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Volume 128 Issue 46
kansan.com
Wednesday, November 12, 2014
COMMENTARY
Concussion doesn't slow down Brannen Greene
After exiting the first preseason game early with a concussion, sophomore guard Brannen Greene came into the Emporia State game with a lot to prove. Last season, Greene often found himself in coach Bill Self's infamous "Dog House"
"The beginning of the week, my head hurt a bit and I was dizzy." Greene said of his concussion. "Towards the end of the week, I started to feel a little better. I still had a little stiffness in my neck, but I was just anxious to get on the floor and help my team."
Greene's talent and athletic ability have never been the issue, as Self said last season that Greene "is an NBA talent." His problem has always been "off-the-court issues."
The Georgia native didn't start for the second straight game, but he came off the bench to provide big minutes. In the first half, Greene recorded seven points on 1-for-2 shooting from beyond the arc and was 4-for-4 from the free throw line.
Feeling hot from the first half, Greene fired up an open three on his first look of the second half and sunk it, putting Kansas up 30. At 6-foot-7, Greene is tall for the guard position and is a plus-defender because of it.
Greene isn't afraid to shoot the ball, and he put up seven shots throughout the course of the game. While he was only able to make two of them, the looks were solid. As the season goes on and Greene begins to find his stroke, his shooting percentage should rise, and so should his minutes played. Greene finished with 10 points in the contest, matching his career high.
"When the popcorn's popping, things are a little different." Greene said about the difference between practice and games. "Things are always more intense during the games."
Greene plays with a lot of emotion on the court and involves himself in nearly every play. On defense, he is always in the player's face, barking and intimidating. Whenever Greene was on the court last season, he played productive minutes; the key is limiting his off-the-court issues so he can contend for big minutes in the rotation. Greene can be a knockdown shooter for Kansas — he just needs to play.
"Brannen sometimes leaves a little bit to desire in practice." Self said. "Brannen got his nose dirty and went after the ball. He played hard."
Edited by Kelsey Phillips
Redshirt sophomore forward Landen Lucas grabs Devonte' Graham's alley-oop and dunks in the first half against Emporia State on Tuesday. Lucas finished with 13 points and 3 rebounds.
BUZZKILL
Eight players score in double digits as Kansas thrashes Emporia State 109-56
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KYLE PAPPAS
@kylepap
It did both Tuesday night at Allen Fieldhouse, dismantling Emporia State 109-56 and receiving 10 or more points from eight different players.
Heading into its second and final exhibition contest against Division II opponent Emporia State, No. 5 Kansas was expected to thrash the Hornets while getting significant minutes from the majority of its roster.
"We played a lot better tonight," coach Bill Self said. "I thought we looked more cohesive, the ball moved pretty good, we looked semi-organized at times. Not great, but pretty good."
The Jayhawks got off to a slow start, missing four of their first six shot attempts. That included back-to-back misses from behind the arc from guard Sviatoslav Mykhaliuk; the freshman had three of the Jayhawks' four misses before being subbed out around five
minutes in.
"To be honest, in the first half [Emporia State's] zone slowed us down a little bit and then obviously we didn't make any shots, I mean we didn't make any shots at all," Self said. "We actually executed fairly well, but were one-of-9 from three."
Though after the first media timeout, Kansas kicked into gear, putting together a swift 12-3 run highlighted by a Brannen Greene 3-pointer. Junior forward Jamari Trayler was impressive in the post early on, recording seven points on 3-of-3 shooting in the first. He also collected three rebounds to co-lead the team at halftime.
Following a team-leading 14 points and nine rebounds against Washburn, freshman forward Cliff Alexander didn't see his first action until around 10 minutes into the contest. After entering, the freshman promptly picked up two fouls in fewer than 30 seconds. He was replaced by Traylor after just two minutes.
Possibly related to Alexander's lack of playing time, Kansas' anticipated advantage in the paint simply wasn't there early on — the Hornets were outrebounding the Jayhawks midway through the first half. Following a nine-block performance against Washburn, the Jayhawks had only two by the time the halftime buzzer sounded.
"I actually thought we got out and defended them and created a little havoc..."
