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Volume 128 Issue 61
kansan.com
Thursday, December 11, 2014
THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
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COMMENTARY Three-pointers, free throws boost Kansas in win
One of Kansas' weak points coming into the game against Georgetown was its three-point shooting. Before Wednesday night, the Jayhawks were averaging 32.2 percent from beyond the arc.
Kansas' 3-point shooting bailed it out of a tough situation against Joshua Smith and the Georgetown Hoyas on Wednesday night. Led by sophomore Brannen Greene, the Jayhawks shot 55.6 percent from the three, making 10 out of 18 attempts in a 75-70 victory at the Verizon Center in Washington D.C.
Greene was 5-for-5 from behind the line, and fellow sophomore guard Wayne Selden Jr. added two 3-pointers of his own.
The improved 3-point shooting came at a good time, as Kansas couldn't get much going inside. Smith, a 6-foot-10, 350-pound big man helped Georgetown dominate Kansas in the paint most of the night. Smith recorded 20 points on 8 for 13 shooting with five rebounds and three blocks.
Georgetown was able to record 10 blocks on Kansas throughout the game, compared to only four from the Jayhawks. Georgetown's Mikael Hopkins helped anchor their defense down low, recording five of their 10 blocks.
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Ellis has struggled this season against larger opponents, as he went only 1-for-6 from the field against Kentucky.
Junior Perry Ellis had one of his worst shooting nights on the season, going 4-for-15 from the field for 13 points.
Kansas has increased its free throw percentage this season. The Jayhawks started the season off missing 22 free throws in their first two games, but have improved this number as of late.
The Jayhawks were two free throws shy of their season high against Georgetown, sinking 25 shots from the free-throw line. Sophomore Frank Mason and freshman Kelly Oubre Jr. led the way with five free throws each on six attempts. Against Florida, Kansas made a season-high number of free throws (27) and shot the highest percentage of the year (84.4 percent).
Come conference play, if the Jayhawks can't go toe-to-toe with big men like Texas freshman Myles Turner, 3-pointers may not be there to bail them out. Teams can either live or die by the three, the numbers say. At the end of the day, most teams die by it.
On top of Kansas' 3-point shooting, its shooting from the free-throw line provided much needed offense as well.
If it weren't for 3-pointers and accurate free-throw shooting, the Jayhawks may not have escaped Washington, D.C. with a victory. The Jayhawks have now defeated the Hoyas in back-to-back matchups.
- Edited by Emily Brown
GEORGE MULLINIX/KANSAI
Brannen Greene roars after hitting his third consecutive 3-pointer during Wednesday night's game against Georgetown in Washington, D.C.
GREENE LIGHT
Greene scores career-high 19 points in victory
BLAIR SHEADE
@RealBlairSheady
Unlike the Florida game, the No.10 Kansas Jayhawks (7-1) weren't down by 18 points at any time against Georgetown (5-3). But similar to the Florida game, Kansas made large runs to keep the lead out of reach for Georgetown.
Greene was 4-for-4 from the line. It put the game out of reach in the 75-70 Kansas victory in Washington D.C. on Wednesday night.
Sophomore Brannen Greene, who scored a career-high 19 points, led the Jayhawks on two 7-0 runs in the second half. The last 7-0 run started by Greene hitting his last two free throws
"I felt well since shoottaround today," Greene said. "I like the gym, like the arena so I played within the team."
Greene was able to get hot in the second half by hitting four of his five made 3-pointers. The last Greene 3-pointer was the dagger as it put Kansas up 68-63 with a minute left in game, and Georgetown couldn't respond.
Wayne [Selden] drove to the middle and Landen [Lucas] set a big-time screen, it wasn't even part of the play, and I found myself wide open, I took my time and knocked it down," Greene said about his last 3-pointer. "I loved that three honestly, it was a big three for me."
Kansas started the game hot by reaching out to a 7-2 run, and then an 8-0 run a few Georgetown baskets later to put Kansas ahead 22-11.
The 8-0 was started by none other than Greene with his first 3-pointer, and he said he was feeling the rhythm. He
said the basket looked extra wide tonight for him.
"I just play my role," Greene said. "It was my night, sometimes you see a big basket and that's what I saw tonight."
The 11-point lead halfway through the first half was the largest lead of the game, but that didn't stop Georgetown from making a comeback. In the last three minutes of the first half, Georgetown went on an 11-0 run to give the Hoyas its first lead of the game. The Georgetown run was ignited by a variety of Hoyas.
"I think they are good," Self said. "I think they have some nice pieces and I bet you they have end up having a nice year. [Georgetown] is well-coached and well drilled, and I'm sure Georgetown will be right in the middle in the Big
Kansas looks to stay hot against Purdue
SEE BBALL PAGE 4B
KIRSTEN PETERSON
@KeepUpWithKP
The Kansas women's basketball team is coming off an incredible upset win against No. 10 California on Sunday at Allen Fieldhouse, a 62-39 win that improved Kansas' record to 7-2. The Jayhawks will take on the Purdue Boilermakers (3-4) on Thursday at the Mackey Arena in West Lafayette, In.
The Boilermakers are hoping to end their three-game losing streak against the Jayhawks. Purdue suffered a close loss
against Dayton, 63-61. Senior forward Whitney Bays carried the team and with 19 points, 18 rebounds and 5 steals for the Boilermakers.
Boilermaker sophomore guard Bridget Perry will also be a key player for the Jayhawks. Against Dayton, Perry finished with 15 points, eight rebounds and three steals.
