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kansan.com
Volume 125 Issue 64
Tuesday, January 29, 2013
COMMENTARY Late night calls in the newsroom
Another game brought another victory for the Kansas men's basketball team. But this time, the number two team in the nation looked far from their best as the Jayhawks escaped Morgantown, W.Va., with a 61-56 victory.
Shortly after the conclusion of the game, The University Daily Kansan newsroom received a phone call. At 10:40 p.m. a middle-aged man from Minnesota called to vent about the game.
The caller complained about the Jayhawks' sloppy passes that lead to costly turnovers late in the game that allowed West Virginia to stay in the game. Even though Kansas shot 54.1 percent, the team's 16 turnovers kept the game close.
The caller continued to gripe emphatically about missed free throws. Kansas is normally a solid free throw shooting team, making 73.7 percent from the free throw line. Last night though, the Jayhawks barely made half of their attempts from the line shooting 52.9 percent.
Even the alternate, all-blue uniforms that Kansas sported received backlash from the caller.
The one thing that bothered him most, though, was this Kansas team's offensive potential.
Sure, the offense clicked at the beginning of the season, but since the Temple game, points haven't come easy for the Jawhaws.
Simply put though, that offensive prowess is still missing.
The most important missing piece for the team though is the killer instinct.
Kansas has a well-rounded lineup so it is only natural for fans to expect the offense to score points at will.
In seven conference games, Kansas has only broken the 30-point barrier by halftime in four of those games. A year ago, the Jayhawks broke 30 points by halftime in their first six conference games.
Kansas has only broken the 70-point barrier once in the past and that was against Iowa State in overtime on Jan. 9 in Allen Fieldhouse.
The Jayhawks usually extend their leads to double-digits at various points in games. The only issue is when the Hawks limp to the end of the game, giving teams hope to stay alive with 10 minutes or less in the game.
Yes, Kansas has been efficient from the field. Senior guard Travis Releford has continued to put up points for the Jayhawks shooting seven of nine from the field.
The caller and fans have every right to be angry after that sloppy performance, but a team has to learn to win when playing its worst. Thanks for the call.
Kansas already leads the conference in field goal percentage—the they were shooting 49 percent as a team going into the West Virginia game. Cut down the turnovers and that number can rise.
Oh, and just like any Bill Self coached team, this group of Jayhawks has the ability to shut down opposing offenses. The Kansas defense has held 14 of its opponents in the last 20 games under 60 points while Jayhawks lead the nation in field goal percentage defense at 34.9 percent
But just imagine when Kansas solves its offensive problems. Watch out.
Edited by Hannah Wise
POWER THROUGH
The Jayhawks extend their 18-game winning streak with a Big Monday victory
KANSAS 61, WEST VIRGINIA 56
Senior center Jeff Withey dunks the ball in the first half of Monday nights game. Withey had 15 points in the first-ever match between these two teams, which ended with a 61-56 victory for the lavwhaws
TYLER ROSTE/KANSAN
With the Jayhawks leading West Virginia 61-56, Mountaineer guard Juwan Staten drove into the lane for a layup with 17 seconds left. Withey blocked it.
West Virginia recovered the loose ball and got it to center Aaric Murray for another shot attempt with 13 seconds left.
GEOFFREY CALVERT
ccalvert@kansan.com
Withey blocked it again, his fourth and final block of the night. Senior guard Travis Releford corralled the loose ball and ran out the clock, lifting the No. 2 Jayhawks to 19-1 and 7-0 in Big 12 play.
MORGANTOWN, W.Va. — Never has the Withey Block Party meant so much to Kansas.
"They did an up screen and I thought No. 24 was going to pick and pop and shoot the three because that's what he was doing all game," Witty said of Murray.
"That was the first time kind of all game that a guard was in the paint where I could block the shot, so I blocked it," Withey said. "He got the ball back, threw it to the big guy and I was quick enough to be able to get there and block it again."
The Mountaineer fans were strategically grouped into sections depending on the blue or gold shirts they wore. Two fans held large cardboard cutout faces of the game's announcer, Brent Musburger, and Alabama quarterback A.J. McCarran's girlfriend, Katherine Webb, whom Musburger fawned over during the BCS National Championship last month. One fan was decked head-to-toe in a Pikachu costume.
When Staten drove the ball, Withey jumped into action.
The West Virginia crowd was pumped about its first ever matchup with Kansas, the newly-minted No. 1 team in the USA Today Coaches' Poll and the second-ranked team in the Associated Press poll.
"I enjoyed it," Releford said. "I like how the crowd is low, we get to see them and hear them. It's fun when we go to opponents' places and get the crowd into it and just take over a game."
The crowd nearly saw what they came for, as the Mountaineers threatened to take the lead nearly the entire second half before the
Jayhawks finally closed them out.
Some of the Mountaineers' best shots came from some of the most unlikely sources.
West Virginia's 6-foot-10 Murray entered the contest 6-20 from three-point range. He went 3-5 from behind the arc against Kansas and finished with 17 points.
Forward Kevin Noreen made one of his two three-point attempts, only his fourth three-pointer of the year.
Kansas could've survived those unlikely blushes with ease. But it made its own life hard with careless turnovers and a spotty performance from the free throw line.
"If you make your free throws, it turns out to be a pretty good, at least visually, a much better game," Self said. "If we make our free throws the first half, we could've probably scored 44, 45 the first half."
The Jayhawks turned the ball over 16 times, while West Virginia committed only nine turnovers. Seven of Kansas' turnovers came in the second half, while the Mountainers only turned the ball over twice in the second period.
"It was just guys just speed up, making boneheaded plays." Releford said. "That's about it. Give credit to them. They pressured, they pressured out high on the guards and stuff. That kind of got us sped up and turned us over a bunch."
The layhawks got to the free throw line more than twice as much as the Mountaineers did. But while West Virginia converted 12-15 free throws, Kansas hit only 18-34. In the final two minutes, Kansas made only four of its eight free throw attempts, with three of those misses coming from its guards.
In one stretch of the first half, Kansas turned the ball over on four straight possessions. Another turnover resulted in a Mountaineer layup before the halftime buzzer to trim Kansas' lead to 38-30.
"We're going to have to learn some lessons through losing, or we're going to have to mature, and hopefully, we can learn them through maybe escaping and so far we haven't learned them yet," coach Bill Self said.
Edited by Madison Schultz
Men's basketball rankings released Jan. 28
ASSOCIATED PRESS TOP 10
Kansas second in latest AP poll
1. Michigan (51)
2. Kansas (13)
3. Indiana
4. Florida (1)
5. Duke
6. Syracuse
7. Gonzaga
8. Arizona
9. Butler
10. Oregon
Pr EI ec
COACHES POLL
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