6B the university daily kansan
tuesday, November 25, 2003
sports
Courtney Kuhlen/Kansan
Freshman guard J.R. Giddens struggled in Kansas' regular-season opener against Tennessee-Chattanooga, scoring five points in 15 minutes and getting into foul trouble quickly.
(6)KANS (3)MICHIG
WHEN/WHERE: Allen Fieldhouse, 8 p.m.
Kansas hasn't met Michigan State since 1999, but coach Bill Self is familiar with the Spartans. Self met Michigan State five times during his three years as coach at Illinois, winning three of those meetings.
It didn't take long for this year's Spartans to raise the question of whether they're worthy of the No. 3 ranking in both major polls. Bucknell, which finished 14-15 last year, played close with Michigan State into the final minutes in the season opener Friday night. The Spartans pulled away late and escaped with a 64-52 victory, in large part because Bucknell missed an awe-inspiring 16 of 17 free throws.
Coach Tom Izzo already fired on his Spartans publicly, calling them "the softest team we've had in the nine years I've been here." Kansas wasn't perfect in its 90-76 opening victory over Tennessee-Chattanooga, but the Jayhawks didn't need laughably inept free throw shooting by the opposition to win.
POINT GUARD Aaron Miles, junior, Kansas Vs.
Chris Hill, junior, Michigan State As point guards, Hill and Miles
As point guards aren't much alike. Miles is the quarterback of a fast-paced attack who distributes the ball nicely, but he rarely hits jump shots or creates his own offense. Hill is a de facto point guard in Izzo's plodding half-court team. He finished
with just 1.5 assists per game last year but was also the Spartans' leading
Miles
scorer (13.7 ppg) and three-point shooter (40.4 percent).
Miles is a terrific defender who, at his best, blankets his man, grabs steals and creates easy scoring opportunities; that's exactly what he did against Tennessee-Chattanooga. Hill isn't known for defense. Both are underrated because they each lack some of the skills associated with the best point guards.
ADVANTAGE: Even
SHooting Guard
Mike Lee, junior, Kansas
Vs
Kelvin Torbert, junior, Michigan State
lee's first career start in Chattanooga wasn't a performance to remember; he hit a three-pointer to score the Jayhawks' first points of the season, then practically disappeared for the rest of the game.
Torbert is now a junior after being
Lee
HOWTHEYCO
THIRD GUARD/SMALL FORWARD Keith Langford, junior, Kansas Vs.
one of the most sought-after prep recruits in the class of 2001, but he has yet to show half the promise he displayed in high school. He's an excellent defensive player but hasn't become a consistent offensive threat, averaging just 8.7 points last season and scoring only six against Bucknell Friday. Still, his talent makes him a perpetual candidate for a breakout season.
ADVANTAGE: Michigan State
Alan Anderson, junior, Michigan State Anderson doesn't get a lot of press, but he's known for good defense, outstanding free-throw shooting and versatility, which even allowed him to play some point guard last year. Both Anderson and Langford are slashers, and the 6-foot-6 Anderson owns a slight height advantage over Langford, but Langford is a far
Langford
superior However, Anderson's defense should make scoring tougher for Langford than in the Chattanooga game.
POWER FORWARD Wayne Simien, junior, Kansas
ADVANTAGE: Kansas
Jason Andreas,senior, Michigan State Andreas is big and burly at 6-foot-10, 250 pounds, but size and solid
rebounding are the extent of his game. He does little more than take up space, albeit a lot of it. He started against Bucknell but played just 13 minutes, scoring two points and pulling four boards. Andreas starts only because Michigan
Simien
State is desperate for frontcourt size Simien will school him
Paul
ADVANTAGE:Kansas CENTER David Padgett, freshman, Kansas
Whil-
more dlpayers
Davis al
although
poundes
former
recruit
score in
side. D
most of
man yea
the beng
strongly
11.5 po
rebount
NCAA
he'll be
against.
on 9-of-
After Chattart 13 secone the Moor 10 reobented, h tage he superio
If Kaf
knee is
a huge e
terms o
tans doo
doting
power fr
ter Drew
15 min
no poine
stays out
his heeb
Talk About Your SLAM DUNK
.