Volume 125 Issue 65
kansan.com
But for now, the question is: How is Kansas the number two team in the country when its play is so pedestrian?
Edited by Madison Schultz
Kansas will get better. There's not too much question about that. Its offense will improve and its defense will stout stug.
COMMENTARY
Kansas' ugly basketball keeps winning
But that doesn't mean it's not art. It's just not good art. It's not art that's nice to see or makes you smile as you look at it.
This is the art that makes you scratch your head and wonder how the hell it's hanging in a gallery.
The answer: Everyone else keeps losing and Kansas keeps winning.
Basketball is a sport that can paint such a pretty picture when played well, and the oh-so-talented Jayhawks have a knack for throwing mud on that picture.
However, anyone that watched the Jayhawks squeak past West Virginia 61-56 on Monday, or the slumber-filled 67-54 victory over Oklahoma Saturday or even the 59-55 bruising win over Kansas State will tell you that there is no way that the Jayhawks deserve the No. 1. ranking. Not yet, at least.
That's how it's happening. That's how the jayhawks' gradual rise in the rankings has landed Kansas basketball with a claim to be America's No. 1 team.
DAUNTING DEFENSE
But it hasn't been pretty, you say. Well, fortunately for the Jayhawks, there are no stipulations for winning ugly. Kansas is not penalized for its sloppy play as long as another win is recorded.
Kansas currently holds a slim margin in the No. 1 spot in the Coaches' poll, but in the AP poll, Kansas is squately in second place — a more fitting home for the lavwhacks.
Kansas winning its first seven conference games is a result of a weak Big 12 conference this season. The conference isn't terrible by any means — it's just mediocre this season, especially compared to years past. In both the AP and Coaches' polls, the Big 12 only has two ranked teams: Kansas and Kansas State.
Normally, making 23 field goals and scoring 64 points in Austin against Texas will result in a loss for Kansas. Not this year. Normally games against Kansas State and Baylor require the Jayhawks" "A" game to get the win. Those games normally flaunt the potential that Bill Self teams so often have. Not this year.
This year, the Jayhawks have been able to get by playing their "B" or "C" game and forcing teams to play down to their level. You can credit the Jayhawks for forcing other teams play poorly. They deserve that credit.
Senior center Jeff Withey goes for the block during the second half of the match against Oregon State Nov. 30, 2012 inside the Sprint Center in Kansas City, Mo. The Jayhawks' defense has been the hallmark of the team's ability to continue its nation-leading 18-game winning streak, despite inconsistent offensive production.
TRAVIS YOUNG/KANSAN FILE PHOTO
ENDLESS STRUGGLE
Kansas keeps winning streak alive despite inconsistent offense
RYAN MCCARTHY
rmccarthy@kansan.com
After taking a step back and reexamining Kansas' win over West Virginia, it appears there are a few positives to take away from a 61-56 victory.
For starters, the Jayhawks extended the nation's longest winning streak to 18 games.
Although the streak helps distract many followers of the program from the offensive problems, it's another number that the Jayhawks do not look at on a daily basis.
"None of us is really even paying attention to it," senior guard Travis Releford said. "We hear it on ESPN but that's it. We don't sit in the locker room and put pressure on ourselves about it because we know
it's a long season so we're not too worried about it."
Releford was one of the more dependable players for Kansas in Monday night's matchup, where he filled out a stat sheet with 15 points, four rebounds, four assists and two steals.
Although Kansas struggled on the road in all four conference games, coach Bill Self will never apologize for a victory away from Allen Fieldhouse.
"Hey, you look across America, there's a lot of teams out there that would give anything to be 5-0 on the road," Self said. "There's hardly anybody in America's done that with the schedule we played. We shouldn't make any excuses for winning games away from home."
The Jayhawks also managed one
solid half from senior center Jeff Withey, who took advantage of his matchup with senior forward Deniz Kilicil. Withey finished the first 20 minutes with 13 points.
and so we didn't really shoot the ball too much". Withey said. "I just knew that I didn't want them to score. They kind of drove right at me so I just blocked it and then had another opportunity to block it and didn't really think too much."
"Jeff was good the first half, but second half..." Self said. "You know he's a good free throw shooter, he shot 80 percent last year or right at it and he's probably shooting in the fifties this year or low sixties, so we can improve that and he will improve that—but I thought Jeff played pretty well."
"Well he wasn't in the game the first half," Self said. "Picks up two bad foul, I mean two obvious fouls the first half that doesn't have anything to do with the play. Second half he did OK but he was never plugged in and that's what we have to do a better job of for him, but a lot of that was Ben tonight. Ben
The other major contributor of the night was freshman guard Ben McLemore. Regardless of his early foul trouble, he converted six free throw attempts and ended up with 13 points.
