6B SPORTS
WOMEN'S BASKETBALL
THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 13, 2009
Team hopes for tournament trophy
Jayhawks approach first game with high hopes for season's end
BY MAX ROTHMAN
mrothman@kansan.com
If you took a microscope and analyzed senior guard Danielle McCray's mind, inside you would find the vibrant dreams of making the NCAA Tournament.
"This is something we've been working toward since our freshman year", McCray said.
This year's team may be the most highly anticipated in Kansas women's basketball history. And it all starts Sunday.
201th-ranked Kansas will host Oral Roberts (13-17, 6-12 last year) 2 p. Sunday at Allen Fieldhouse for the regular season opener
The Golden
Eagles return
senior guard/
forward Janae Voelker, who nearly averaged a double-double last season with 16.5 points per game and 9.4 rebounds per game. Sophomore guard Georgia Jones also returns after a lightning-quick start to her college basketball career, after averaging 12.4 points
per game and 3.7 assists per game
as a freshman.
"This is something we've been working toward since our freshman year."
"It's going to get us ready for the Big 12," senior guard Sade Morris said. "The first game sets the stage for the rest of the season."
This year, something separates the past from the present — all of the pieces are there.
"The best teams I've ever had three or four or five players in double figures," coach Bonnie Henrickson said.
Freshman point guard Angel Goodrich can step up as a leader in her first year as she quarterbacks the team with savvy passes. Her teammates have said she is always envisioning her next move before it happens. She possesses
DANIELLE MCCRAY Senior guard
the court vision one might expect in a more experienced player.
Sophomore forward Aishah Sutherland is the wildcard of the bunch. Will she be a consistent double mainstay or a
playmaker that waltzes into games from time to time? Sutherland has the ability to terrorize defenders with her size and speed. She has much to prove in her first year as a starter, but has all the tools to deliver as a low post machine.
Junior center Krysten Boogaard
functions as an essential cog for her size and undeniable skill. Many teams throw tall centers out there because of size only, regardless of whether these kids can actually produce. Boogaard's skill set is rare because she is 6 feet 5 inches
tail and also possesses cushion soft touch and the ability to play all over the floor in different situations.
Morris operates as the defensive specialist of the group. Yet she is also a multifaceted rarity, as she can pipe it with the best guards in the nation. Many defensive gurus can lock down a scorer but cannot produce on the other end. Morris is the second leading scorer on Kansas and is also capable of shutting down an opponent's top offensive option.
"If we can mold everybody together it's going to make our run a lot easier."
talent that edges a team from average to outstanding.
But McCray could make this year a truly special one. She is the superstar that can do it all. She grabs the tough rebound. She nails the three pointer to put the lead out of reach. She hits the buzzer-beeper before the clock ticks to zero. She is widely regarded as one of the best players in the nation after averaging 21.6 points per game and 7.7 rebounds per game as a junior. McCray is the supreme
SADE MORRIS Senior guard
A deep and talented bench led by co-captain junior forward Nicollette Smith will enable the studs of the starting five to catch a breather and allow the team
still not to miss a beat. Freshman guard Monica Engelman, transfer junior guard Rhea Codio and freshman forward Annette Davis have not yet made their stamp on the team, but hold potential to steal valuable minutes.
This Sunday, all of the parts will work together in an attempt to kick off the year the way a nationally-ranked team should.
"If we can mold everybody together and get everybody on the same page, it's going to make our run a lot easier." Morris said.
If the diverse pieces can work together and sculpt a unified team, the possibilities are limitless.
"We're not going to be perfect every day, but we should be in pursuit of perfection every day," Henrickson said.
— Edited by Abbey Strusz
Follow Max Rothman at
www.twitter.com/maxrothman.
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Ryan Waggoner/KANSAN
Freshman guard Monica Engelmaw pulls up for a shot during an exhibition game against Emporia State last week. The Jayhawks will open their regular season Sunday, facing off against Oral Roberts at 2 p.m. at Allen Fieldhouse.
