SPORTS
NO RECORD SAFE FROM HAWKS
THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
Kansas wins convincingly during the weekend to claim Nike Invitational. SWIMMING & DIVING | 5B
KICK THE KANSAN: FINAL WEEK RESULTS
The final Kick The Kansan chapter closes as fans will have to wait another year for pick'em madness KICK THE KANSAN | 2B
MONDAY, DECEMBER 8.2008
WWW.KANSAN.COM
PAGE1B
FOOTBALL
Minnesota picked as bowl opponent
BY B.J. RAINS
rains@126.com
rains@kansan.com
INSIGHT BOWL KANSAS VS. MINNESOTA
When it came to the jayhawks' bowl destination, Nov. 29's 40-37 victory against Missouri was meaningless — the jayhawks were headed to the Insight Bowl even if they had lost to the rival Tigers.
But the victory did do a lot to boost the confidence of the 7-5 Jayhawks, who will face the also 7-5 Minnesota Golden Gophers on New Year's Eve in Tempe, Arizona. The Jayhawks now have 23 days to prepare for the Gophers with the big victory against Missouri still fresh in their minds.
"Let's face it," Mangino said. "When you come off a win against your border rival, there's a great deal of enthusiasm among the players, coaches, everybody. The fan base
Where: Tempe, Ariz
When: Dec. 31
Kickoff: 5 p.m.
TV: NFL Network
is energized. Our players and coaches are excited. We're ready to go"
The Jayhawks were officially invited to participate in the Insight Bowl on Friday, but it had become the likely destination for several weeks. Minnesota started the season 7-1 but has lost four games in a row — including a 55-0 trouncing by Iowa two weeks ago — and finished 3-5 in the
Big 10.
Kansas faced some of the top spread offenses in the nation in the rough Big 12, so facing a more traditional offense will be a welcomed sight for the Kansas defense.
"I really don't know much about them, said linebacker James Holt. "I just know that the Big 10 is well known for running the ball and our number one thing on defense is stopping the run, so I think that will play to our advantage with them running the ball a lot."
The game will be at 5 p.m. on Dec. 31 on the NFL Network from Tempe. They will play at Sun Devil Stadium, the home of Arizona State and former home of the Arizona Cardinals.
Like last year in Miami, it means a nice break from the chilly Kansas winter for both
the players and the fans.
"We're definitely excited that we don't have to worry about snow or anything," Holt said. "I'm just really excited that it's going to be warm because I'm sick of this cold."
But while the layhawks will be in the background of one of the top party schools in the country in Arizona State, they know it will be all business once they get to Tempe.
"We all know that the reason we won last year was the way we prepared," Reesing said. "We went down to Miami and had a good time when we were supposed to but we were working. We were practicing hard. We weren't taking it lightly. We were very serious about our preparation."
Kansas will arrive in Phoenix on Dec. 27 and have practices at a local high school on Dec. 28, 29, and 30 before facing Minnesota
on New Year's Eve. A group that has already set numerous school records the last two seasons, the Jayhawks aren't just going to Phoenix to enjoy the warm weather and sun.
"We don't want to just be in two bowl games back-to-back." Reesing said. "We want to win two bowl games back-to-back. We want to establish the program and prove that we can get 20 wins in two seasons. That's something that's never been accomplished here so we're playing for a lot of things. We're definitely not going to take it for granted."
KANSAS 86, JACKSON STATE 62
— Edited by Rachel Burchfield
Kansas takes lackluster win
Freshman forward Marcus Morris goes up for a shot during the first half of the game. Morris hit all three of his shots from the floor for six points in the first half
Jon Goering/KANSAN
Self calls Jayhawks' play 'stale'; Reed's 3-pointers propel Kansas to victory
BY CASE KEEFER ckeefer@kansan.com
Call Tyrel Reed a bondsman, because he's becoming accustomed to bailing Kansas out of close games.
Three days after making two key three-pointers to help Kansas escape from New Mexico State, Reed did it again Saturday in an 86-62 victory against Jackson State.
The Tigers stuck with the Jayhawks for most of the game and trailed only 48-42 with 15 minutes remaining. Reed, a sophomore guard, proceeded to score eight points — off two three-pointers and two free throws — in the next minute and a half to put the game out of the Tigers' reach.
"The shots felt good today." Reed sait.
"All of them did, even the ones that didn't go in."
Reed shot three-for-six from three-point range and finished with 11 points and four rebounds. His first three-pointer came when Kansas was down 28-26 with four minutes left in the first half. Reed swished a jumper at the top of the key after a pass from freshman guard Tyshawn Taylor. And the Jayhawks were never behind again.
