Inside Sports
THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
Sports
K-State football Coach Bill Snyder doesn't understand the BCS rankings, he just knows the Wildcats have to win Saturday. SEE PAGE 3B
Pro Baseball
Left-handed pitcher Randy Johnson signed with the Arizona Diamondbacks yesterday.
SEE PAGE 3B
Tuesday
December 1, 1998
Section:
B
Page 1
College Basketball
Kansas is only one of eight teams playing in Chicago today and tomorrow at the United Center.
SEE PAGE 3B
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Commentary Editor offers a method to madness
It's time for me to answer a question that has been chasing me since the early weeks of the semester.
It's a question that nobody has asked me directly. Instead they've nudged Kevin Wilson, associate sports editor, and asked, "Is Matt??"
They've mentioned it to my sister. "Matt must be crazy."
In short, a lot of people have wondered but have not bothered to ask me how I picked the winning football teams in our weekly predictions package.
Matt
Friedrichs
sports@kansan.com
But I didn't pick against winning football teams this season out of stupidity or a lack of college football knowledge.
I'll admit I had a less than stellar record. In fact, by picking against undefeated Kansas State and national powerhouses like Florida State and UCLA, I virtually guaranteed myself a losing record.
Friedrichs is a Bremen graduate student in journalism.
Instead, after the first week of the season, I asked myself why I was picking teams like K-State that I didn't want to win in the first place.
Don't get me wrong — I've written numerous stories, including a preview of the Big 12 Conference football race, from an objective perspective.
But pure emotion took over as we began predicting games. And why not. As coaches like to point out, those of us predicting who will win games have no idea what is going on behind the closed doors of the locker room or in the minds of the coaches and players.
We can make our best assessment of the situation, but even educated guessers didn't predict that three teams would be undefeated heading into the final days of the season, potentially rendering the bowl championship as ineffectual as previous attempts to determine a national champion by voting solely in polls.
So I approached my football picks with the same fan emotion that makes my brother Paul, a K-State fan, my cousin Eric, a Nebraska fan, and my friend Michael Weishaar, an avid Missouri hater.
I decided early on to join Mike in picking against Missouri. Nobody on campus likes the Tigers so why not cheer for them to lose. Then I realized that it would be a mistake to pick K-State. The Wildcats have fans in Lawrence. In fact several KU graduate students who completed their undergraduate years in Manhattan e-mailed me to support their team. But overall, I couldn't lose picking against K-State — except in my personal win/loss column.
Finally, because I already was picking against teams I hated, I stopped picking Florida schools, Pac 10 schools, Texas schools Oklahoma, Notre Dame and the handful of other teams I don't particularly like.
That left me with Nebraska as a proven winner, and they had a less than Husker-like season.
I hope you understand, and if not, I've had fun. I knew that many of my picks would be wrong when I made them, but I've had fun as a football fan secretly hoping the Wildcats, Tigers, Bruins, Seminoles and Gators would lose each and every week of the season.
Kansas to confront Kentucky
Top-ranked schools share traditions,winning histories
By Erin Thompson
Kansan sportswriter
Kansas, Kentucky — two schools steeped in basketball history.
One would be hard pressed to find a better match up of basketball tradition. Tonight the teams will see how they match up in skills as No. 7 Kansas faces No. 8 Kentucky in the Great Eight at Chicago's United Center.
As far as basketball tradition — Kansas is the winning school in the 1990s with 267 wins, Kentucky is second with 259. Kentucky has the most all-time victories with 1,725, and Kansas is third with 1,669. Kansas has the longest current home-court winning streak with 62 but has a long way to go before reaching Kentucky's all-time record of 129 victories.
Before the season, T.J. Pugh, senior forward, said he was looking forward to the matchup against the defending national champs at the Great Eight Tournament.
It is the second time in two years that Kansas has faced defending national champs at the Great Eight. Last year, the Jayhawks
The Jayhawks (4-0) are coming off a 78-50 win against UNLV Friday night. The Wildcats (5-1) spent last weekend in Puerto Rico at the Puerto Rico Shootout, where they went 2-1. Kentucky defeated UCLA 66-62 Saturday after falling to Pittsburgh 68-58.
The Jayhawks are in the midst one of the toughest parts of their season. After spending last week in Massachusetts, Kansas has two more road games in two different time zones — tonight in Chicago and Saturday in Anaheim, Calif., against Pepperdine.
defeated Arizona 90-87.
Providing leadership for the Jayhawks will be Ryan Robertson. The senior guard enters the game with 397 assists, and only six players in Kansas history have recorded 400 assists.
AP TOP 25
The Starting Lineup
G  RYAN Robertson 6-5 SR.
