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KANSAN.COM/SPORTS | THURSDAY, FEB. 11, 2016
Aldridge benefits from parent's support at games
Kelcie Matousek/KANSAN
Lauren Aldridge, sophomore, dribbles the ball down the court.
SKYLAR ROLSTAD
@SkyRolSports
When sophomore guard Lauren Aldridge walked out of the locker room in Morgantown, W. Va., she knew the ensuing game would be different than the Jayhawks' previous five in Big 12 play: it would be the first game in over a year without one of her parents in the stands. Either her mother or father had been present at every game this season and had not missed a single Kansas basketball game, home or away, since last season.
"It's just different when you don't have mom or dad in the stands." Aldridge said.
But when Aldridge looked up from her pregame warmup, she saw her father's familiar face. Steve Aldridge drove 12 hours from their hometown of Marshfield, Mo., to see Aldridge lead the Jayhawks against the Mountaineers.
At the sight of her father, 900 miles from Lawrence, Aldridge was beaming.
"I told all my teammates," Aldridge said. "And I was like 'Does anybody else see who is sitting in the stands up there?' And they were like 'Oh my God it's your dad!'"
Her dad felt the same way.
"As a dad, those smiles are priceless. So it was a long, hard trip but it was definitely worth it," Steve said.
It was that reaction that Steve made the trip for. But 16 hours before tipoff at WVU Coliseum, not even he thought he'd be in the stands. Unable to sleep, Aldridge said he made the decision at 3 a.m. to leave for the game.
"Him being there is
To Lauren, Steve is more than a parent. He was her first coach, and she credits her father for her development into a college basketball player.
"I packed the bag not really knowing if I was going make the trip the next day," Steve said. "I woke up at about three o'clock in the morning and started tossing and turning and couldn't really sleep and I just reached over to my wife and said 'Hev I'm leaving.'"
kind of my reassurance."
Aldridge said. "He's kind of my confidence in a lot of ways, so just having him there gives me some sort of confidence and fulfillment like I'm getting to do what he loves to watch me do."
When Lauren first began to take an interest in basketball, she said Steve spent hours on YouTube looking up drills to make her a better player. Steve said it was tough to get the young Lauren out of the gym.
"The way that he has worked with me and developed me as a player, he should get all the credit, I just do the work," Lauren said.
Although Steve played basketball in high school, his sport was baseball. And baseball made him no stranger to long road trips.
If we can go in the gym and get better in a three hour practice, if we don't waste a single second while we're in the gym, then that's a win for us."
Lauren Aldridge Guard
After graduating from Missouri State, Steve was signed to the New York Yankees farm system and played minor league baseball with the Oneonta Yankees. Baseball uprooted Steve from Missouri and sent him to the Northeast. He had to accelerate his wedding plans to take the opportunity.
"It was a great few years," Steve said. "[My wife and I] got to travel to a lot of places and do things together, it was almost like it was an extended honeymoon. We threw our wedding together in about two weeks. I said 'why do I want to travel all over the country and not have you with me?'"
The experience as a professional helped Steve give advice to his daughter in her journey toward becoming a college basketball player.
"It allowed me to talk to her to make her realize I understand what it takes to get there," Steve said. "I think sometimes people go into it a little bit blind. That they just think a kid is going to end up there. I was kind of like her: I was always the hardest worker and spent the most time [practicing.] I think that's why she's ended up where she is, because she's got a desire to do it."
This season, Lauren's family decided that they were going to do anything to support her.
"I think her mom and I made the decision that we're going to try and do everything we can to support her in a little bit of a tough time," Steve said. "I think she really appreciates it."
At the final buzzer in WVU Coliseum, Lauren and the Jayhawks came away with a 72-35 loss, their eighth in a row.
Sitting in last in the conference, Kansas is without a single senior on the team. Aldridge leads the team in scoring with 240 total points so far this season and an average of 10.4 per game
During a tough season, however, support from the fans has remained constant. Kansas coach Brandon Schneider consistently commends the amount of fan support the team receives.
