sports
KANSAN.COM/SPORTS | THURSDAY, MAR. 2, 2017
Christian Hardy/KANSAN
Sophomore first baseman David Kyriacou fouls off a pitch against Oral Roberts. Kansas lost the game. 12-1
Five-run first inning deflates Jayhawk baseball
▶ MITCH GEORGE
@MitchLGeorge
in a mild afternoon at Hoglund Ballpark, the Kansas Jayhawks encountered early trouble against the Oral Roberts Golden Eagles on Tuesday.
Although the largest amount of runs was scored in the first inning, Oral Roberts hung multiple crooked numbers on the board on its way to a 12-1 victory over the Jayhawks.
Despite getting the nod as the starting pitcher, freshman Ryan Zeferjahn recorded the fewest amount of outs out of the six pitchers that toed the rubber on the day for Kansas. He was able to retire two batters in the first inning, but Oral Roberts sent all nine men to bat en route to plating five runs in the opening frame.
"It kind of buried us," Kansas coach Ritch Price said after the game. "I could tell right away that his arm
slot wasn't where it normally was."
The Jayhawks threatened to answer with crooked numbers of their own in both the bottom of the first and second innings, but they left the bases loaded on both accounts. Freshman second baseman James Cosentino drove a ball into deep center field with two outs in the first, but it was ultimately tracked down by the centerfielder to end the inning.
In an otherwise bleak
contest, junior relief pitcher Blake Weiman was a bright spot for the Jayhawks. After replacing Zeferjahn in the first inning, he continued to pitch through the third. Weiman worked quickly, efficiently and perfectly as he did not allow a baserunner in the seven at-bats that he was tasked with.
"My role is just to come in and put up zeros," Weiman said. "I'm always ready to go. Obviously not ideal, but whenever your name's called you're going
My role is just to come in and put up zeros. I'm always ready to go."
Blake Weiman Junior relief pitcher
to have to check it in and just do your job."
San Jose, California, native knocked in Kansas' lone run with a single in the fourth inning. McLaughlin finished the day two-forthree at the plate with two walks. His two hits bumped his early-season batting average to .355.
In addition to Weiman, junior shortstop Matt McLaughlin also provided positive production. The
The Jayhawks will continue their eight-game homestand against Northwestern State on Friday, March 3 at 3 p.m.
Edited by Lara Korte
Caitlynn Salazar/KANSAN
Caitlinjh Salazar/KANSAN Redshirt-junior guard Jessica Washington wears a face-mask during Kansas' game against Kansas State due to a nose injury. She was scoreless in the team's final game at Allen Fieldhouse.
Despite loss, Washington scores 18 in season finale
▶ SEAN COLLINS
@seanzie_UDK
Midway through the third quarter, the Jayhawks inbounded the ball and brought it up the court. Every Jayhawk was out of position. Coach Brandon Schneider noticed this right away and his frustration caused him to call another timeout, his second in under a minute.
After a lackluster first half on both sides of the ball, the Jayhawks found themselves down 41-18 in Morgantown, West Virginia. The game was already lost by the time the Jayhawks had returned back to the floor for the second half, but Schneider found this moment to be a good one to teach his struggling team.
The final score Monday night was 73-54 in favor of West Virginia, but Kansas won the second half. It was
"You continue to look at stat sheets. Teams that win have three or four guys in double figures," Schneider said. "Tonight we again only had one player in double figures."
Washington has been the leading scorer all season long.
the second timeout in under a minute that kick-started a half of cleaner basketball.
"We played much better in the second half in terms of team basketball offensively. I thought we shared it much more," Schneider said.
Redshirt-junior guard Jessica Washington, the team's leader, struggled in the first half after not scoring in her last outing against Kansas State. She was frustrated with her own play, but came out of Schneider's timeout fresh. Washington finished the game with 18 points, but didn't receive much help.
Kansas finished the regular season with an 8-21 record (2-16 in Big 12). Its next opponent to start the Big 12 Tournament is Oklahoma State, a team that the Jayhawks have found success against. Last season Schneider got his first Big 12 victory in the first round of the tournament against TCU. He looks to make it out of the first round again, and is prepared for the task.
averaging 17 points per game.
Lack of offensive firepower has been a heavy detriment to Kansas' offense.
"We're not going to turn the corner until we can position ourselves to have more people who can score the ball more," Schneider said.
"We will have to play at a high level in order to give ourselves a chance to win," Schneider said.
Associated Press
Kentucky coach John Calipari addresses official John Higgins during a game against Vanderbilt on Feb. 8.
The game against Oklahoma State will be on March 3.
Associated Press during a
Maicke: Forget the NIT, clear fouls in Big Dance
▶ MIKE MAICKE
@MJ_Maicke
The NCAA is once again calling on its lab rat, the NIT, for another experiment that really shouldn't need testing.
In another episode of clear college basketball rule fixes, the NCAA has decided that maybe — just maybe — it would be a good idea to reset the team fouls at the 10-minute mark in both the first and second half.
I'll take obvious improvements for $100, please.
Sorry die-hard college basketball loyalists and fans of 90 percent of the Big 10, but it appears that a new era is rising. An era where, God willing, both teams are not in the double bonus with 14 minutes left.
If it sounds like college basketball is playing quarters while also playing halves, good job! You've been following along swimmingly so far. If it also sounds like that makes absolutely no sense and that they should just play quarters like every other form of basketball in every level in the civilized world, then you're really onto something.
This weird pseudo-half, more like quarter, style is strange and unnecessary (speaking to the two halves, quarters are absolutely necessary), but at least it's a step in the right direction.
So this is where my true beef comes in.
Why are we "testing" this so obviously needed and inevitably coming change with a tournament that doesn't matter? Why can't the NCAA realize what quite literally anyone with half a basketball-literate mind can understand?
Put this rule into play to tor the real NCAA Tournament. It's not as if these college athletes have never seen a quarter before and would disintegrate upon experiencing such a radical change.
Look, greater Lawrence community, people don't like college basketball anymore. Personally, I'm an all-things-basketball junkie that admittedly far prefers the NBA, but I'll still watch at least two hours of college ball per night, which allows me to see the issues.
According to Fox Sports, ratings for the NCAA championship this past season were down 37 percent.
37 percent! Let that sink in.
I mean really, what was the biggest story of the year in college basketball nationally? A guard on Duke that tripped a few people? A team in the West Coast Conference that won a bunch of games in a row against high school teams?
I can't believe it's not more. Think about it, it's over-coached, over-officiated and horribly set up.
People do not want to see a choppy free-throw filled game with large pauses in the action after the sixth whistle of the half, which typically will come no later than the 12-minute mark.
This isn't a debate for 95 percent of the college basketball-watching world. Make the NCAA tournament fun to watch again: Use the foul reset rule in the Big Dance.
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- Edited by Erin Brock
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