KEY TO THE GAME:
DEFENSE
The Oral Roberts Golden Eagles will fly into Allen Fieldhouse fresh off of a 104-57 truncing of Southeastern Oklahoma. In that game six separate players scored double figures. If the Jayhawks hope to start the season off on a winning note, they need to contain all of those scoring threats. Kansas also can not allow Oral Roberts to attempt the
same number of open threes, 24 attempts, that it allowed the Emporia State Hornets last Sunday. Against Southeastern, Oral Roberts knocked down 43 percent of their three-point attempts. Without an improved perimeter defense, that could spell trouble for the Jayhawks.
WHAT TO WATCH FOR:
ORU UNDERCLASSMEN
players going in to the game this Sunday because 11 of the Golden Eagles' 14 players are underclassmen. Although Kansas can prepare based on the knowledge of the systems Oral Roberts coach Jerry Finkbeiner has employed throughout his thirteen year tenure, it is difficult to get a feel for what the team is truly capable of this season.
Kansas does not have much tape on most of oral Roberts
KEEP AN EYE ON:
DANIELLE MCCRAY
be matched up against Oral Roberts senior Janae Voelker, a Summit League First-Team selection
Senior guard Danielle McCray
last year, for at least part of the
McCray
game Sunday. Voelker plays a role for the Golden Eagles that has many similarities to the one McCray fills for the Jayhawks. They're both roughly the same size, they play the same position and they will both be asked to lead their respective teams. Not to forget that both players can score and rebound with apparent ease. Expect McCray to start the season with a strong performance as she and her teammates look to set a
winning tone for the season.
QUOTE OF THE DAY:
"It's my last season;I want it bad."
—Senior guard Sade Morris on achieving her goals
Morris
in her last season
- Andrew Taylor
ADDING TO OUR COLLECTION ONE TIGER AT A TIME.
THE RIVALRY
EVERYTHING YOU NEED TO KNOW BEFORE KANSAS WALKS ALL OVER MISSOURI
ISSUE DROPS NOVEMBER 16
CHIEFS
Oakland game brings back memories for quarterback
KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Preparing for Oakland this week has triggered memories for Kansas City quarterback Matt Cassel that are both sad and uplifting.
Last season, when he was with New England and the Patriots were getting ready to travel for a game against the Raiders, Greg Cassel died. Matt lost his father on the Tuesday before the Sunday game.
He left the team for two days to be with his family and help make funeral arrangements. Then he had a long and emotional talk with coach Bill Belichick and his offensive coordinator, and decided to go ahead and play.
"It was a tough game," Cassel
said Thursday, "it's a tough go any time you lose your father."
Determined to honor his father with a good performance, Cassel set his emotions aside and threw a career-best four touchdown passes to lead the Patriots to victory.
"It was a great way to honor him by getting a victory up there," Cassel said. "The team rallied around me. It was a special day in my career, no doubt about that."
One thing he will never forget is the way his teammates gave their support.
"I think it was pretty special because of the whole team and how they reacted, and even after the game there was a lot that was said. There's always those memories there. They're not all good memories. It will probably be a little bit emotional."
HAWKE S BAY, New Zealand
— Anthony Kim has won the Kiwi Challenge despite making a bogey in a playoff, beating Sean O'Hair to win the $1 million check.
Kim shot a 5-under 66 on Thursday and was leading over the back nine until O'Hair made a birdie on the 18th hole for a 3-under 69 to force a playoff in the 36-hole exhibition for players under 30.
Anthony Kim wins Kiwi Challenge in playoff
PGA
O'Hair found trouble left of the 650-yard 15th hole making double bogey, allowing Kim to win by taking four shots to reach the green and two-putting for a bogey.
Associated Press
Game Day the Right Way
Who: Sigma Kappa
What:A Pizza Party
When: November 14, from 12:30 pm until after the KU/Nebraska game!
Where: Sigma Kappa Front Lawn,1325 W. Campus Road
Why-Benefits the Sigma Kappa foundation
How Much: $2/slice