G  JEFF BOSCHER 6-1 FR.
F  NICK BRADFORD 6-6 Jr.
F  KENNY GREGORY 6-5 So.
C  ERIC CHENOWH 7-0 So.
KANSAS
JAYHAWKS
0-0 Big 12, 4-0 overall
KENTUCKY WILDCATS 0-0 Big 12, 5-1 overall
The top 25 teams in The Associated Press' men's basketball poll, with first-place votes in parentheses, records through yesterday, total points based on 25 points for a first-place vote through one point for a 25th-place vote, and previous ranking:
G WAYNE TURNER 6-2 Sr.
F TAYSHAUN PRINCE 6-7 Fr.
F HEISHIMA EVANS 6-6 Sr.
F SCOTT PADGETT 6-9 Sr.
C MICHAEL BRADLEY 6-10 So.
The United Center • Chicago, Ill.
TV: ESPN
Radio: 105.9 FM
Time: 7 p.m. tonight
Kansas coach Roy Williams said Robertson was key to the team because he helped people know what they were supposed to be doing in different positions.
The Jayhawks will not be expecting a game like the one they saw against Kentucky Dec. 9, 1989 in Allen Field House. Kansas destroyed the Wildcats 150-95. It was Kansas' highest-scoring game in school history.
The win was one of the few Kansas has been able to snatch from Kentucky. Kentucky dominates the series 17-3. Kentucky won the last meeting 88-71 Dec. 8, 1990 at Rupp Arena.
rank team rec pts pvs
1. Connecticut (52) 4-0 1,751 2
2. Maryland (16) 7-0 1,698 5
3. North Carolina (1) 6-0 1,549 9
4. Duke 5-1 1,531 1
5. Stanford (1) 4-1 1,405 3
6. Cincinnati (1) 4-0 1,376 15
7. Kansas 4-0 1,341 8
8. Kentucky 5-1 1,244 4
9. Michigan St. 4-1 1,185 7
10. Temple 4-1 1,076 6
11. Oklahoma St. 4-0 985 12
12. Syracuse 5-0 969 19
13. Arizona 3-0 962 11
14. Purdue 6-1 882 14
15. Washington 4-0 819 16
16. Indian 6-1 665 17
17. New Mexico 4-0 616 20
18. UCLA 4-2 477 10
19. Arkansas 5-1 439 21
20. Pittsburgh 6-1 421 —
21. Utah 3-2 334 18
22. Miami, Ohio 4-0 307 24
23. Xavier 4-2 201 13
24. Clemson 5-1 161 22
25. St. John's 3-2 106 23
Others receiving vials: Villanova 102, Tennessee 97, Michigan 60, Dem 34, Florida 61, Georgia 28, Memphis 23, Georgia 21, Texas Criticism 19, George Washington 17, Miami 16, Wake Forest 16, Ohio State 15, Vanderbilt 14, Utah State 15, Massachusetts 12, Southern Cal 12, Deflah 9, Virginia 7, San Diego 6, Oregon 6, Texas 6, Alabama 2, lone 2, Creighton 1, Murray 1, Volarossi 1.
"Ryan Robertson right now is the generator or the team," said Lester Earl, junior forward. "We need somebody to dictate the offense and defense."
Not only is Robertson closing in on 400 assists, he recently became the 12th player in Kansas history to make 100 three-point field goals. Only three Kansas players have reached both the 400-assist and 100-three-point baskets. If Robertson reaches 400 assists, he will be joining the lofty company of Jacque Vaughn (804 assists, 105 three pointers), Adonis Jordan (658, 179) and Kevin Pritchard (499, 101).
Center Eric Chenovich looks inside for a pass in a game against Fort Hays State. The Jayhawks will take on eight-ranked Kentucky in the Great Eight tournament tonight. Photo by Jay Sheepard/KANSAN
Women's hoops on the road again to Arkansas
By Sam Mellinger
Kansan sportswriter
Something doesn't fit.
The Kansas women's basketball team traveled to West Lafayette, Ind., to play in the prestigious State Farm Tipoff Classic opening the season. The Jayhawks were home for a few days, then flew to Hawaii for some fun in paradise and two games in the Hawaiian Regent Classic. And if the women did not get their fill of airplanes and hotels, they went straight from Honolulu to Los Angeles for the Loyola Marymount Thanksgiving Classic.
Today, the No. 19 Jayhawks are in Jonesboro, Ark. for a game against Arkansas State. What gives?
Casey Prutt graduated Jonesboro High School in 1996. The trip is a favor of sorts from Kansas coach Marian Washington.
"It's one of our top priorities," Washington said. "We have so many players out of out- state, it's really important we make every effort before they graduate from here to let their families and friends go see them."
