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SPORTS
THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
WWW.KANSAN.COM/SPORTS
11A
FRIDAY, OCTOBER 11, 2002
Tonight is first chance to see team
By Bob Johnson
conrespondent@kansan.com
Kansan correspondent
Every fall, spirits are downtrodden by another struggling season of Kansas football only to be rejuvenated with one magical night that previews athletic glory to come.
Tonight, the men's and women's basketball teams will again be performing in the Late Night with Roy Williams variety show, a show for those fans who just can't wait any longer to get a glimpse of this year's basketball teams.
Waiting for the festivities does not seem to bother some KU students, as long as they get a good seat.
"My friends and I camped out longer than anybody else for every home game last season," Adam Irwin, Russell sophomore, said. "We don't care if there's not a real game on Friday, we'll be at Allen Fieldhouse by noon anyway."
"I don't care if there is rain, snow, sleet or shine, like the mailman I'll be there."
David Stauffer
Topeka junior
Those who wait the longest seem to take great pride in their endurance. Some feel it is their duty to be one of the first in attendance.
don't care if there is rain, snow, sleet or
shine, like the mailman. I'll be there."
Even before the action starts, the crowd at Late Night is rowdy. New hopes are sparked and Kansas fans are awakened from their fall slump as Roy and the boys unveil what could be yet another Final Four-bound team.
"I've been going to Late Night my whole life," David Stauffer, Topeka junior, said. "I
Although a good seat to this extravaganza is ideal, getting a prime view can take hours of waiting in line or sitting in the fieldhouse before the events begin.
"It really isn't that bad," Molly White, Leawood sophomore, said. "One of my friends brings her guitar, we sing some tunes, play cards, that sort of thing. The time files by pretty quickly."
Music, retelling of memorable moments from seasons past, kidding around with friends and other forms of revelry are excellent distractions to the tedious period of waiting. Another popular and simple time-wasting activity is people-watching.
Kansan File Photo
"I just want to go and see the girls," Jim Bridges, Oklahoma City freshman, said.
Whether you view Late Night as an opportunity to jump into basketball season early or merely as a means to getting a date for next weekend, tonight is sure to be an exciting evening.
It's Late Night time again
Edited by Matt Norton
By Doyle Murphy
dmurphy@kansan.com
Kansan sportswinter
Roy Williams dances with all of the basketball players at last year's Late Night with Roy Williams. Late Night action will begin tonight at 10 at Allen Fieldhouse.
Late Night with Roy Williams affects everyone differently. If you're a fan, you rush to Allen Fieldhouse. If you're a sports junkie you visit Internet chat rooms and listen to radio talk shows to discuss the high school recruits who invariably attend. If you're a Crimson Girl you try to teach basketball players to dance.
And if you're freshman forward Erica Hallman you worry.
"I don't get nervous playing in basketball games, but I'm doing something I'm not very good at," Hallman said.
She has to dance, and if it were up to the quiet Hallman, she would prefer to save that for Big 12 opponents.
"They got me dancing, and I'm not a dancer," she said. "The only dancing I do is on the court."
Sophomore forward Blair Waltz said she was looking forward to seeing the newcomers' reactions to the crowd.
"I just can't wait to see the look on their faces when they walk out into the stadium with 16,000-plus people looking at them doing something that they hate to do," she said.
Drawing from a year of experience with the event, Waltz had a tip for surviving Late Night stage fright.
"I always try to focus on my parents," she said. "I look at my parents the whole time, and just try to block out everyone else."
A few butterflies are common, even
for a three-year Late Night veteran. Senior point guard Kirk Hinrich said his experience wouldn't make it any easier.
"My favorite part is when the clock strikes 12," he said. "I don't feel like making a fool of myself as much anymore."
would evaluate Hinrich's condition Friday morning, and make a decision on his playing status.
Dancing and a few skits might be all the action Hinrich sees Friday night. Coach Roy Williams said he may hold Hinrich out of the scrimmage because of a hip pointer he suffered during a pickup game Saturday night. He said doctors
Hinrich said the hip was not serious, and he would still like to play in the scrimmage.
"I think it could be all right as long as I don't get hit there again," he said.
If Hinrich doesn't play, he won't be the only one. Junior forward Bryant Nash broke his thumb earlier this season and likely won't play.
Williams said transfer forward Jeff Graves wouldn't play either. Although listed in the Kansas basketball media guide as a member of the squad, Williams said Graves had yet to make the team, and he would not discuss his status further.
Williams publicly criticized Graves earlier this year for being overweight and out of shape.
Edited by Amanda Sears
Soccer recovers, faces challenge
By Daniel Berk
dberk@kansan.com
Kansan sportswriter
The Kansas women's soccer team will face a tough test this weekend as it hosts games against Oklahoma State and Oklahoma and recover from tough games against Baylor and Texas Tech.
Kansas traveled to Texas last weekend and left with a split as it lost to Baylor, then rebounded to beat Texas Tech. Coach Mark Francis knows his team will have to play better this weekend to contend with the Oklahoma State Cowgirls and the Oklahoma Sooners.