Despite its shaky start, Kansas closed the half with a nice run and headed into the locker room possessing a 46-25 lead. Self said he was satisfied with his team's defensive performance in the first period.
BILL SELF Men's basketball coach
"I actually thought we got
out and defended them and created a little havoc, and our ball-screen defense was a little better," he said. "It's nothing to be too excited about, but it's a lot better than it was last week."
The Jayhawks kept the momentum after the break, as one of the better sequences of the night occurred just after play resumed in the second.
Three minutes into the half, sophomore guard Wayne Selden Jr. tossed a quick alley-oop to junior forward Perry Ellis that evoked a boisterous roar from the Allen Fieldhouse crowd. Attempting to mount a quick counter, the Hornets moved the ball down the court, only for sophomore guard Tyler Jordan's layup to be rejected by Traylor at the other end. With a commanding 31-point lead and the 16,000-plus in attendance on their feet, Kansas never looked back.
Alexander turned things around in a major way in the second half as well. The
freshman threw down a series of powerful dunks over hapless Emporia State defenders, scoring eight consecutive points for Kansas at one juncture.
[Alexander] had the building going crazy, I don't think it got as loud as it did there prior to that point," Traylor said. "That's just what he can bring to the table; he's a dog."
Alexander and sophomore forward Landen Lucas both turned in impressive stat lines for the Jayhawks. Alexander finished the night with 12 points and six rebounds and Lucas contributed a 13 points on 4-5 shooting in only 12 minutes of play. For Emporia State, sophomore guard Jay Temaat led the way with 16 points off of the bench.
Kansas returns to action this Friday for a home tilt with UC Santa Barbara. It'll be the Jayhawks' first official regular-season game and will be broadcasted live on ESPN3.
Edited by Casey Nutchins
Kansas takes momentum into K-State match
@Corte_UDK
MATT CORTE
Last time the Jayhawks and Kansas State played each other, it took five grueling sets for the Wildcats to get a win in what can be described as the epitome of a sports rivalry game.
On Wednesday night, Kansas (18-7, 6-5) hopes to leave its own mark on the Sunflower Showdown by beating Kansas State (20-5, 7-4) in Manhattan.
The Jayhawks head into the Sunflower Showdown against Kansas State on Wednesday. Kansas has won its last two games, and K-State lost its previous match.
"This game has more impact on the standings than the last couple years have," coach Ray Bechard said. "We are trying to maintain our goals: top half of the conference, even top three in the conference, and the NCAA Tournament. You have to play very well to get a win on the road in this league and all of those things kind of come together with our opportunity in Manhattan."
ANNA WENNER/KANSAN
One of the goals, placing top three in conference, looked dim after Kansas opened conference play with three straight losses.
Now, the team is just one
Unlike Kansas State who lost its previous match to Texas, Kansas comes into the match with a bit of momentum as the team has won its last two matches.
win away against Kansas State from tying the Wildcats for third in the Big 12.
And not only are the jayhawks coming in strong as a team, but individually as well.
Earlier this week, Kansas swept the Big 12 weekly awards for the second time this season, which is the first time in Big 12 history that a program was able to do so twice in a season.
Sophomore libero Cassie Wait took home the defensive award for a second time, freshman setter Ainise Havili won rookie of the week for a third time, and junior outside hitter Tiana Dockery, perhaps the hottest swinging Jayhawk hitter, won her first offensive weekly award of the season.
Both Kansas and Kansas State have at least 10 underclassman on its rosters, with each team possessing a freshman stud to boast.
"We want to see her consistently be at the level she is now, that's the challenge for even the great players," Bechard said of Dockery. "You have to figure out how
to bring some form of consistency from that level. That way, we know each night what we are going to get out (of her). It would be tough to get 20 kills every night out, but for her to take big swings and be competitive like that is certainly what the Jayhawks need."
What the match could come down to is not the play of each teams upperclassmen like Dockery, but instead, its underclassmen.
Kansas' Havilli leads not just all Big 12 Freshman in assists, but the entire conference in assists with 1,066 for the season, and Kansas State freshman outside Kylee Zumah leads Big 12 Freshman in kills (337) and kills per set (3.62)
— Edited by Logan Schlossberg
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