“That’s huge for the girls,” Steve said. “It means a lot to them that they’re supported the way they are. I know it means a lot to Lauren. They put in a lot of work and they might not be getting the results they want right now, but to be getting the support that they're getting, it's a really nice thing.”
As a sophomore, Lauren leads the effort to turn around the Kansas women's program, but she doesn't focus on sweeping change.
"It's just a day-by-day process," Lauren said. "If we can go in the gym and get better in a three-hour practice, if we don't waste a single second while we're in the gym, then that's a win for us. That's a successful day. If we can continue to build on that every single time that's going to lead to good things in the future."
- Edited by Brendan Dzwierzynski
Men's basketball faces a tough rematch in Norman
Junior guard Frank Mason III searches for a teammate to pass the ball to in the first half against Oklahoma.
EVAN RIGGS @EvanRiqsUDK
When the No. 6 Kansas Jayhawks travel to Norman, Okla. to take on the No. 3 Oklahoma Sooners, it will be almost impossible to replicate the instant classic that took place in January. Kansas came out on top in the battle of top ranked teams 109-106 in triple-overtime despite Oklahoma guard Buddy Hield's 46 points on just 23 shots.
The last matchup featured No. 1 in the AP poll vs. No. 1 in the Coaches' poll. Now, with the Jayhawks riding a four-game winning streak, both teams are No. 1 in the Big 12 standings, along with West Virginia; all are 8-3 in conference play. Additionally, ESPN's College GameDay will be in attendance for the highly anticipated rematch.
"We'll be ready to play," junior forward Landen Lucas said. "We have a new hunger about us that we'll bring down there. We're getting our confidence book."
With a win, the Jayhawks could take control of the Big 12. If they lose, their margin for error will be gone, and they would need somebody else to knock off the Sooners
File Photo/KANSAN oinst Oklahoma
We got to go steal one that we let slip away."
If they're going to win their 12th consecutive con-
"I think we're playing better," coach Bill Self said. "We had that dull stretch. Hopefully everybody else hits that in February and we've already hit it."
at least once.
Bill Self, head coach
ference championship, the Jayhawks will need to prove they can beat good teams on the road, which is something they haven't done yet in conference play.
"We've probably got the toughest schedule of anybody left," Self said. "But you've got to go win away from home. We got to go steal one that we let slip away because five losses might get a share of it (conference title). I think if somebody gets hot, four losses can win it."
In order to steal one on the road, the Jayhawks will have to find a way to slow
down the Sooners' perimeter onslaught. Hield, the runaway pick for Naismith Player of the Year at this point, is averaging 25.7 points per game on 51 percent shooting from the field and 50 percent shooting from beyond the arc.
Meanwhile, point guard Isaiah Cousins is averaging 13.6 points and 4.6 assists per game, while guard Jordan Woodard is adding 13.3 points per game. That three-headed monster has led the Sooners to be the best three-point shooting team in the nation at 45.1 percent.
In each of the Jayhawks' three road losses, they lost their composure in the second half. Oklahoma is one of the most explosive teams in the nation, and will almost certainly make runs. Kansas will have to survive those big runs, and hit back when possible. The team certainly has the firepower to do so.
"Oklahoma is a good team with a good coaching staff," junior guard Frank Mason III said. "We have to go down there Saturday focused with a lot of energy and toughness to be prepared to play."
Mason, along with junior Wayne Selden Jr. and sophomore Devonte' Graham, is averaging more than 10 points per game. They are the third best three-point shooting team in the nation at 42 percent, led by junior Brannen Greene, who is shooting 56 percent from the three-point range.
But nobody is playing for the Jayhawks than senior Perry Ellis. Over his last three games, Ellis has scored 63 points on 76
The Jayhawks unquestionably have the talent to knock off the Sooners, but that talent has yet to prove it can flourish in a tough en
"Offensively, he's been terrific," Self said of Ellis. "He's been very, very efficient and consistent. [...] He's been such a rock for us for four years."
percent shooting, and he's made 17 of his last 19 shots in the paint.
"That will be a good environment against a great team," Lucas said. "We'll be ready."
vironment. Saturday will be their stiffest test of the season, and a win would make amends for the road struggles in January.
- Edited by Samantha Harms