THE UNIVERSITY DAIRY IANSAN
FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 6, 2009
10
GAME DAY
7B
KU
TIPOFF
AT A GLANCE
Ten months ago, fans feared Kansas coach Bill Self might bolt for Oklahoma State. On the surface, it looked like there was reason for concern. Oklahoma State was Self's alma mater and it had reportedly been willing to make him the highest paid coach in all of college basketball. But in all actuality, it wasn't going to happen. Not with Self. For the first time since the mini-draca took place, Self and the Jayhawks take on the Cowboys Saturday. And Self is in no way looking at Oklahoma State and asking what could have been. How could he be? Kansas is 7-0 in Big 12 Conference play and looking to add another title.
PLAYER TO WATCH
Freshman forward Tyshawn Taylor
This isn't the Oklahoma State of old. New coach Travis Ford brought an up-tempo style and
the Cowboys now play at a faster pace than almost every team in the nation. Exactly the way Taylor prefers to play. He'll be the fastest player on the
Taylor
court and could thrive off of the Cowboys' tendency to run up and down the court. Look for blocks. Look for transition points. Look for Taylor's best game since the Big 12 opener against Kansas State.
QUESTION MARK
Can the Jayhawks slow Obi Muonelo?
Someone will have a big game for the Cowboys. When a team averages as many possessions as they do, at least one player is bound to put up big numbers every game. Kansas needs to make sure it isn't Muonelo. He's the kind of player who has given the Jayhawks trouble this season — a big guard who plays a lot of his minutes in the post. Muonelo averages nearly 15 points and nine rebounds. To hold him below that, it's going to take a strong defensive effort from whoever guards him.
HEARYE, HEARYE
"We've got to get prepared to play a really good Oklahoma State team that can beat anybody on any night because of the way they play. They shoot so many threes and when they're hitting, they can beat anybody. They've got four guys who are as good as shooters as anyone in our league."
Kansas coach Bill Self
"We're learning and everyone is buying into coach's system. We're just finding out who we are and getting better day by day." —Junior guard Sheron Collins
CollIns
KANSAS (16-4)
SELF'S FORMER SELF Coach will face off with the alma mater that wanted him back
Sherron Collins, 5-foot-11 junior guard Collins thinks the Jayhawks can get better. But can he? Collins already averages 18 points and five assists per game.
STARTERS
Taylor
Tyshawn Taylor, 6-foot-3 freshman guard Taylor has scored less than 10 points in three straight games and seems poised to explode for a big game any time now.
KANSAS VS. OKLAHOMA STATE 2:30 p.m., ALLEN FIELDHOUSE, Lawrence, ABC
Morningstar
Brady Morningstar, 6-foot-3 sophomore guard
Morningstar played 40 minutes in the victory against Baylor Monday. Yes, that means he didn't come out of the game at all.
Marcus Morris, 6-foot-8 freshman forward Morris's shooting ability makes him hard to guard and Self is allowing him to play an expanded role offensively.
Morris
Cole Aldrich, 6-foot-11 sophomore center
For the first time this season, Aldrich failed to reach double digits in either points or rebounds Monday against Baylor. As long as the guards get him the ball Saturday, the streak won't continue.
Aldrich
BIRTH MAN
Mario Little, 6-foot-5 junior guard
Little made the most of his 13 minutes against Baylo.
scoring 12 points
and adding three
rebounds. Like
Taylor, he
looks primed
for a break
out sometime soon.
SIXTH MAN
Case Keefer
OKLAHOMA STATE (9-10)
Eaton
STARTERS
Byron Eaton, 5-foot-11 senior guard Eaton is the motor that runs coach Travis Ford's Cowboys. If he wasn't around this team probably couldn't win a single conference game.
Harris
Terrel Harris, 6-foot-5 senior guard
Tyrel Reed
Eaton scored eight of Oklahoma State's final 10 points against Texas Tech and it was Harris who poured in the other crucial points with 1:45 to play. Harris scored 22 points against the Red Raiders.
Muonelo
★★★☆☆
Obi Muonelo, 6-foot-5 junior guard
Muonelo is the leading rebounder on a team that doesn't get to the glass well. He pulls down 8.8 boards per game and also pours in 14.7 points per game. He's the Cowboys' most balanced offensive threat.
