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SPORTS MONDAY, APRIL 5, 2010 / THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN / KANSAN.COM
ROWING
Jayhawks halt Wildcats 12-8 in Kansas Cup
BY ETHAN PADWAY
epadway@kansan.com
Weston White/KANSAN
Members of Kansas' First Varsity Eight team compete in the Kansas Cup at Wyndotte County Lake Saturday morning. Kansas finished five seconds behind Kansas State for their only loss to the Wildcats Kansas won the Cup overall 12-8.
The rowing team notched its first victory of the season over rival Kansas State in the Kansas Cup on Saturday. The Jayhawks won every event except for the first Varsity Eight-boat to win 12-8. The stars of the race were the rowers in the first Varsity Four-boat, who blew past their Kansas State Varsity Four opponents by a whopping 31.6 seconds. The key for them was getting off to a quick start.
"All week long we really worked on our starts to make sure that we had the first four strokes down and then a nice push right off," senior Brittany Belford said. "I guess getting ahead helped keep us ahead."
The race that clinched the Kansas Cup on Senior Day was the Second Varsity Eight's narrow victory over the Wildcats — a race that the Jayhawks won by less than four seconds.
"It was inspiring to know that if our boat won the race then we would win the Kansas Cup," junior Julia Guard said. "That motivated us at the end when we were down three or four seats with 500 meters to go."
The victory was a huge confidence boost to a team that started its season earlier than usual so they could be better prepared when the Big 12 Championships roll around.
Weston White/KANSAN
"I thought the team performed well, especially the young kids," coach Rob Catloth said. "We won the Kansas Cup as a team and had a solid performance. You get a lot of confidence winning a team event, confidence as a team."
Bellford agreed about the advantages gained from starting the season earlier.
Weston White/KANSAN
"It's helped so much," Belford said. "Getting those first four races in Oklahoma City down and under our belt really gave us the experience to know what to work and where we need to push during the race."
Next up for the Jayhawks are races next weekend in Pennsylvania against Old Dominion, Rhode Island and Bucknell.
Edited by Kelly Gibson
Members of Kansas Second Varyity Eight team compete in the Kansas Cup at Wandotte County Lake Saturday morning. The Varyity Eight team finished the 2,002 meter course at 7:12.8 minutes.
See more photos from the meet at kansan.com/photos/galleries.
Kansas rover Allison Able pulls back on the ore during the Second Varity Eight race Saturday morning. Kansas defeated Kansas State 12-8 to take home the Kansas Cup.
Watch video of the rowing team at kansan.com/videos.
Weston White/KANSAN
Kansas rower Megan Boxberger cool down after the team locked onto the dock. Kansas defeated Kansas State to win the Cup 12-8 Saturday morning at Wyndowtte County Lake.
With fans in the sellout crowd greeting him with a standing ovation, Durant promised before the game that the playoff berth was "only the beginning" for the Thunder. Oklahoma City has more than doubled its win total after going 23-59 last season and moved within 1½ games of the four teams tied for second place in the West by winning for the sixth time in the last seven games.
The victory also kept the Thunder in sixth place, with a one-game cushion over San Antonio.
Despite a hot start, the Thunder could hardly relax against the last-place Timberwolves.
- including jumpers on three straight possessions down the stretch to push the Thunder's lead to 110-96 and ice the game.
OKLAHOMA CITY — Kevin Durant scored 40 points to break the franchise record for scoring in a season and the Oklahoma City Thunder fought off a spirited charge by the Minnesota Timberwolves for a 116-108 victory on Sunday night.
Minnesota closed a 24-point deficit to nine in the third quarter as the Thunder missed 16 of their first 20 shots.
Russell Westbrook added 10 points and a career-best 16 assists, Jeff Green had 16 points and 10 rebounds and Nenad Krctic scored 14 points
Less than 24 hours after clinching the franchise's first playoff berth in five years, the Thunder built a 25-point lead in the first half, but then had to hang on as Minnesota moved back within six in the final 10 minutes.
Ryan Gomes scored 20 of his 22 points in the second half to lead Minnesota's comeback bid. Jonny Flynn also finished with 22 as the Timberwolves lost for the 24th time in their last 26 games.
Durant hit a jumper and then threw down a two-handed alley-oop jam with 5 minutes left to restore Oklahoma City's lead to double digits and break the franchise scoring record in the process.
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Durant, Thunder fight off T-Wolves
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NBA
NCAA TOURNAMENT
Butler, Stevens far from Cinderella
MCCLATCHY-TRIBUNE
INDIANAPOLIS — On a nearly 10-hour flight to Italy, where Butler played four exhibition games in August, coach Brad Stevens passed time reading about a colleague. The book was "The Gold Standard" by Duke coach Mike Krzyezwi, detailing his Olympic coaching experience and ability to build a team.
So the 33-year-old Stevens meant it quite literally Sunday when he said of veteran coaches, "They write books and I get to read them."
Stevens' coaching blueprint will be valuable now as the second-youngest coach to compete for an NCAA men's basketball championship. The season climax takes place Monday when Butler (33-4), a fifth seed, faces Duke (34-5), a No. 1 seed, for the title in Lucas Oil Household, only a few miles from
The Blue Devils have been to the NCAA title game nine times and won it three times. Duke is a perennial power with 34 tournament appearances.
The NCAA could not have pitted two teams with more polar public perceptions: Blue blood versus new blood.
The program has produced 33 All-Americans and nine national players of the year. Duke was the only No.1 seed to advance to the Final Four this season. A bigger Goliath is hard to find. As Duke guard Nolan Smith said of a potential triumph, "I can be part of the hated tradition."
Butler never had made it to the Final Four. The Bulldogs only chartered three flights before the tournament began. Its home arena of Hinkle Fieldhouse, used to film parts of the movie "Hoosiers," is
more famous than any player.
"If that's what the story is going to be, we'll accept that," sophomore swingman Gordon Hayward said. Perception, of course, isn't always reality.
Although a No. 5 seed has never won the championship — No. 8 Villanova's 1985 victory over Georgetown was the classic Cinderella saga — Butler is far from a group of scrappy scrubs.
The Bulldogs have won 25 straight and knocked off the likes of Syracuse, Kansas State and Michigan State in the tournament. No tournament team has scored 60 points on Butler's stonewall defense.
"When I look at Brad, I say, 'How far ahead is he from where I was?' Krzyzewski said. "He's a much better coach. He's already established himself. I was in the midst of trying to figure out who the heck I was."
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