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WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 7, 2011
THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
KANSAS 88, LONG
Kansas 51 | 37----88 Long Beach 39 | 41----80
Jayhawk Stat Leaders
Points
Robinson 26
Rebounds
Withey 13
Assists
Johnson 5
Long Beach
Kansas
Player FG-FGA 3FG-3FGA Rebs A Pts
Tyshawn Taylor 4-11 1-2 1 4 12
Elijah Johnson 2-6 1-3 3 5 6
Travis Releford 4-9 0-3 1 2 10
Jeff Withey 4-8 0-0 13 1 13
Thomas Robinson 10-14 0-0 11 3 26
Conner Teahan 5-7 4-5 5 0 14
Justin Wesley 1-2 0-0 2 0 2
Kevin Young 2-2 0-0 0 1 5
Totals 32-59 6-13 41 16 88
Long Beach
Player FG-FGA 3FG-3FGA Rebs A Pts
Eugene Phelps 2-6 0-0 3 0 4
James Ennis 5-7 4-5 4 2 16
T.J. Robinson 6-14 0-0 7 1 19
Larry Anderson 3-9 1-5 3 7 14
Casper Ware 3-11 3-7 0 1 16
Mike Caffey 21-3 0-1 4 1 6
Edis Dervisevic 2-3 0-0 3 0 5
Nick Shepherd 0-0 0-0 0 0 0
Totals 22-53 8-19 24 12 80
BASKETBA
Game to remember
Jeff Withey, Junior
Withey
Robinson comes in at a close second place here, but Withey was one block shy of a triple-double and earned this spot through aggression and consistency.
Withey's doubters have claimed that he's too soft and lacks the passion to become a great player. In the second half, he absorbed contact by the paint, forcing one of his teeth through his upper lip. Withey left for the locker room, then returned to the game with the same passion he displayed before the blood. Sound soft to you?
Game to forget
Elijah Johnson,
Junior
Perhaps readers should get used to seeing Johnson in this spot. This marks three games in a row here for the streaky guard with to much on his mind. He
fouled out in just 23 minutes played, surrendered four turnovers and was generally unimpressive as a scorer. Teahan has outplayed Johnson since the return from Mauli and could replace him in the starting lineup. If Johnson can bounce back against Ohio State on Saturday, all will be forgotten. However his 23 points against UCLA is looking more like an outlier than something to depend on.
Johnson
"Oh well. I guess I'll try for another one."
— Withey on his near triple-double
Quote of the game
Withey
Coach Bill Self shows his frustration in the first half Tuesday against Long Beach State. Kansas held a 12-point lead at halftime, but its
Notes
- The 22 Kansas turnovers were a season high.
- Jeff Withey's nine blocked shots were the second highest single-game total in Kansas history
- The 3 steals for Kansas were a season low.
- Long Beach State's 15 steals were the most by a Kansas opponent since UCLA had the same amount in the 2007 NCAA tournament.
Key stats
13
Jeff Withey's 13 rebounds were a career high
22
The 22 Kansas turnovers were the most the team has committed this season
Kansas shot 46.2 percent from behind the 3-point line, its highest this season
46. 2
Kansas has averaged 10.0 blocks per game the last three games
100
14
FIRST HALF (SCORE AFTER PLAY)
Conner Teahan had a career-high 14 points
16:18- Travis Releford grabs a steal and finishes on the other end with a layup, giving Kansas the 16-4 lead. Long Beach State calls a 30-second timeout.
9. 33- Tyshawn Taylor finds an open Conner Teahon on the wing who hits his fourth 3-point of the game. 34-15 Kansas.
5:58. Jeff Willett grabs an offensive rebound on the Yushawn Taylor miss. He hesitates before going back up for the dunk, 39-22 Kansas.
8:21> Casper Ware finishes off a 5-0 Long Beach State run with a 3-pointer, cutting the Kansas lead to 34-20. Bill Self calls a timeout.
SECOND HALF
12:57 - A Eugene Phelps lay up cuts the Kansas lead to just seven, 57-50. Bill Self calls a full timeout.
4:42- James Ennis catches the ball near the corner and connects on a 3-pointer, getting the 49ers within seven. 73-66.
10:52 Larry Anderson's 3-point point from the wing is nothing but net and Long Beach State gets within four points, 60-56. Billself calls a timeout.
2:09- Tyshawn Taylor drives the lane, finds and opening and is fouled. His layup drops in as well as the free-throw and Kansas extends the lead to 80-72.
Withey provides an unexpectedly strong presence
Jeff Withey has probably never felt as good on a college basketball court as he did on Tuesday night in his team's 88-80 win over Long Beach State. He finished with career highs in both rebounds and blocked shots during the best game of his college career. Coach Bill Self thought he was the best player in the game, and his stellar performance wasn't completely expected.
The junior center played just 6.2 minutes per game last season and saw just 3.0 minutes of action per contest as a freshman. This season has been significantly different for the former Arizona transfer. Withey is averaging 22.6 minutes per game and has started every time out. On Tuesday night, however, everything seemed to click. Withey played 31 minutes and fell just one block short from a triple-double. He finished
The 13 rebounds and nine blocks were career highs for the former stand-out high school center from San Diego, Calif. His happy-go-lucky attitude he often carries around was a far cry from his on-the-court performance Tuesday, where he altered shots and grabbed loose balls with reckless abandon. He however reverted back to his quiet personality after the game.
"I didn't realize I was that close until towards the end of the game." Withey said of his near-triple-double.
When asked about his close proximity to a triple-double, he shrugged his shoulders and said he will just have to try some other time. He said the ball was just "flying his way" during the game. The real answer probably has more to do
with the insistence on aggressiveness from coaches in practice and the inevitability that a player with Withey's size and skill will eventually have a game like this, in which he dominates the paint on both ends of the court. He said he had never really been in a close, late game situation like Tuesday night's affair. The 22 Kansas turnovers were a season high and Long Beach State got within four points with under 45 seconds to play. Luckily for Jayhawk fans, their 7-foot center had a personal career-high game.
"He was a presence inside," Self said. "He did a really good job at blocking and altering. I thought Jeff was a really big factor, no question about it."
— Edited by Stefanie Penn
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