James Anderson, 6-foot-6 sophomore guard
Anderson is an athletic freak who can double as a forward in this diminutive lineup. He won the Arkansas state high jump twice and his 16.8 points per game lead the Cowboys. Anderson also leads the way with 20 blocks.
OKLAHOMA
Anderson
Marshall Moses, 6-foot-6 sophomore forward
In just his third start of the year, Moses exploded for 18 points against Texas Tech. Going into the game he averaged 4.8 points per game. He's only 6-foot-6 but Moses is as good as it gets for Oklahoma State in the post.
SIXTH MAN
Moses
Keiton Page, 5-foot-10 freshman guard
No Big 12 player looks like he belongs in Division-I basketball less than Page. The 168-pound freshman lacks in skill he makes up for with scrappiness and pimples.
Page
—Taylor Bern
OSU TIPOFF AT A GLANCE
Oklahoma State isn't a Big 12 bottom feeder, but it's close. The Cowboys are a small step above the bottom three teams. On the other hand, they're just 16 points from a 6-1 conference record.
An overtime loss at Baylor and then close losses to Missouri and Oklahoma have perplexed coach Travis Ford. How could a team that nearly beat two of the conference powers lose by 12 at Texas A&M? It's a difficult question and Ford sure doesn't have the answer. He's just grateful that Okie St. snuck out a victory over bottom feeder Texas Tech on Wednesday.
PLAYER TO WATCH
Senior guard Byron Eaton Like Sheron Collins, Eaton is a little engine who can steamroll
his way to the basket and finish at the rim or the free-throw line. The diminutive guard has attempted the fifth-most freebies in the conference and he makes them
Eaton
at a 73 percent clip. The Dallas native also leads the Cowboys with 122 assists and 50 steals. Guys like Eaton and Collins prove there's room for the little guy in college basketball, and they'll do it against each other on Saturday.
QUESTION MARK
Can pint-sized Oklahoma State harass Cole Aldrich as Nebraska did?
Aldrich has said that he prefers playing against another big man instead of a bunch of swarming guards. That's easy to understand after watching him struggle against Nebraska.
The Cornhuskers hounded him every time the ball entered the post and Aldrich finished the first half with zero points and zero rebounds for the first time all season.
If they're smart, the Cowboys will run a similar zone defense to frustrate the big man on Saturday.
HEARYE, HEARYE
"He isn't going to let you play dead the whole game. He's going to make you feel that if you don't pick it up, there's going to be consequences."
— Oklahoma State guard Terrell Harris on coach Travis Ford
"Lawrence is a tough place to play. We have to go out and have fun like we did tonight in the second half, but do it for the whole 40 minutes."
Oklahoma State guard Byron Eaton
BIG 12 SCHEDULE
Game Time (CT) Channel
Colorado at Oklahoma 12:30 p.m. Big 12Network
Texas at Nebraska 1:00 p.m. ESPN
Kansas State at Texas A&M 3:00 p.m. Big 12Network
Missouri at Iowa State 5:00 p.m. MSN/CTN
Baylor at Texas Tech 7:00 p.m. ESPNU
ALLEN FIELDHOUSE WILL ROCK IF...
Kansas throws down a couple alley-oops. Maybe change "if to when," Against Oklahoma State, the lob passes are going to be open when Kansas has a numbers advantage in transition. Sherron Collins and Tyshawn Taylor might connect with Marcus Morris or Cole Aldrich early to stimulate the crowd. Marcus also likes to lob passes down to Aldrich.
PHOG ALLEN WILL ROLL OVER IN HIS GRAVE IF ...
Byron Eaton gets back into his groove. You know, the one he found last year against Kansas. Kansas' last loss of the 2007-2008 season came in Stillwater, Okla., because of two reasons: 1. It played its worst game of the season. 2. Eaton dominated. He scored 26 points and had four assists in the 61-60 victory. Eaton had no trouble getting into the lane and creating for the Cowboys. The Jayhawks can't let that happen again.
UPCOMING SCHEDULE
Prediction:
KANSAS 84,OKLAHOMA STATE 79
Date Opponent TV Time
Feb. 7 OKLAHOMA STATE ABC 2:30 p.m.
Feb. 9 at Missouri ESPN 8 p.m.
Feb. 14 at Kansas State ABC 2:30 p.m.
Feb. 18 IOWA STATE Big 12 Network 7:00 p.m.
Feb. 21 NEBRASKA Big 12 Network 3:00 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.