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THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 12, 2009
SPORTS
3B
WOMEN'S BASKETBALL
Jayhawks want to reload with new hoops recruits
BY MAX ROTHMAN mrothman@kansan.com
In her six-year tenure at Kansas, coach Bonnie Henrickson has recruited many different kinds of talent. Sometimes those skills are in the form of a 6-foot-5 center who can run the floor like a cheetah. Other times that translates to a 5-foot-4 point guard with great court vision.
Three guards from Texas, CeCe Harper, Keena Mays and Diara Moore, as well as Coloradan Brooke Jelniker signed letters of intent to join Hendrickson's squad for the 2010-2011 season.
Harper was a teammate on current freshman guard Monica Engelman at Madison High School in San Antonio. She averaged 17.4 points per game and 5.1 rebounds per game as a junior and was rated the 29th best point guard in the class of 2010 by ESPN's HoopGurlz.com. Her familiarity with Engelman, another definite up and comer for Kansas, could help Harper squeak into the point guard rotation next year.
"CeCe has an extremely high
basketball IQ." Henrickson said. "She is a good shooter who can extend the defense with her range. At the same time she is effective off the dribble and has great court vision. She is the complete package."
Mays averaged 10 points per game and 3 assists per game as a junior at Timberview High School in Arlington. She was honored as the District 8-4A Offensive Player of the Year and was rated the 61st best player overall in the class of 2010 by ESPN's HoopLz.com. Mays' potential has no ceiling and could be a huge difference maker for the team once the transition from high school to college becomes a smooth one.
"Keena has the ability to make plays all over the court," Henrickson said. "She is great at getting her teammates the ball in a position to score and can also knock down the shot herself. She has good range and can get to the rim and finish."
skills will serve as a valuable asset at Henrickson's disposal.
Moore led Cedar Hill High School in Cedar Hill to a 25-7 record in the 2008-2009 season, averaging 13 points per game. 4 assists per game and 2 steals per game. Her strength and leadership
"Diara is a strong, athletic guard," Henrickson said. "She is very physical and really knows how to attack the hoop. In addition, she is a great rebounder and will bring an element of toughness to our program."
Jelniker averaged 14 points per game, six rebounds per game and two blocks and steals per game for Thunder Ridge High School in Highlands Ranch as a junior. She was named a First Team All-Conference player and rated as the 19th best small forward by HoopGurlz.com and 45th best overall prospect by GregSwain.com. Her versatile skills will be a welcome addition to a squad that will be without its star small forward Danielle McCray next year.
"Brooke is a fantastic shooter," Henrickson said. "She is long and athletic and comes from one of the top high school programs in the state of Colorado. She is an aggressive rebounder and really knows how to play the game."
Edited by Tim Burgess
WOMEN'S BASKETBALL Rankings name McCray third best small forward
ESPN.com rated superstar senior guard/forward Danielle McCray as the third best small forward in the nation in the 2009-2010 preseason rankings. McCray was already honored as the 2009 Big 12 Preseason Player of the Year after averaging 21.6 ppg and 7.7 rebounds per game as a junior. The Olathe native has her sights set on the NCAA Tournament after a Kansas loss in the WNIT championship game last year.
— Max Rothman
NBA
Loss drops Nets to worst start in franchise history
EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. — Marreese Speights converted a go-ahead three-point play with 1:10 to play and the Philadelphia 76ers beat New Jersey 82-79 on Wednesday night, extending the Nets' franchise worst start to 0-8
Thaddeus Young had 20 points to lead the 76ers, and Speights finished with 19 points and nine rebounds.
Brook Lopez had 23 points and 14 rebounds, but the center did not get a call on a drive to the basket with about 14 seconds to play that could have
given the Nets the lead.
Andre Igudaola added nine points, nine rebounds and six assists on 4 of 14 shooting, while Louis Williams had 10 points for Philadelphia.
New Jersey missed three shots that would have given it the lead in the final minute and turned the ball over with less than 5 seconds to play on an inbounds play.
The undermanned Nets seemed on the verge of their first win when Lopez hit two free throws with 1:26 to play to put New Jersey ahead 79-77.
- Associated Press
NBA
ASSOCIATED PRESS
ASSOCIATED PRESS
Denver Nuggets' Carmelo Anthony, left, fouls Milwaukee Bucks' Brandon Jennings in a game Wednesday in Milwaukee. The bucks won
108-102.
Rookie Jennings scores 32 in victory against Nuggets
ASSOCIATED PRESS
MILWAUKEE — Brandon Jennings never expected to start his NBA career this way.
It appears to be leap-by-leap for the player who decided to skip college for the pros in Europe before being picked 10th overall.
The rookie point guard scored 14 of his 32 points in the fourth quarter, and Andrew Bogut added 23 points and 10 rebounds to lead the Milwaukee Bucks to a 108-102 victory over the Denver Nuggets on Wednesday night.
"I came in here, wanted to learn and take (it) step-by-step," Jennings said.
"Fortunately, everything I learned over there seemed to impress the coaches and everybody," he said. "I just go out there and play with a chip on my shoulder."
And the results couldn't be better for Milwaukee. Expected to be one of the worst teams in the
NBA, the Bucks (4-2) are leading the Central Division.
"We've got a long way to go, but it's a great game to win." Bogut said.
Carmelo Anthony had 32 points and 10 rebounds for Denver (6-3).
"He ran out of gas a little bit," Nuggets coach George Karl said. "We weren't good enough offensively and we weren't good enough defensively."
Jennings, who also had nine assists, had already played his best game to date before Denver whittled a 10-point deficit with 10 minutes to play down to 91-90 on a layup by Chaucey Billups.
Jennings answered with consecutive 3-pointers, dribbling amelibly on the second for most of the shot clock before slowing down and stepping back behind the 3-point line to make it 97-90 with Billups guarding him.
"I was feeling it from the first one," Jennings said. "I knew it was
in right as it left my hands. That was a great feeling."
Billups, who finished with 19, was impressed with Jennings' confidence.
"Give him credit, he stepped up and made some big, big shots. He was great all night," Billups said. "That, to me, is sometimes more than the result. That you have the ultimate confidence than you can hit those shots. That was impressive."
After another defensive stop, the Nuggets frustration began to run over. Kenyon Martin was whistled for a technical foul and Ersan Ilyasova made it 100-90 on three free throws with 2:41 left.
But Denver rallied, cutting it to 100-97 with 46 seconds to go on a 3-pointer by Billups. Bogut hit a 7-foot floater in the lane and J.R. Smith answered with a 3 with 21 seconds left to make it 102-100.
But Jennings kept up the pressure, hitting his final six free throws to seal it.