8B GAME DAY
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THE UNIVERSITY OF KANSAS
KU
TIPOFF
AT A GLANCE
Here come the traps. Kansas has a monstrous matchup with No. 2 Oklahoma five days from now on ESPN's Big Monday. But the showdown will lose most of its luster if Kansas trips up tonight against Iowa State or Saturday against Nebraska. Kansas coach Bill Self isn't worried about his team's focus. He notes that the Jayhawks should be excited to play at home as it is nearly two weeks since the last game in Allen Fieldhouse, where they have won 37 consecutive games.
Sophomore guard Brady Morningstar
PLAYERTOWATCH
goal percentage. He currently leads the Big 12 in three-point shooting percentage. Against Kansas State Saturday, Morningstar made all four of his three-point
attempts. Guarded or not, it didn't matter. Morningstar had the touch and simply wasn't missing. If his hot streak continues Wednesday, the Cyclones might be in trouble. It's nearly impossible to adequately defend Morningstar's shooting ability while still keying on keeping Sherron Collins from penetrating and Cole Aldrich from dominating down low.
BATTLING BRACKINS AGAIN
Which power forward will hog the minutes this time around?
Kansas needs to stop the Iowa State forward, who scored 42 in Ames.
Morningstar is shooting 47 percent from three-point range. That's a point better than his field
QUESTION MARK
Self clearly has a method for which big man he uses next to Aldrich. He goes with whomever has the hot hand. Against Kansas State, it was freshman forward Marcus Morris, who played 28 minutes and had 15 points, seven rebounds, four assists and three steals. Two games ago, junior guard Mario Little played the best and logged the most minutes. Freshman forward Markieff Morris seems to be the odd man out, but that could change if he gets off to a quick start.
KANSAS VS. IOWA STATE 7 p.m., ALLEN FIELDHOUSE, Lawrence, Big 12 Network
HEAR YE, HEAR YE
"This has been a fun group to be around. I've probably enjoyed this group the last couple months about as much as any group I've had. I see growth every day."
- Kansas coach Bill Self
"I don't think we're great offensively. But I didn't think we would score as many points as we're scoring. We turn it over way too much. We've shot the ball at a pretty good clip."
KANSAS
(20-5,9-1)
STARTERS
Collins
Sherron Collins, 5-foot-11 juniorguard
Collins scored 19 points against Kansas State, but Self was just as pleased that he took only 11 shots. Collins has learned he doesn't have to do everything for the Jayhawks.
IOWASTATE
(13-12, 2-8)
STARTERS
Tyshawn Taylor, 6-foot-2 freshman guard
Diante Garrett, 6-foot-4 sophomore guard
Brackins gets his points and dominates the game, but it is Garrett's performance that often decides how Iowa State actually plays. If he's on, then the Cyclones can generally hang with their opponent into the second half.
Garrett
Taylor
Taylor lost his starting spot last game, but Self praised his defensive performance and poise after the game. That probably means he's gained it back.
Morningstar
-Kansas coach Bill Self
Bryan Petersen, 6-foot-1 senior guard
Petersen averages 6.1 points, four rebounds and 2.8 assists per game. He is also second on the team with 18 steals.
★★☆☆☆
Bradly Morningstar, 6-foot-3 sophomore guard
Self says Kansas is at its best when Morningstar is on the floor. And it's even better when he's on the floor and not missing a single threepointer.
Petersen
Marcus Morris, 6-foot-8 freshman forward
Is Marcus done teasing fans with flashes of potential and ready to play the prominent role Self expects him to? All signs point to yes, but it's impossible to know with Marcus.
Staiger
Lucca Staiger, 6-foot-5 sophomore guard
Colle Aldrich, 6-foot-11 sophomore center
Aldrich is one of the mos dominant big men in the country. He's first in the Big 12 in blocks, second in rebounds and 13th in points.
the Germany native, who notches 8.4 points per game, is a fan-favorite in Ames, but it's doubtful that he'll get a similar reception tonight. In fact, odds are there will be at least one David Hassellhoff joke thrown in his direction.
Aldrich
Craig Brackins, 6-foot-10 sophomore forward
Everyone knows Reed can shoot, but he also might be Kansas' best hustle player. He regularly dives on the floor for loose balls and scraps for rebounds better than any guard on the roster.
