THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
Inside Sports
Sports
After losing to Texas A&M in the Big 12 Championship, Kansas St. will play unranked Purdue in the Alamo Bowl.
SEE PAGE 4B
Pro Football
Monday December 7,1998
The Denver Broncos remained undefeated after rallying and beating the Kansas City Chiefs 35-31.
SEE PAGE 5B
Section:
College Basketball
Second-ranked Maryland improved to 9-0 with a 62-60 win against fifthranked Stanford.
SEE PAGE 7B
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Kansas rebounds from season's first loss
Jayhawks beat Pepperdine in 62-55 victory
By Matthew Friedrichs Kansan sports editor
ANAHEIM, Calif. — When Lester Earl has surgery today, he will do so knowing he contributed to Kansas' 62-55 win against Pepperdine Saturday in the John Wooden Classic.
Earl did not play in the first half, and coach Roy Williams did not intend for to play him at all.
"At haftime he came over to me and said he'd like to play." Williams said.
Trainer Mark Cairns and the doctors who have examined Earl had told Williams that Earl could do no more damage to the knee by playing, but Williams still wanted to hold him out.
Earl told Williams he did not want to see the team lose two in a row, and with 15:30 left in the second half and the score tied 34-34, Earl entered the game.
He said after the game that the injured knee prevented him from
jumping but that it didn't keep him from playing. He scored four points—making both of his shots—and had four rebounds. His 14 minutes on the floor were critical for the Jayhawks, especially after Chenowith picked up his fourth foul with 8:18 to play.
The game was a defensive struggle, with neither team finding an offensive flow. Kansas turned the ball over 11 times in the first half and 18 times for the game.
Despite sloppy ball handling, Williams said the team showed more intensity than in the loss to Kentucky last week.
"Even in the first half when we were ugly with the ball, I thought the kids were trying hard," Williams said.
The Jayhawks used defense to stay in a physical game characterized by pileups of players diving for loose balls. Pepperdine ran guard Jeff Boschee through numerous picks as he tried to defend guard Jelani Gardner. Pepperdine led 36-34 with 15:07 left in the game, but a three-pointer by Boschee gave Kansas the lead for good.
Pepperdine narrowed the gap to three at the two-minute mark, but Kansas played good defense and made enough free throws to win the game.
The lead grew to as many as six points. But with the score 50-47, Earl made easy layups on passes from Bosche and forward Nick Bradford, giving Kansas a seven-point lead.
Pepperdine coach Lorenzo Romar said he was disappointed his team lost a game that could have given it national recognition, but he said both teams played hard.
"We're not into moral victories, but we are into competing," Romar said. "We competed today."
The game was a homecoming for Californians Jelani Janisse, Ashante Johnson and Eric Onewith.
'Janisse played for two minutes in the first half. Johnson did not play because he is recovering from surgery.
Chenowith scored early but was quiet for much of the game, despite playing in front of a large crowd of family and friends. But he wasn't disappointed.
"We don't go into every game thinking we're going to blow them out," Chenowith said.
It also was a homecoming of sorts for Paul Pierce, who left Kansas after last season and was drafted by the Boston Celtics. Before the game, he embraced Max Falkenstein, announcer for the Jayhawks, and sat on the bench with Williams while the team warmed up. He also stopped by the locker room to
NO.7 KANSAS 62 PEPPERDINE 55
KANSAS (5-1)
Bradford 2-4 4-9,8 Chenwhit 5-9 0-10,
Gregory 5-12 2-5 13, Robertson 4-9 1-5 21,
Boschee 3-6 0-8, Earl 2-2 1-0,
Nooner 0-0 0-0, Carey 0-0 0-0,
Janisse 0-0 0-0, Lund 0-0 0-0,
Davis 2-3 3-7, Tales 23-4 15 13-24 62.
PEPPERDINE (5-2)
Lalazarion 4-9-2 10, Gibbs 5-9-6
15, Sheppard 6-2-5 2, Gardner 7-13
25, Krince 6-0-0 0, Famby 2-3-6
7, Minahan 1-4.0 0, Varner 0-1.0 0,
McDowell 1.3-0 0, Totals 20-54 14-25
55.
Halftime - Kansas 26, Pepperdine 25.
3-point goals - Kansas 3-7 (Boschsee 2-3,
Gregory 1-2, Bradford 0-1, Robertson 0-
1), Pepperdine 1-4 (Minhan 1-3,
Glibbs 0-1, McDowell 0-1, Lalazarian 0-
2, Gardner 0-2, Prince 0-3). Fouled
out - None. Rebounds - Kansas 39
(Bradford 7), Pepperdine 32 (Sheppard
8). Assists 15 (Bradford 6).
Pepperdine 6 (Gardner, Prince 2 each).
Total fouls - Kansas 19, Pepperdine 21.
A - 14,237.
ioke with the plavers after the win.
joke with the players after the win.
