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THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 5, 2014
PAGE 9
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QUOTE OF THE DAY
"Obviously, my teammates know I need to be more aggressive and assertive this year, and it kind of starts with me. So I'm really worried about what I need to do team wise and I feel the individual stuff that comes with it will take care of itself if I do that."
— Marcus Paige, North Carolina junior point guard
FACT OF THE DAY
North Carolina point guard Marcus Paige earned the most votes of any praseason All-American this year, named on 58 ballots from the 65-member national media panel.
Associated Press
TRIVIA OF THE DAY
Q. Besides Okafor, who were the last two freshmen to be named to the AP preseason All-American team?
A: Harrison Barnes in 2010, Andrew Wiggins in 2013
Associated Press
THE MORNING BREW
Kansas players deserving of All-American team honors
On Monday, the Associated Press released its annual preseason college basketball All-American team. This team predicts which five players will have the best season at their respective positions. While not always accurate, the prediction always ignites conversation.
the AP has chosen Duke University freshman center Jahil Okafor. University of North Carolina junior point guard Marcus Paige, University of Louisville junior forward Monrezl Harrell, University of Wisconsin senior forward Frank Kaminsky and Wichita State University junior point guard Fred VanVleet, to represent its preseason All-American team.
While many of the players on the team are certainly deserving of the preseason honor, there is a noticeable lack of representation from the University of Kansas on the list.
The Jayhawks certainly have their fair share of players who are deserving of being represented on the AP's
should experience a big 2014-15 season. After arriving in Lawrence in 2012 as a McDonald's All-American, Ellis has quietly (no pun intended) developed into one of the Big 12's leading scorers. After averaging 5.8 points and 3.9 rebounds in 13 minutes per game as a freshman, Ellis increased his scoring output to 13.5
All-American team. Two of those players include sophomore guard Wayne Selden Jr. and junior forward Perry Ellis.
After averaging a respectable 9.7 points per game and 2.6 rebounds per game, Selden looks primed for a huge season. After lingering in the shadows behind top-three NBA draft picks Andrew Wiggins and Joel Emblid, Selden looks to show the country why he was selected as a McDonald's All-American in his final year of high school. He should get ample opportunities to showcase his athleticism and shooting ability throughout the season.
Perry Ellis is another Jayhawk who
points and 6.7 rebounds per game in his sophomore year. In the 2013-14 season, Ellis ended up averaging 19.4 points per 40 minutes per game, according to Sports Reference. If Ellis can increase those numbers, he should receive no shortage of All-American honors.
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Freshman forward Cliff Alexander is also deserving of cracking the All-American lineup. In Monday night's season-opening exhibition game against Washburn, Alexander scored a team-high 14 points on 6-for-8 shooting, grabbed nine
rebounds and recorded three blocks in only 17 minutes of playing time. If those numbers are any preview of what is to come, Alexander could have a special year. Observer Paige
Oktator, Fadge,
Harrell, Kaminsky and
VanVleet are all deserving
of their preseason All-Ac.
an preseason All-American honors. All of these players will take on starring roles on their respective teams and will have a great shot to make a big impact on the college basketball world in this upcoming season. However, there are a few Jayhawks who deserved to have a shot to be put on a list with those elite players. Ellis, Selden and Alexander will have a long season to make sure the AP understands its mistake in snubbing them.
Kansas looks to gain separation in Big 12 ranks
Edited by Logan Schlossberg
MATT CORTE
@Corte_UDK
With just one win separating fourth place Kansas volleyball (16-7,4-5) from the bottom of the Big 12, you could say parity is a word that strongly describes this conference thus far.
Tayler Soucie, center, and her teammates celebrate a point against TCU on Nov. 1. Kansas is just one win away from fourth place in the Big 12.
Behind the top three Big 12 records of Texas, Kansas State, and Oklahoma, six schools sit within two games of each other halfway through the conference season.
RFN LIPOWITZ/KANSAN
A sense of urgency is likely brewing in the Jayhawks, as this parity shows it's going to be difficult for Kansas to sweep any conference season series.
Just look at this past Saturday's match as evidence. The Jayhawks lost in five sets to an average TCU team after pummeling the Horned Frogs in Lawrence two weeks before.
Now, Kansas hopes to recover from that loss and beat a Baylor team (13-11, 3-6) that is only a game behind in the standings.
teams five and below on our heels, so every match is going to be important."
Unlike the scenario in which Kansas first won at home and then lost to TCU on the road, Kansas has a chance at sweeping the season series against Baylor in Lawrence after already beating the Bears in Waco.
"We got Baylor and [Texas] Tech, and those are teams that are biting on our heels a bit," coach Ray Bechard said. "We could have created some separation with this match [against TCU], but we kept all those
If history repeats itself, however, as it often does, this match should be another tight one.
Since 2008, a team has swept the season series only once, and that was last season when Kansas swept Baylor.
One statistic favoring the Jayhawks' chances to win is that the team has only lost to Baylor once at home since 2008, and the challenge of defeating the Bears on the road is already taken care of.
Then again, Baylor's two-match winning streak is also its longest in the Big 12 this season, so the Bears will be coming in with momentum.
In order to achieve victory, Kansas should follow one simple rule: stop junior outside hitter Andie Malloy.
Although the Bears rank seventh in the Big 12 in kills per set at 13.21, Malloy individually ranks third in the conference with an average of 4.03 kills per set.
Malloy alone produces about a third of the offense for Baylor, so shutting her down would
cause problems for the Bears.
In order to accomplish that, Kansas has to do what the team does best: blocking.
The Jayhawks are currently second in opponents' hitting
percentage in the Big 12 at .202, and the team's 2.57 blocks per set rank third in conference.
If Kansas is able to hold Baylor close in these statistics,
then an opportunity to sweep the Bears for a second consecutive season should present itself.
Edited by Jacob Clemen
KANSAN.COM
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