Purdue seemed to have trouble from the 3-point line against Dayton, but had 42 points in the paint. The Jayhawks will need to capitalize on that and force 3-point shots, just like they did in the
Senior guard Asia Boyd is coming off of an incredible game, going 5-for-6 from the field and making all three of her 3-point attempts. Boyd stepped up her game against a nationally ranked team, but the real question is if she can keep up her strong offense.
win with California, who only made 2 of 11 attempts from long range.
When Kansas played against Incarnate Word, coach Bonnie Henrickson, senior forward Chelsea Gardner and senior guard Natalie Knight all admitted that they lacked
focus because they were more worried about the game against California than the game they were playing in.
Kansas will need to learn from their past and focus on the game at hand rather than look two or three games ahead.
The Jayhawks need to watch out for fouling, because the Boilermakers can make free throws. Purdue was 13-for-19 against Dayton.
This game will be a rebound battle. Both teams have quite an impressive total in their last games; Kansas had 45 rebounds and Purdue had 51.
This game could fall into the hands of whichever team is the most aggressive and has the most rebounds.
Kansas continues to have a turnover problem, and gave up 21 possessions to California in their last game. Kansas also gave up 10 points off turnovers against California.
To have success against the Boilermakers, Kansas needs to force Purdue to shoot threes and stayed out of foul trouble.
— Edited by Jordan Fox
Women's Basketball Gameday: Purdue
SCOTT CHASEN
@SCHasenKU
Kansas @ Purdue | Thursday,
Dec. 11 | 6 p.m.
MISSY MINEAR/KANSAN
KANSAS (7-2)
Lauren Aldridge, freshman,
guard
Senior guard Asia Boyd drives to the basket in the second half of Friday's game against Alabama in Allen Fieldhouse.
Aldridge is coming off a complete game against California, where she scored 11 points while adding four rebounds, five assists and two steals. The freshman was key as the Jayhawks took down a top-10 opponent for the second year in a row, and she'll continue to grow as the team's third option behind Chelsea Gardner and Natalie Knight.
Knight has been on fire from three-point range, shooting a ridiculous 17-23 (73.9 percent) from deep over the last six games, moving her up to 26th in the country. For reference, the current women's college basketball leader in three-point percentage is shooting just over 67 percent on the year, which is more than six percent lower than Knight in the last six games. If Knight is hitting her threes early on in this game, the Jayhawks become incredibly tough to beat, as opponents won't be able to double Chelsea Gardner inside for fear of leaving someone open on the perimeter.
Natalie Knight, senior, guard
Chayla Cheadle, freshman, guard
Statistically, you could make the argument that Asia Boyd should be starting over Cheadle, especially after Boyd's 13 point, six rebound performance against No. 10 California, but that wouldn't really tell the whole story. Cheadle has been one of the best players for the Jayhawks on the defensive side of the ball, as she has been asked to guard the other team's best player night after night, and she's done a pretty good job of that. However, if Boyd continues to play at this rate, she might be inserted back into the starting five, especially considering that Boyd is a senior this year.
Jada Brown, sophomore, forward Brown is having a bit of a rough stretch, as she hasn't made more than one field goal in a game since her 5-of-5 shooting performance against Alabama on November 21. Regardless, Brown has done a good job rebounding the ball this year, averaging 8.5 rebounds per 40 minutes. She's second on the team with 12 offensive rebounds, so her scoring woes really haven't hurt the team that much.
Jada Brown, sophomore, forward
Chelsea Gardner, senior, forward Gardner has been one of the best players in the nation this season, and it was no surprise when she was added to the
Naismith Trophy Watch List this week. Gardner put up 22 points and 8 rebounds in the Jayhawks' upset of No.10 California, and she's a big part of why the team received votes to be ranked in the most recent AP Poll.
PURDUE (3-4)
Bridget Perry, sophomore, guard
Judge Perry, sophomore, guard Perry has been hit-or-miss this season, and her numbers have certainly reflected that. In seven appearances this year, Perry has three games with 10 or more points and at least five assists or five rebounds, but she's also had three games where she's failed to total more than five points, rebounds or assists. Perry will need to have one of her better games of the year if Purdue is going to beat Kansas, especially considering how good the Jayhawks' guard play has been.
Ashley Morrisette, sophomore guard
There's an argument to be made that much of the Boilermakers' struggles early this season can be attributed to Morrisette's shaky play. More than 51 percent of Morrisette's shots have been threes this year, despite the fact that she is shooting a pedestrian 30 percent from long range (2.3 percent below team average). Of players who have attempted at least five shots, Morrisette is dead last on the team in
Wilson has done a bit of everything this year, as she's third on the team in points, first in assists and third in steals. Wilson has also been one of the best free throw shooters for the Boilermakers, shooting seven percent above the team average. That being said, Wilson did have a rough outing in the team's last game against the Dayton Flyers, missing all six of her field goal attempts, and she'll be looking to bounce back against Kansas.
field goal percentage, and she'll need to be much more efficient against the jayhawks.
Whitney Bays, senior, forward
Whitley Bay, Sonner, torrents Bays has gotten off to a strong start this season, leading the Boilermakers in points,
April Wilson, junior, guard
rebounds and steals. Bays is coming off a dominant 19 point, 18 rebound performance against the Dayton Flyers, although the effort did occur in a loss. That being said, the 6-2 West Virginia native will have her hands full with Chelsea Gardner.
Liza Clemons, senior, forward
Liza Clemons, Senior, forward Clemons is typically a good barometer for how the team is playing, averaging 9.3 points per game on 64.7 percent shooting in victories, while averaging 6.8 points per game in losses, shooting a combined 8-of-26 (30.8 percent) in losses. If the Jayhawks can frustrate Clemons and force her to miss early, it could be a long night for the Boilermakers.
— Edited by Jordan Fox
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