Pruitt, a redshirt sophomore, has been bombarded with ticket requests. She said she had about 80 people on the pass list.
"I'm so ready, I've got some fans coming," Pruitt said. "I think they're going to bring some goodies by."
Pruitt briefly considered attending her hometown school but decided to get away to a school with a larger enrollment than Arkansas State's 10.050.
That doesn't mean she's out-of-touch with the Lady Indians. Pruitt played against Julie Hagood, now Arkansas
State's leading scorer, in high school. Hagood attended Pocahontas High School, about a 40-mile drive from Jonesboro.
On paper, the Jayhawks (4-2) should handle ASU. The Lady Indians are 1-4, and their four losses have been by an average of 19 points. But their one win was against them. No. 8 Virginia, also their only home game.
"We were real competitive, but I never beat her in high school," Pruitt said. "She's their go-to player now."
Washington is trying to emphasize the importance of taking care of the basketball. The Jayhawks are averaging 20 turnovers per game this season and have been under 18 giveaways just once. Lynn Pride is Kansas' leading scoring at 17.2 points per game, but she also is leading the Jayhawks in turnovers with 5.5 per contest.
"They're real up-and-down," Prutt said. "They beat Virginia, then they turn around and get killed by Southwest Missouri State. I do not want to leave there with a loss, that's for sure. I don't want to underestimate them, I'm afraid we might."
"Some of those turnovers we are concerned about," Washington said. "I am trying to play a lot of players, and some of those turnovers came about with the young players being rather anxious. With Lynn, she's had a lot of traveling calls against her. That's something we'll work on."
After tonight's game against ASU, the Jayhawks will play their home opener Friday against Maryland Eastern Shore as part of the Jayhawk Classic. The tournament's championship game will be at 2:05 p.m. Saturday with the consolation followup.
Senior co-captain Suzi Raymant, who
injured her left knee Nov. 21 against Minnesota, will be examined tomorrow. The injury has kept Raymant out of action and is to the same knee that she was rehabilitating this summer after tearing the anterior cruciate ligament. If Raymant cannot return, she would be eligible for a medical redshirt and be able to play next season.
The Starting Lineup
KANSAS
JAYHAWKS
0-0 Big 12, 4-2 overall
G JENNIFER JACKSON 6-10 So.
F SHANDY ROBBINS 6-1 SR.
F LYNN PRIDE 6-2 Jn.
F JACLYN JOHNSON 6-1 So.
C NAKIA SANFORD 6-3 SR.
ARKANSAS STATE
INDIANS
0.0 Big 12, 1-4 overall.
F RAEANNE SMITH 5-7 Fr.
F CHRISTINA BARRY 6-0 Sr.
G KEESHIA EVANS 5-8 So.
G JULIE HAGOOD 5-9 Jr.
G KELLINA BRADSHAW 5-3 Sr.
Convocation Center • Jonesboro, Ark.
Tippoff: 7 p.m., tonight
AP TOP 25
The top 25 teams in The Associated Press' women's basketball poll, with first-place votes in parentheses, records through yesterday, total points based on 25 points for a first-place vote through one point for a 25th-place vote, and previous ranking:
rank team rec pts pts
1. Connecticut (37) 4-0 1,020 1
2. Louisiana Tech (2) 3-0 975 2
3. Tennessee (2) 3-1 950 3
4. Purdue 3-1 884 4
5. Georgia 3-0 811 6
6. Notre Dame 5-0 800 7
7. Alabama 5-0 747 8
8. Old Dominion 5-0 731 9
9. North Carolina 7-1 638 5
10. UCLA 4-2 616 12
11. Rutgers 6-1 578 11
12. Colorado St. 8-0 91 16
13. Arkansas 6-1 489 14
14. Texas Tech 3-1 476 15
15. Virginia 3-1 352 17
16. Duke 4-3 344 20
17. N. Carolina St. 3-2 331 10
18.Iowa St. 3-0 279 21
19.Kansas 4-2 253 19
20.Vanderbilt 3-1 250 18
21.Florida 6-2 236 13
22.George Washington 3-1 233 22
23.Nebraska 5-1 151 24
24.Stanford 2-4 137 —
25.Clemson 4-0 95 —
**Others receiving votes:** UC Santa Barbara 83, Winnipeg 28, Penn St. 53, Virginia Tech 48, Illinois 92, Florida International 88, Memphis 25, Washington 42, Auburn 23, Oregon 25, Hawaii 13, Marquette 8, Kentucky 6, Drake 3; Indiana 2, New Mexico 2, Northwestern 2, Southern Cal 2, Arizona 1, Boston College 1, Butler 1, DePalo 1, Southern Meth. 1, Tailored 1