★★★★
Tyre1 Reed, 6-foot-3 sophormore guard
Brackins is Iowa State host singer
Before transferring to Brewster Academy in Hew Hampshire for his senior year, Brackins played ball at Boys to Men Academy in Chicago. Surprisingly, it's not a boy-band factory, though scouting reports suggest
Brackins
best singer.
SIXTH MAN
Case Keefer
★★★★
★★☆☆
Justin Hamilton, 6-foot-11 fresh
When they last met, Kansas center Cole Aldrich poured in 16 points and grabbed 12 rebounds over Hamilton. Expect more of the same this time around.
Hamilton
SIXTH MAN
Charles Boozer, 6-foot-3 sophomore guard
Boozer looks like a miniature version of his big brother Carlos. If he could emulate his brother on the boards -- Charles averages just 1.3 rebounds per game
— then maybe he could see same more playing time.
Boozer
Cole Aldrich
— Taylor Bern
ISU TIPOFF AT A GLANCE
There's little reason for Cyclone fans to be excited about the direction their team is taking right now. Iowa State is one rung above the bottom of the Big 12, although Colorado's lone conference victory did come against Iowa State in Boulder. The Cyclones repaid the favor with a 70-42 whipping last Wednesday, but beating up on the Buffaloes doesn't do much as far as national respect goes. Iowa State is stuck in a position where it must measure progress not by wins and losses, but how close the loss was.
PLAYER TO WATCH
Sophomore forward Craig Brackins
Without Brackins, Iowa State would likely be the worst team in a BCS conference. Even with him the Cyclones are only slightly
above that plateau, but he makes them worth watching. Brackins, a 6-foot-10 forward, averages 19.7 points and 9.1 rebounds per game.
Brackins
Those numbers rank second and third in the conference. He also hits 49 percent from the field, a remarkable stat considering he's responsible for single-handedly carrying the offense. Iowa State likely won't be good for another couple of years, but Brackins still makes a Cyclones game entertaining once in a while.
QUESTION MARK
Can a Cyclone not named Craig Brackins score at least 10 points?
It sounds simple, but in Iowa State's loss to Kansas on Jan. 24, Brackins scored 42, Jamie Vanderbeeken scored eight and Luca Staier scored five. Brackins outscored the rest of his team by 17.
Diante Garrett is the second-best option with 9.9 points per game, but against Kansas he mustered just two points on 0-for-5 shooting. It's not a lot to ask and it probably won't have much affect on the outcome, but at least it would show that Iowa State made some progress as a team.
"In the end, we couldn't score enough points to stay with them."
HEARYE, HEARYE
— Iowa State coach Greg McDermott after Saturday's 86-67 loss at Oklahoma State
"It was really tough to guard him. He has really good moves, and he hesitated well, and it was tough for me to read him."
- Iowa state guard Lucca Staiger on trying to guard Oklahoma State's Byron Eaton
BIG 12 SCHEDULE
Game Time(CT) Channel
Nebraska vs. Colorado 8 p.m. ESPNU
Texas Tech vs. Oklahoma State 8:30 p.m. ESPN2
ALLEN FIELDHOUSE WILL ROCK IF...
The walk-ons get in the game. Truth be told, this could be the last opportunity for players such as sophomores Conner Teahan and Chase Buford, and freshman Jordan Juenemann to get into a game. Look for a few of them in garbage time if the Jayhawks are ahead by more than 20 with a couple of minutes to go. It's certainly possible, maybe even expected.
PIHOG ALLEN WILL ROLL OVER IN HIS
GRAVE IF...
Kansasruins next week's faceoff at Oklahoma with a defeat. Monday's game at the Lloyd Noble Center is shaping up to be the Big 12's biggest regular season game of the year. Think the equivalent of Kansas-Texas from the past two years. If Oklahoma beats Texas Saturday, it will be the No.1 team in the nation. But if Kansas wins out, it will win its fifth straight Big 12 regular season championship.
REMAINING SCHEDULE
Prediction: KANSAS 80, IOWA STATE 57
Date Opponent TV Time
Feb. 21 NEBRASKA Big 12 Network 3 p.m.
Feb. 23 at Oklahoma ESPN 8 p.m.
March 1 MISSOURI CBS 1 p.m.
March 4 at Texas Tech ESPN2 8:30 p.m.
March 7 TEXAS CBS 3 p.m.
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