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BASKETBALL Three seniors will play their final basketball game on Sunday, Page 2B ROYALS KC fields replacements, Page 3B
SPORTS
UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
THURSDAY, MARCH 2, 1995
SECTION B
Aycock deserves award
Much of this campus may not know it, but possibly Kansas' best athlete is not on the men's basketball team. Surprised? Don't be.
Kansas senior guard Angela Aycock played her last game in Allen Field House Sunday against Missouri.
Aycock scored the first triple-double of her career, and ...
Nobody was there to see it.
Sure there were 1,406 people to
the fans that did
show up were
probably the
ones that truly
appreciated
Ayvork's effort
SPORTS
EDITOR
But still,
Aycock has done
more
for women's basketball in Kansas in the past four years than many men's players in that same time span. Only 1,400 people Sad
I'm guilty as well. The last time to see this great player and great person put on a show under banners of other great Jayhawk players, and I missed it.
Now, we find out that Aycock has been slighted for the Player of the Year honor in the Big Eight Conference. She leads the conference in scoring, is second in steals and sixth in rebounding. Even with these numbers, Colorado guard Shelley Sheetz was given the award.
There is no question that Sheetz, playing for the No. 3 Buffaloes, is a good player. As point guard, she is second in the league in assists and also averaged 13.2 points a game.
However, the numbers don't lie. Aycock averages 23.7 points, 7.1 rebounds, 3.4 assists and 3.1 steals a game. What else do you want overall from a player? On Sunday, she scored in double-figures for the 26th time this season and the 95th time in her career — that is in 114 career games.
The ridiculousness continues. Some around the media will say that Sheetz deserved the honor because of her four-year career statistics. That argument doesn't hold water. Aycock's career rankings in the conference blow Sheetz away. Aycock is 11 all-time in scoring in the Big Eight, 18th in rebounding and fifth in steals. Sheetz comes nowhere near those rankings.
Aycock was depended on to deliver from the outside, and she did. She has led the team in scoring in 20 of the 27 games this season, and in 10 of those games she has led the team in rebounding.
It could be that many sportswriters looked at how Sheetz contributed to her team and how valuable she was. Some have said that Sheetz's scoring production went down because she was looking to create for other players. That may be true, but Aycock has been the crutch Kansas leans on when the game's at stake. In the Kansas-Connecticut game, the team could not go inside against the Huskies' manmoth frontcourt.
All the reasons given for Sheetz to be the conference Player of the Year are invalid. The biggest reason Aycock was denied in my mind is because she plays for the 23 Kansas, while Sheetz plays for Colorado, undefeated Big Eight Champions.
While the Women's Big Eight Player of the Year may not be on the same level as the Heisman, the principle still applies. Aycock is the best athlete in Kansas and in the conference. It's too bad only 1,406 people know it.
In 1992, Gino Torretta, quarterback for the eventual national champion Miami Hurricanes, was named the best player in college football. He wasn't even the best player in his own state, let alone the nation. But the Hurricanes were ranked No. 1 at the time. That year, Marshall Faulk, the most dominant running back and player in the nation for San Diego State, was slighted.
This kind of thing happens in MVP voting in other sports all the time. The award should go to the most valuable player for any team, not the best player on the best team. The Heisman Trophy is notorious for this.
Paul Kotz / KANSAN
It's no joke; Colorado player beats Kansas women's basketball star forward
Kansas senior forward Angela Aycock won the Big Eight in scoring and rebounds, but was not voted Big Eight player of the year.
Aycock robbed of Player of the Year
By Jenni Carlson Kansan sportswriter
If the situation was a joke, no one was laughing.
Tuesday, Kansas senior forward Angela Aycock was named to the All-Big Eight Conference First Team for the third year. However, Aycock was passed over for the Player of the Year Award. Colorado senior guard Shelley Sheetz was voted the conference's top player.