"We need to play up to our level and not our opponent'slevel," Francis said. "We did not do that last weekend, and that cost us a game."
The Jayhawks enter this weekend's games with a record of 8-2-2 and a conference mark of 2-1-1. Oklahoma State brings in an 11-1 record, while the Sooners hold a 9-3 mark.
SEE SOCCER PAGE 14A
Oklahoma State is led by junior forward Jere Boykin who has seven goals and three assists for the season. Oklahoma's offensive arsenal is led by senior Krissy Dawson and junior Logan Womack. Both Dawson and Womack have netted seven goals so far this sea
Oklahoma State suffered its first loss of the season last Friday as Iowa State defeated the Cowgirls 2-1. But the team rebounded from the loss and beat East Central College 6-0 on Monday.
Oklahoma comes to Lawrence after defeating non-conference opponent Texas Christian last Friday 2-0. The Sooners also fell to Iowa State 2-1.
Better sound system for Late Night fans
By Jessica Scott
jscott@kansan.com
Kansan sportswriter
It all starts tonight.
Late Night—the inaugural event of the Kansas basketball season—kicks off after 195 days of downtime.
Tonight fanaticism of Jayhawk fans will show itself as people of all ages cram into Allen Fieldhouse and wait until the show starts.
But unlike last year's event, fans hope to actually hear what's going on this time.
A bad public address system caused audio difficulties at Late Night 2001. When the women's and men's teams performed, the audience couldn't understand what they were saying.
Brad Nachtigal, events and facilities director for Kansas athletics, said improvements to the system had been made since last season. Tonight the changes will be tested in front of a packed house.
"We've modified and updated the current sound system," Nachtigal said. "The floor and bleacher areas have better sound distribution. The addition of a few new speakers and the repositioning of others will help them work better."
Nachtigal said the University of Kansas contracted with Coffeen Fricke and Associates, Inc., who joined forces with Dodge Electronics in Topeka to update the sound system.
This update was prompted by Kansas coach Roy Williams, who called for major improvement.
"It's almost embarrassing," Williams said after the event. "It took away a great deal of enjoyment for me. We've either got to figure out a way for it to be heard, or maybe 14 Late Nights is enough."
Preliminary testing of the updates happened yesterday. Nachtigal said the sound seems better already.
Doors open at 6 p.m. with performances beginning around 10 p.m.
— Edited by Melissa Shuman
Kansas basketball fans need to overcome complacency
The dawn of a new season for Kansas basketball and tonight's Late Night celebration are two of the most anticipated times of the year for Jayhawk fans. However, one head-scracher remains for me from last spring and that is the complacency that KU fans showed after a Final Four debacle.
The Jayhawks were far and away the most talented team in last year's NCAA tournament. Once the dirty Duke Blue Devils were upset by Indiana in the Sweet Sixteen, Kansas was the clear-cut favorite to bring home the gold.
But, the celebration was put on hold by Maryland. Don't get me wrong, Maryland was a talented team, with two of their starters, Chris Wilcox and Juan Dixon, being lottery picks in June's NBA Draft. But the
Terrapins did not have the amount of talent and depth as our boys in blue. The Jayhawks ran out to a 13-2 lead over the Terrapins, but then went into hibernation for the next 30 minutes, until it was too late to overcome a 20-point deficit.
The team was welcomed back to Allen Fieldhouse by gracious fans thanking them for an exhilarating ride throughout the season. That's fine.
Students had a chance to thank the players for a great season with a rally at Memorial Stadium. That's acceptable.
Then there was a parade planned on Massachusetts Street for the team a week later, which was eventually rained out. That's ridiculous.
A parade? Are you kidding me? Yeah, it was a great team that provided lots of
Ryan Greene rgreene@kansan.com
excitement, storylines and memorable moments, but they didn't win anything in Atlanta.
I have seen my share of disappointments from my favorite teams to know the pain, but there are some cases where you just can't accept failure.
For example, as a lifelong Michigan Wolverines fan, my 11-year-old heart
was ripped from its cavity in April of 1993, when Chris Webber called a time out that he didn't have, only to blow a national championship for Michigan.
As a fan of a team, one major rule that I have learned over the years is you cannot allow yourself to become complacent.
Fans of teams that are obviously heads above the rest when it comes to coaching, talent and execution should expect the best year-in and year-out. That is why I consider New York Yankees fans — as much as I despise the team — the best fans that sports has to offer. They know their队 is able to draw the best talent in the league each off-season, much like we can land top recruits, and when their high-profile team fails, like they did last week, the fans show their unhappiness.
This has the potential to be a monumental season on the KU basketball timeline. Kirk Hinrich and Nick Collison are both set to run for player of the year, and both will be lottery picks in the NBA next June. Aaron Miles is expected to score more this season, giving a complement to his abilities as a court general. Keith Langford showed in the NCAA Tournament that he is ready to be a primetime player, and Wayne Simien's possibilities for the near future look endless.
I may not bleed crimson and blue, but I know as a lifelong Chicago Cubs fan that there are only so many times that you can say "wait till next year."
Greene is a Vernon Hills, Ill., junior in journalism.
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