
Who did the Kansas City Chiefs draft with their second round pick in 2008, the same pick traded to New England for Matt Cassel and Mike Wrabel?
TRIVIA OF THE DAY
The Chiefs drafted Virginia Tech cornerback Brandon Flowers with the fourth pick of the second round. Flowers started 13 games last season. recording 69 tackles as a rookie to go along with two interceptions.
— Kansas City Chiefs
@KANSAN.COM
Swimming: Check Kansan. com for video coverage of the Big 12 Championships in Columbia last weekend.
LAW
Legislature views bill punishing unruly fans
JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. — Unruly fans or athletes could face stiffer penalties if they attack a sports official under a bill being considered in the Missouri House.
The legislation would create a new crime for those who assault a referee or coach at any sporting event in the state, from youth leagues to professional games.
Increased penalties would not mean a loss of yardage. An official's attacker would face up to a $1,500 fine or one year in jail.
Currently, some instances of third-degree assault are punishable with a $300 fine.
More than 20 states have increased penalties for assaulting a sports official. Most of those states have similar criminal penalties as Missouri's proposal.
Associated Press
Assessing the Tigers' meltdown
COMMENTARY
A pair of top 15 teams shouldn't play the sort of game Kansas and Missouri did Sunday. A squad ranked among the nation's best shouldn't be down for the count after 10 minutes, with or without a rowdy Allen Fieldhouse crowd.
The Tigers' season-long track
record days no. Missouri waltzed through its non conference slate at 13-2, suffering losses only to Top 25 teams Xavier and Illinois. Missouri
Anderson
clobbered NCAA tournament hopeful California and soundly defeated Southern California. In Big 12 Conference play, the Tigers slipped up twice on the road but handled the rest of their schedule easily.
During one three-day stretch, Missouri defeated Iowa State and Colorado by 76 points combined. Coach Mike Anderson had his team rolling before Sunday, winning seven straight and sitting
in third place in the Big 12.
There's certainly a case for Missouri's sorry Sunday standing as an aberration. But there are also reasons to believe Kansas really is that much better than its neighbor.
The Tigers are more seasoned than the Jayhawks, but they aren't grizzled veterans. Senior forwards DeMarre Carroll, Leo Lyons and Matt Lawrence play large roles for Missouri, but the team's backcourt and bench are littered with freshmen and transfers. The Tigers rank 184th out of 344 teams in the nation in experience, a figure that helps explain their panic in a packed Allen Fieldhouse.
Missouri's style of play makes the team both dangerous and vulnerable. The Tigers push the pace on offense and pressure excessively on defense. It usually works (see Kansas' 27-turnover showing at Missouri Feb. 9), but
when teams slow down and keep possession, Missouri tends to struggle. Kansas committed just 16 turnovers Sunday and used its extra possessions efficiently, making 56 percent of its shots. Missouri's intense defense backfired, as it sent Kansas to the line for 22 free throw attempts.
Kansas fans chanted "overrated" at Missouri late in Sunday's second half, which certainly seemed true judging by the scoreboard.
Or maybe Kansas is just really good. Maybe Kansas is 90-65
sophomore center Cole Aldrich to go along with a group of all-of-a-sudden-exceptional freshmen, that's probably the case.
8 team in the nation good. Considering the Jayhawks have a pair of potential All-Americans in junior guard Sherron Collins and
Kansas women's basketball senior guard Ivana Catic looked
CATIC GETS OFFENSIVE
more like a gunner than a game manager Saturday in the Jayhawks' 70-57 victory against Nebraska. Catic, usually shy with her shot selection, exploded for 10 points on 5-for-10 shooting while registering just one turnover in 34 minutes.
Her assertiveness was more than a little unusual for the Zrenjamin, Serbia, native. In 13 conference contests entering Saturday, Catic had attempted 12 shots, or one per 25 minutes of playing time.
Given the guard's statistics, Nebraska wasn't really planning on expending much energy defending her. So Catic reviewed tape and fired away. Turns out she made the most of her second-to-last game at Allen Fieldhouse.
Edited by Grant Treaster
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The No. 9 Jayhawks, who have won four straight conference titles, are coming off a 90-65 victory against No. 15 Missouri.
ST. LOUIS — Kansas' Big 12 foes never bought into that talk about a rebuilding season. Despite losing all five starters, the defending national champions are in first place heading into the final week of conference play.
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calling him "unguardable." He said forward Cole Aldrich was the "best presence at the rim on both ends of the court in the league"
"They recruit good players; they don't recruit bad players," Kansas State coach Frank Martin said Monday on the Big 12 coaches teleconference. "You just knew at the end of the year they were going to be right in the middle of it."
Texas Tech's Pat Knight, whose team hosts the Jayhawks Wednesday, expected Kansas to be a contender back in October.
ANNETTE CALDWELL SIMMONS
SCHOOL OF EDUCATION
& HUMAN DEVELOPMENT
"I thought it was kind of funny when everybody was trying to count (Coach Bill Self) out before the season just because he has young kids," Knight said. "They just reload every year. If Bill's coaching the team, they're going to be good."
Martin rates Sherron Collins the best guard in the Big 12.
Collins was a top reserve last
THIS WEEK IN KANSAS ATHLETICS
TODAY
Baseball
North Dakota, 3 p.m.
Lawrence
WEDNESI
Men's basketball
Texas Tech, 8:30 p.m.
Lubbock, Texas
Women's basketball
Baylor, 7 p.m.
Lawrence
SDAY Baseball North Dakota, 3 p.m. Lawrence
THURSDAY
No events
FRIDAY
Softball NDSU, 3 p.m. Lawrence
Tennis BYU, 1 p.m. Lawrence
Baseball Northwestern, 3 p.m. Lawrence
Women's golf
Rio Verde Invite
Rio Verde, Ariz.
Track & Field
Arkansas Last
Chance
Fayetteville, Ark.
"Everybody's talking about what they lost and he's saying, 'What about me?'" Knight said. "They're kind of playing with a chip on their shoulder, and they've picked it up. Boy, they're playing well."
Associated Press
season with 15 double-digit scoring games. He led the way against Missouri with 25 points.
...