The team returns home to Allen
Field House tomorrow night to play
the Iowa Hawkewes.
Guard Ryan Robertson said that the team would continue to learn from the mistakes it made in the loss against Kentucky last week.
Earl to undergo knee surgery this afternoon
University of Kansas junior Lester Earl will undergo arthroscopic knee surgery this afternoon to help repair a
condition called chondro malacia
The decision for the surgery was made prior to Saturday's Kansas-Pepperdine game, in which Earl scored four points and grabbed four rebounds in 14 minutes of play.
"There is roughness on the back of Lester's left knee which is causing continued swelling
"We think that cleaning it out through surgery may help."
Earl, a 6-8 forward, had surgery on the knee in April
that we have not been able to control," said  Ken Wertzberger, the physician who will perform the surgery.
Earl: Swelling prompted decision or surgery.
but has yet to recover fully. "We are extremely disappointed for Lester," said Kansas head coach Roy Williams. "He has tried very hard to play on a knee which is nowhere near 100 percent. By having surgery, we feel it will give Lester his best chance of being effective."
Kansas officials are hopeful that Earl will miss only 7 to 10 days because of the surgery.
Kansan staff report
'Hawks' tournament win inspires hope
Forward Brooke Reves looks inside for a pass during the first half of the game against Maryland Eastern Shore. Reves scored 10 points in the game and pulled down eight rebounds. Photo by Jay Shepard/KANSAN
Pride leads team in two blowouts
By Sam Mellinger
Kansan sportswriter
This was just what the Kansas women's basketball team needed.
The last two weeks have been brutal, lowlighted by an 18-point loss to North Carolina, a possible season-ending injury to co-captain Suzi Raymont and a loss to 2-5 Arkansas State last Tuesday.
So when the Jayhawks (6-3) swept the Jayhawk Classic this weekend with two blowouts — 75-47 against Maryland Eastern Shore on Friday and 95-62 against Butler on Saturday—the victories meant more than just padding the team's record.
"Oh man, first of all, it's just nice to come home," said junior Lynn Pride, the tournament's MVP. "And then to play like we did was just great."
What the team did was perhaps play its best game Friday and then turn around less than 24 hours later and play even better. The Jayhawks set a season-high with 75 points Friday, but that mark didn't make it through the weekend after the 95-point output Saturday, just the second time Kansas has scored that much since the 1994-95 season.
Pride was named the tournament's MVP after tallying 31 points, 12 rebounds, 11 assists and four steals in two games. But what was perhaps most impressive was Pride's efficiency. She was 12 of 24 from the field, hit all three of her three-pointers and made just three turnovers. Before this weekend, she was averaging more than five turnovers.
"This is good, this is really good to see," head coach Marian Washington said after Saturday's game. "As far as seeing it offensive and defensively, this is the best we've played all year. There were no letdowns. If we keep this up, we'll be able to compete with anybody in the Big 12."
In addition to Pride's MVP honor, sophomores Jennifer Jackson and Brooke Reves were named to the All-Tournament Team.
"I felt pretty confident out there," Jackson said. "My shot was falling when I took good
shots, and we were trying to put more pressure on them on defense."
Jackson's performance was part of the reason Washington felt confident that her team's troubled trip was history.
"After our road trip, we had a lot of questions," Washington said. "We found some answers, at least for now."
The biggest of those questions
was how the team would deal without Rayman. The solution
without Raymant. The solution — at least for now — is moving Jackson to shooting guard and splitting the point guard duties between sophomore Casey Prutt and freshman Selena Scott.
"I was a little nervous coming into it; I had to call Mom," Pruitt said.
Pruitt responded well to her first career start. She played 52
minutes during the weekend and had nine assists, two steals and just three turnovers. Pruitt only took four shots and scored four points in two games, but scoring is not her role.
"Her job is to quarterback this team and get us into our offense," Washington said. ("Pruitt and Scott) worked well for us, we're going to stay with that until I'm forced to look at something else."
BUTLER (5-2)
NO. 19 KANSAS 95
BUTLER 62
BUTLER 62
Matwar 5-12 5-15 16, Reichl 0-2 3-4 3,
Schrader 1-4 3-4 5, Edgar 0-5 1-2 1,
Hurrell 1-4 5-16 9, Pappos 0 4,
Lazzo 1-0 0, Baker 0 2 0 0
0 0 0, Schubeler 0 2 7 0
0 0 0, Schubeler 0 3-4 4 4, Kuhn 2-1
2-1 5, Tallus 18-5 33-22 72.