Still, there was plenty of frustration. Kansas coach Bill Self has warned of the possibility of Kansas not being too potent without leading scors Sherron Collins and Cole Aldrick at their best.
The first half illustrated it perfectly. Aldrich, a sophomore center, played only 10 ineffective minutes because he got into foul trouble. Collins, a junior guard, missed his first seven shots, which included an air ball on an 18-footer and a fast break layup rejected by Tiger forward Garrison Johnson.
With neither Collins nor Aldrich energizing the lawhacks, they strugged.
"It was a pretty stale performance." Self said.
The Morris twins did all they could to freshen it at the beginning of the game. Marcus Morris scored on two consecutive possessions after spins from the block to the basket and threw down an alley-oop from Collins. Markieff Morris hit a three-pointer in transition and dunked a minute later.
Their energy came despite the fact that neither of them started for the first time since the first game of the season. Self opted to give senior center Matt Kleinmann, who had never started a game, the frontcourt spot alongside Aldrich against Jackson State.
If the move's purpose was to grab the freshmen twins' attention, it surely appeared to work. Markieff finished the game with eight points, five rebounds, three assists and two steals.
"We've got to get everybody practi- cing at a high level," Self said. "I'll leave it at that."
Marcus was arguably more impressive with 13 points on five-for-six shooting and three rebounds. Collins thought Marcus' day hinted at his maturation.
coach right now," Collins said. "T mmus
Marcus is figuring it out a bit."
Same for Taylor. After the New Mexico State game, Self told Taylor he needed to record more than three assists for Kansas to be successful.
"He was down on himself a little bit,
but he's doing a good job of handling
"I was just thinking about it a lot more," Taylor said. "Like if I do this, this
Collins ended up with 17 points, five rebounds, five assists and three steals and Aldrich contributed 13 points and eight rebounds.
Five of Taylor's assists came in the second half when Collins and Aldrich began to break out of their early slump.
person will be open so feed them, I felt like I did that."
The majority of Collins' and Aldrich's points bookended Reed's three-point outbreak. Typical to Reed's style, he credited teammates for finding him open in the corner to make the shots. Reed wasn't overjoyed with the victory.
"Overall, it was a flatter performance," Reed said. "There were points and moments in the game when we looked good in the second half."
Most of the points and moments came when Reed shot the ball.
SEE MORE COVERAGE ON 3B
COMMENTARY
Jayhawks need to toughen up
For much of Saturday's dismal and atmost boring 86-62 victory against Jackson State something is going on.
some thing was missing. The Jayhawks weren't making shots, they weren't grabbing rebounds and they committed nine first-half turnovers. It was the Jayhawks' worst first-half performance of the season, but just what was missing and why were the Jayhawks so flat against the 1-8 Tigers?
Sherron Collins knew exactly what it was — toughness. Collins, the team's leader both on and off the court, knows that this young team has a long way to go if they want to smell the success of last year's magical season.
"We're not tough yet," Collins said. "Last year's team, we had issues with being tough early in the season as well but it's a whole different team and a whole different group of players. We just have to go out and be tougher."
Toughness can be many different things in basketball. It could be stepping into the lane to take a charge, or diving on the floor for a loose ball.
"If there's a 50-50 ball between two competitive guys, who gets it?" coach Bill Self said. "That's what toughness is in my book, and we're not getting near enough of those."
Whatever it is, toughness can be the difference between winning and losing.
Self has been on the Jayhawks for the past two weeks about their toughness. He doesn't question the Jayhawks physical toughness, but he does question their toughness on the court. He hasn't been pleased with their ability to get loose balls both on the floor and on rebounds, and he knows they won't be a good team until they can do that.
"The key to being a good team is am I going to get 70 percent of the 50-50 balls or am I going to get 30 percent of them," Self said. "Those extra possessions win or lose you games. We're a team that gets 30 percent of those 50-50 balls right now."
Just where did coach Self learn about being tough?
But to Self, the Jayhawks' toughness is no laughing matter. Doing the little things can often win a game. Having five freshman playing significant time certainly doesn't help. It's a learning experience, and Tyrel Reed says it needs to start on the defensive end.
"I grew up in the rough streets of Edmund, Oklahoma." Self joked.
"We've been really soft defensively," Reed said. "Not going after the ball with two hands, just being really weak."
The Jayhawks will certainly get tougher as the season goes on as they did last year en route to the National Championship. But with such a young team, it's imperative for the Jayhawks to grow up quickly and gain that toughness soon — especially with tough non-conference games approaching at Arizona, at Michigan State and at home against Tampa.
"We have to get a swagger to ourselves that we're tough," Collins said. "And we have to believe it."
Edited by Ramsey Cox