Withey managed to block four shots against Kilici. He also realized his performance on the defensive end was essential, especially after the laj Hawks guards struggled to take care of the ball throughout the game.
"We turned the ball over a lot
didn't have his best game."
The jayhawks' performance in conference play hasn't been pretty
conference play hasn't been pretty. The growing frustration for the lack of scoring and the struggles of offensive consistency appear to concern the Jayhawk faithful.
But it's late January, not March, and the Kansas players have an understanding of that.
"The beginning of the season coach broke down the season," Releford said. "He told us we were going to have bad games. And out of all those bad games, we got to win them. And the key to winning the Big 12 is winning on the road: So ugly or not, it's plays we going are to watch on film, but he's happy overall on the win."
WOMEN'S BASKETBALL
Jayhawks aim to improve rebounding
Edited by Brian Sisk
1
NATHAN FORDYCE
nfordyce@kansan.com
Compete on the glass. Thats what's written on Kansas coach Bonnie Henrickson's practice notes as priority number one.
Lately, the Jayhawks haven't been able to secure rebounds on the defensive side. The offensive rebounds that the Jayhawk defense has given up have been the difference between victory and defeatand losses.
Even though it's reiterated before and after every game, nothing is done about rebounding. The team gets tired of hearing the same thing; compete on the glass.
"Our rebounds have to change," sophomore guard Natalie Knight said. "And like Coach Bonnie says, it's only going to change when we get tired of it. I'm pretty sure we've gotten tired of it."
In the Wednesday matchup against the No. 23 Iowa State Cyclones, rebounding will affect the game more than almost any other game for the Jayhawks this season.
The Cyclones are one of the best rebounding teams in the Big 12. The Cyclones have out rebounded or equaled their opponents in 16 of the team's 18 games.
Iowa State senior forward Chelsea Poppens, the Big 12's leading offensive rebounder with 403 career offensive glass. This year, Poppens is averaging 8.9 total rebounds per game.
In the Jayhawks last game against Oklahoma State, the rebounding margin led to the Jayhawks failing to capitalize on a victory. The Cowgirls out-rebounded the Jayhawks 15 to eight on the offensive glass.
"It's a bigger emphasis and we know we can lose the game if we don't," senior forward Carolyn Davis said. "We always talk about even if you don't get it, you can't let your man get it."
"You look at the disparity on the offensive rebounds and turnovers, it was like 15 possessions against a quality team," Henrickson said.
With Poppens leading the charge on the glass, the jayhawks face a personal battle of maintaining defensive integrity after the shot is up.
"It's a shared responsibility," Henrickson said. "If it was one guy, I'd sub that guy out. But it's a collectiveness and get better on the offensive side. We have to compete on the boards on both ends of the floor."
Henrickson was quick to point out that the change in rebounding isn't a one-man-fix-it problem, but rather a complete team effort.
On the season, Christofferson
Alongside Poppins in the front-court is junior forward Hallie Christofferson. In her last four games, she averaged 17.5 points and 7.5 rebounds all the while shooting 66.7 percent from the field, 58.3 percent from behind the arc and is a perfect 11-for-11 from the free-throw line.
The Cyclones are 14-4 on the season and post a 5-3 record in the Big 12. As the Jayhawks keep seeing Ls instead of Ws, the sense of urgency for a team that was supposed to be one of the top teams in the Big 12 could start s.
Christofferson and Poppens are set up by one of the best guards in the Big 12 in sophomore guard Nikki Moody. Moody leads the Big 12 in assists, and is ranked third nationally.
is averaging 14.6 points per game,
which is eighth in the Big 12.
The layhawks have lost two of three at home and are 1-4 in their last five games. But even with the sliding record, Davis said the layhawks aren't panicking about anything.
"We're not panicked, we're just concerned." Davis said. "We're concerned that we keep making the same mistakes. We're concerned we're losing the same way.
"We don't want to dwell on the last loss because we can't get it back. We just have to learn from that and keep moving forward."
But everything comes back to winning the battle on the glass. Even with Henrickson making the team run extra during practice and stressing it night in and night out, the number one priority will continue to be to compete on the glass.
"It drives me insane, it keeps me up at night," Henrickson said.
Edited by Trevor Graff
TARA BRYANT/KANSAN
Senior guard Angel Goodrich focuses on an Oklahoma State player's next move in Saturday's game at Allen Fieldhouse.