KANSAS (6-3)
Pride 6-14-2-12, 16 Johnson 2-4-3-4
7, Sanford 4-7-2-16, Prutti 0-1-2-2
2, Jackson 5-11-2-14, Hannon 1-2-0-
2, Reves 8-10-0-10, 16 Hanner 1-2-1-
2, Scott 0-2-2-2, Robbins 6-1-10
0-1-14, Geoffroy 2-4-2-2, Fletcher
2-3-0-0, 4. Tolts 37-70 16-25 95
Halftime - Kansas 47, Buller 33,-
Point goals - Butter 4-20 (Hurley 2,
Marlow 1-5, Bodine 1-2, Baker 0-
Holloway 0-1, Edgar 0-4), Kansas
5-9 (Pride 2-2, Bobbin 2-3, Jackson
1-2, Pruitt 0-1, Scott 0-1). Fouled out-
None. Rebounds - Butter 48
(Schrader 9), Kansas 40 (Sanford
8). Assists - Butter 8 (Edgar 3),
Kansas 4 (Buffalo 5) Total fouls -
Butter 21, Kansas 23
NO.19 KANSAS 75, M.D.
EASTERN SHORE 47
MD.-EASTERN SHORE (34)
Sheldon 6-19 3-14 5, Lewis 3-8 6,
5, Smith 1-3 4-5 4, Thompson 2-10
10, McKenzie 1-3 4-5 4, Thompson
berry 0-0 0, Hayes 0-2 0, Dowell
1-3 0-2 0, Totals 17-57 12-
17 47
KANSAS (5-3)
Pride 6-10-2 13, Johnson 7-11-2 16, Sanford 4-8 10, Bruitt 1-3-0 0, Jackson 4-7 0, Hannon 0-1-0 0, Reves 5-7 10, Brox 0-1 0, Scott 0-2-2 2, Robbins 3-7-1 7, Geoffroy 1-2-1 1, Fletcher 2-3 0, Totals 33-61 9-9.75
Haltime — Kansas 37, Md.-Eastern Shore 29, 3-point goal 0, Least 2-1, Thompson 0, Kansas 19 (Pride 1-1, Jackson 0-1, Hannon 0-1, Prutt 0, Robbins 0-4) Fouled out — None. Rebounds — Md.-Eastern Shore 27 (Smith 5), Kansas 46 (Pride, Reves 8). Assists — Md.-Eastern Shore 6 (Lewis 2), Kansas 21 (Prutt 5). Total fouls — Md.-Eastern Shore 13, Kansas 14, A—1, 135.
Kansas' next game will be at home Saturday against Creighton. The team will have eight other games before the Spring 1999 semester, including two in the Seattle Times Husky Classic on Dec. 19 and 20. The Jayhawks will have home games against Houston on Dec. 28, Baylor on Jan. 5 and Missouri on Jan. 13. Road games will be at Texas A&M on Jan. 2, Iowa State on Jan. 9 and Nebraska on Jan. 16.
The Associated Press
Football bowl game matchups announced
College football has the national title matchup fans want to see every season — No. 1 vs. No. 2. And this time it will be Tennessee vs. Florida State in the Fiesta Bowl.
It took a wild Saturday of upsets, but when the results were in, there was really no need for computers, quartiles and strength-of-schedules after all.
The biggest loser in the manuevering was No. 4 Kansas State (11-1). The Wildcats lost to Texas A&M 36-33 in double overtime in the Big 12 title game and lost out on a $12 million payday by not being included in the Bowl Championship Series mix.
The biggest winner turned out to be No.7 Florida, which, despite losses to Tennessee and Florida State, was selected because it will help fill the Orange Bowl by bringing tens of thousands of fans.
In the final BCS standings, which use a complicated formula of polls, computers and strength-of-schedule, the Volunteers and Seminoles came out a clear 1-2 yesterday and were invited to play in the Fiesta Bowl on Jan. 4, where the national title will be on the line.
In the other BCS matchups, it's No. 5 UCLA (10-1) vs. No. 9 Wisconsin (10-1) in the Rose Bowl, No. 7 Florida (9-2) vs. No. 18 Syracuse (8-3) in the Orange Bowl and No. 3 Ohio State (10-1) vs. No. 8 Texas A&M (11-2) in the Sugar Bowl.
Ohio State (10-1) might have been left out of the BCS picture if either UCLA or KState had won on Saturday. But the Bruins lost, too, beaten 49-45 by Miami and knocked out of the national title picture. UCLA, though, still gets the trip to Pasadena as the Pac-10 champion.
In The Associated Press' final regular-season poll, Tennessee was the unanimous No. 1 choice with Florida State a solid No.2; in the USA Today/ESPN coaches polls, the Vols were a near-unanimous No.1 pick and the Seminoles a strong No.2.
The BCS standsd were created this season to set up a No. 1 vs. No. 2 matchup and incorporated The Associated Press media poll, the coaches poll, three computer ratings, strength-of-schedule and the number of losses into the process of picking the top two teams.
Tennessee finished with 3.47 points —1 point for poll average, 1.67 points for computer ranking, 0.80 for the 20th-toughest schedule and zero points for losses.
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See FOOTBALL on page 4B