tuesday,november 11,2003
basketball preview
the university daily kansan 15B
NOW FOR THE REST OF THE STORY.
Believe it or not, there are plenty more questions about the Kansas basketball depth chart-that go beyond the last two starters. Did Moulaye Niang put on weight during the off-season? Is Christian Moody ready to be in the regular rotation? Who is Nick Bahe? And that is just the beginning.
BRETT OLSON:
SENIOR FORWARD
2002 Season - 21 Games, scored his
first career postseason points in the National Semifinals against Marquette on April 5, 2003.
Along with being named First-Team Academic All-Big 12 last season, Olson was living proof that dreams do in fact
come true.
After dreaming his whole life of playing in a Jayhawk uniform growing up in Chanute, Olson made the team via walk-on tryouts. Now he is trying to defy all odds and work his way into coach Bill Self's regular rotation of post players.
NICK BAHE:
FRESHMAN GUARD
Bahe is the man of mystery on the KU roster. He joins a heralded freshman class as an invited walk-on who was a basketball and football star in high school out of Lincoln, Neb. Fans can expect Bahe to nip some nibs.
Bahe to see some playing time right
away, as he was the 2003 Gatorade Player of the Year in Nebraska and a 2003 McDonald's All-America nominee.
Bahe will remind fans of players like Jeff Bosche and Jerod Haase, with his on-target, long range shooting abilities and constant hustle.
CHRISTIAN MOODY:
SENIOR FORWARD
Even though Bahe is coming from a high school atmosphere where, athletically, he was the big man on campus, the attention he's getting even as an unknown on the roster at Kansas is still new to him.
2002- 21 games, played a career-high five minutes against Nebraska on Jan. 11, 2003
While Christian Moody did not see the floor for extended periods of time last season, he made his mark early in the season. His thunderous dunk in an exhibition game against Washburn University made fans curious as to what more he could do, but Moody did not get much of a chance. Now, after intense individual sessions with the
it's been a little jaw-dropping, with people coming up to you just wanting to talk to you," Bahe said. "If you have a Kansas basketball shirt on, and people see you walking with Keith, they just want to know. It's awesome. I wouldn't have it any other way."
can help the team out more this season, whether he's on the floor or on the sideline.
coaches this summer, Moody thinks he
"If I can move into one of those spots in the rotation, then it would be great for me," Moody said. "As long as I'm working
hard in practice and making everyone else better, then things will go good for us."
MOULAYE NIANG:
SOPHOMORE FORWARD
2002 Season- 28 Games Played, 1.2 points per game, 1.5 rebounds per game, career-high 5 rebounds vs. Florida on Nov. 29, 2002
hurting, Moulaye Niang saw significant minutes as a true freshman. Niang has now spent the summer packing some more muscle onto his frame, and is more than ready to prove he can bang down low with the Rig 40-120.
Last season, when Jeff Graves was still adjusting and Wayne Simien was
in the Big 12's elite post players. "Last year I missed a lot of easy buck
ets around the basket," Niang said. "I've been trying to get stronger and be more sound underneath."
STEVEN VINSON:
SOPHOMORE GUARD
2002 Season - 22 Games, career-high 5 points vs. UNC-Asheville Jan. 2, 2003
freshman campaign, he was a local favorite out of Lawrence High School. Vinson had the luxury of learning for a year under Kirk Hinrich, one of the greatest Kansas guards in recent memory. Now he is ready to
ory. Now let's help translate those lessons learned, and a summer's worth of hard work, into more minutes.
Vinson played the role of the "hometown hero" last season in the Jayhawks' magical season. Even though Vinson did not see very much action in his
"I know I've improved a lot since last year," Vinson said. "I'm excited to know what to expect and to know what's expected before I actually step out onto the court. I think with a lot of the things coach Self preaches, I do see myself possibly having a part in what's going to happen."
Kansas State women win to start year
—Compiled by Ryan Greene
The Associated Press
b. "We still need to get better," she said.
MANHATTAN - K-State's Big Three played about half as many minutes as they are used to and scored about what they averaged, but Coach Deb Patterson said she still expected more of her veterans after a 73-51 win over Washburn.
Senior Nicole Ohlde and juniors Kendra Wecker and Laurie Koehn played 24, 22 and 30 minutes, respectively. Ohlde led all scorers with 16 points and had two steals, two assists and one block.
But the number that caught Patterson's attention was Ohide's four turnovers.
"Post turnovers were just too high," she said. "You've just got to get better in every aspect of the
game. We need to take care of the ball better and defend at a much higher level."
"Last year we were getting a lot more reps than what we are this year," Wecker said. "It's a good feeling to have people coming off the bench and give us quality minutes, and come in and step up and play like we need them to."
Patterson said that although her expectations were high for her veterans, the goal was to give underclassmen time on the floor.
Wecker said the game exposed some of K-State's weaknesses, which will be a focus before Sunday's exhibition game against Basketball Travelers.
"We got a game underneath our belts," Wecker said. "I don't think any of us are satisfied with the way we played tonight. I think we had too many turnovers, and my play
in particular wasn't at the level it should be, especially rebounding and on the defensive end.
"We're better than what we showed tonight, and we're going to work hard in practice the next couple of days to come out and play harder on Sunday."
Combining for 16-of-27 field goal attempts, the Big Three shot 60 percent from the field including a perfect 8-of-8 from the free throw line.
Defensively, they combined for three steals and helped keep the Lady Blues to 33 percent shooting.
shooting. Much like Patterson, Wecker said the players expected more out of themselves.
"We have to be a lot better on both sides of the floor," she said. "We've got to be intense for 40 minutes and be flying all over the
noor. We were a little bit passive tonight."
If seeing the potential of the incoming class was a goal for the game, it was accomplished and, Ohlde said, versatility will soon be a characteristic of the team.
be a Character Basics student "Since we have 14 on our team now, it's good that we can throw different combinations out there and play different positions," she said.
Going beyond six deep, while a definite adjustment, will only benefit K-State — starters, veterans and reserves, Wecker said.
"I definitely think this will help us out in the long run," she said. "I'm not going to say that I like sitting on the bench a whole lot, but it's good and our team is deep enough that we can call on people that can come in and do their job."
AMES, Iowa — The grim outlook for Iowa State basketball can pop up just about anywhere
"I've had people come up to me in restaurants and say, 'You guys will be lucky to win one game this year,' senior guard Jake Sullivan said."
Yes, the Cyclones have a lot to prove, starting with showing everyone they've moved past the mess left by former coach Larry Eustachy, who resigned last May after it was revealed he had partied with college students on Big 12 road trips.
Sullivan and his teammates insist that's all behind them now and they're eager to get the season started under coach Wayne Morgan, who had been a Eustachy assistant.
The Associated Press
As for those dark forecasts, which include predictions of a deep second-division finish in the Big 12 by every preseason publication, they don't trouble the Cyclones at all.
"It's just fun again," Sullivan said. "I'm having a great time playing. We're finally a team. We're really, truly a team. We're focused and we can do some good things this year."
Iowa State starts year with bleak outlook
LAWRENCE NUTRITION CENTER
"I love being that underdog. I think it's fun," center Jared Homan said. "It gives me a chance to have a little smirk on my face when we finish higher than that. I'll be, 'Hey, you guys don't know what you're talking about.'
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