NSAN
THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
THURSDAY, JANUARY 24, 2013
PAGE 3B
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KANSAS TIPOFF
AT A GLANCE
The Jayhawks defense has been the difference maker in the last four games for Kansas as the offense continues to work through its slump. Kansas has held opponents to less than 60 points during that stretch but has struggled to score 60 itself. There were some encouraging signs against Kansas State (45 percent shooting), but it's not all clicking just yet.
PLAYER TO WATCH
Perry Ellis, Forward
Ellis has been
Linus has been riding a large wave of confidence through Kansas' last three games, combing for 18 points and 17 rebounds. He has provided a nice option for coach
Ellis
Bill Self off the bench and has seen his minutes increase recently. He's due for a breakout game.
What will it take for the offense to return to its most productive level?
QUESTION MARK
Kansas coach Bill Self has used a variety of lineups, but it doesn't seem like he's found the right formula yet. Keeping Ben McLemore and Jef Withey out of foul trouble will certainly help.
BY THE NUMBERS
21
Jeff Withey (78) has 21 blocks more than Oklahoma Sooners (57)
17
Naadir Tharpe has hit 17 of his 50 three-point attempts
37
KANSAS
(17-1, 5-0)
STARTERS
Withey
JEFF WITHEY. CENTER
Withey recorded his seventh double-double of the season at Kansas State with 11 points and 10 rebounds. Defensively, Withey's dominance of the paint had a large part in the Jayhawks' forcing the Wildcats to take 30 attempts behind the arc.
Johnson
Phog set to host 800th game Kansas aims to stay unbeaten in conference play NO.3 KANSAS VS. OKLAHOMA 3 P.M., ALLEN FIELD HOUSE, LAWRENCE
ELIJAH JOHNSON, GUARD
Kansas State didn't get to see Johnson at his best, but he certainly bounced back from his 1-11 shooting performance at Texas. The Jayhawks point guard scored eight points and grabbed four boards against the Wildcats. Johnson also continues to be effective at getting the ball to freshman Ben McLemore.
Releford
One of the best defenders in college basketball lived up to his title Tuesday in Manhattan. Reifel forced K-State's Rodney McGrudor into taking nine of his 12 shots from three. The senior would also go on to score 12 points for the fourth time in five games.
McLemore
TRAVIS RELEFORD. GUARD
BEN MCLEMORE. GUARD
Kansas' best pro prospect continues to impress. McLemore caught off another 11 points against K-State and rattled up with two blocks in transition. McLemore has now scored in double figures in 16 of Kansas' 18 matches, averaging 16.1 points. The freshman tossed up just seven field goals due to foul trouble. That should be the only reason he shoots that few again.
It was definitely a game to forget for Kevin Young on Tuesday. Kansas' energy spark was a bit fried going 1-6 from the field and having trouble finishing at the rim. Yet he's proven to be in key game stretches and gets good looks in the paint.
KEVIN YOUNG, POSITION
Young
Blake Schuster and Geoffrey Calvert
STARTERS
(13-4,4-1)
JE'LON HORNBEAK GUARD
Hornbeak has scored only 10 points in the Sooners' past three games and is averaging only 4.4 points per game during conference play. The freshman doesn't do anything especially poorly, but it's clear he is still adjusting to Division I basketball. The four-star recruit is second on the team with 19 steals on the season, and his 1.0 assist-to-turnover ratio is second among Oklahoma starters and fourth on the team overall.
Hornbeak
BUDDY HIELD, GUARD
Hield
Dennom has been in the discussion for National Player of the Year for most of the season and is a near shoe-in for first team All-Big 12. He averages 17.2 points per game, good enough for fourth in the Big 12. He's had three 30-point games this season. Dennom is the biggest offensive weapon for Tiger coach Frank Haith, but he isn't immune to an off-night, finishing with six points in two Big 12 games.
★★★☆☆
STEVEN PLEDGER, GUARD
The older brother of Phil, Matt Pressey transferred to Missouri from Navarro Community College before last season. He's started every game for the Tigers but is on the team in scoring with just 7.7 pointer per game. Pressey struggles to shoot the ball with consistency, coming into the game at 39.1 percent from the field and 31.5 percent from behind the three-point line.
Pledger
ROMERO OSBY. FORWARD
English is having a much better year than last season, when his offensive numbers saw considerable drop-offs across the board. His scoring is back to 14.1 points per game, like it was his sophomore season. He is consistently shooting more than 50 percent for the first time in his career. His three-point shooting is nearly 50 percent as well, and with more than 100 three-pointers taken, the number isn't a fluke.
Osby
★★★☆
AMATH M'BAYE. FORWARD
Rattife is the only forward in Missouri's starting five. He leads the nation in field goal percentage with 75.1 percent. He isn't a volume shooter, with just three conference games with double-digit shot attempts.
M'Bave
OKLAHOMA
TIPOFF
QU
AT A GLANCE
After three sub - .500 seasons, Oklahoma is in position to halt its slide from the Big 12's upper elcower with its 13-4 record. Second-year coach Lon Kruger is a proven winner, with 507 career victories, 13 NCAA Tournament appearances and a Final Four with Florida in 1994. Kruger coached Kansas State from 1986-1990 and took UNLV to the NCAA Tournament four times in his final five seasons in Las Vegas before accepting the Oklahoma job. The Sooners have won six of their past seven games, but lost a head-scorcher to Stephen F. Austin in Norman, Okla. in mid-December.
PLAYER TO WATCH
Romero Osby, Forward
Osby
The senior has led Oklahoma in scoring its past five games, averaging 19.2 points during that span.
The 6-foot-8 Osby is one of the best free throw shooting big men
in the conference at 82 percent and has been to the charity stripe twice as often as any other Sooner. Look for him to use his 232-pound frame to try and bully Jeff Withey and Kevin Young down low instead of going straight up into Withey's taller frame.
QUESTION MARK
Which Steven Spledger will show up?
507-324
The senior is the Sooners' most experienced player, but he is scoring five points per game fewer than he did his junior campaign. He hasn't scored more than 12 points during conference play. But he led Oklahoma in scoring in the final three outings before conference play began, including games of 17 and 18 points. Osby will get his points, and either M'Bare or Hield will likely score in double figures as well. But if Oklahoma wants to pull off the almost mystical Allen Fieldhouse upset, it must get production from another player. Pledger is the best candidate.
BY THE NUMBERS
Lon Kruger's career head coaching record, with stops at Texas Pan-American, Kansas State, Florida, Illinois, UNLV and Oklahoma.
The number of three-point field goals Oklahoma makes per game, ninth in the Big 12.
4.76
3
Consecutive losing seasons for the Sooners after 28 straight winning seasons.
BABY JAY WILL WEEP IF...
Everything goes completely wrong. The Sooners are firmly entrenched in the middle of the Big 12 in every statistical category except free throw percentage, where they are second. Along with a loss to Stephen F. Austin, Oklahoma beat 10-8 Oral Roberts by one point and 11-6 Northwestern State by four points. If Kansas can overwhelm Osby inside, Oklahoma should have no chance to win. If Osby scores a career high, the game could stay way more interesting that it ever needed to be. But even that might not be enough.