"She hasn't done anything compared to what Aycock's done," Kansas junior guard Charise Sampson said. "The coaches know who the best player in the conference is. They know why this conference is getting recognized. This is just the biggest loke of all time."
She soon found out it was no joke when asked by a reporter how she felt about not being named the player of the year.
When Aycock walked in late to a press conference yesterday, she had not heard the news.
The news shook Aycock, and she struggled for words.
"I don't know what to say," Aycock said, fighting back her emotions. "It's unbelievable. But I guess what's done is done."
Kansas women's basketball coach Marian Washington said the selection process needed to change. The eight women's basketball coaches in the conference vote by secret ballot for player of the year, newcomer of the year, coach of the year and the all-conference team. Coaches cannot vote for their own players.
Washington said the process was political, and people don't want to admit it or talk about it.
"But we are talking about a young person that's being penalized," she said. "That's not right. Angela Aycock has been such an unbelievable performer for this conference. I can't believe this has happened. This conference should be embarrassed."
The women should adopt a system similar to the men's when awarding their postseason honors, Washington said.
Coaches, players and the media have a hand in selecting the elite male players in the conference. Washington said the Big Eight had come to a point where the media needed to be involved in the women's selection.
Oklahoma women's basketball coach Burl Plunkett said the decision should not depend heavily on the media.
Besides the team they cover, most members of the press see other conference teams play only once or twice. Plunkett said a combined selection process with coaches and the media would included more opinions, though.
"But the current system should be fair," Plunkett said, "unless they use the old buddy system, where one coach says, 'Tell vote for your player if you vote for one of my players later.'"
Nonetheless, Plunkett said Sheetz and Aycock deserved to be named co-clavers of the year.
Sheetz, the Buffaloes' point guard,
has led Colorado to a 24-2 record
and an undefeated 14-0 record in the
Big Eight.
"She is the quarterback for the whole deal," Plunkett said. "She gets the ball where it needs to be."
Aycock's strong statistics made her a quality candidate, too. Plumkett said. She was the Big Eight's top scorer with 23.7 points a game and ranked sixth in rebounds with a 7.1 average.
The Jayhawks' 8-6 record in the Big Eight may have been the deciding factor in choosing Sheetz before Aycock in the player of the year baloting, Plunkett said.
"It would be hard to pick," Plunket said of Aycock and Sheetz. "What does it cost to name them co-players of the year? One more plaque?"
Noah Musser/KANSAN
KANSAS'CLUB SPORTS UPDATE
Club teams start spring season with victories Men's rugby and women's Our all-around play
Men's rugby and women's bowling rank nationally
By Tom Erickson
Kansan sportswriter
The spring season is well underway for club sports teams at Kansas.
Kansas juniors Dan Carl and Danny Lalich each scored two tries in the game with Missouri. A try in rugby is essentially the same as a touchdown in football, Delargy said. Delargy also had four converted tries in the game.
Included in the mix are two nationally-ranked squads. The men's rugby team is No. 8 in the United States Rugby poll and the women's bowling team is currently No. 8 in the IBM Collegiate Bowling rankings.
The Kansas college rugby team has roared out to a 3-1 record so far in the spring season, Matt Delargy, team captain, said. The Jayhawks defeated Missouri last weekend 43-17 and will face Oklahoma this Saturday in Norman.
Michael Fine, contact for the women's bowling team, said the move up in the poll is very exciting for both the team and the school. Several other area teams are also in the poll. The Wichita State men's team is No. 2 and the women are No. 1. Nebraska's men are at No. 4 and the women are at No. 2.
Kansas' club sport success is not just limited to rugby and bowling, however.
The men's ultimate Frisbee team placed first in a 20-team field in the Mardi Gras Tournament last weekend in Baton Rouge, La.
Heinz said the play of senior Aaron Brown was outstanding as well as that of senior Ryan Hartnett, who threw the winning pass in the Florida State game and was voted king of the tournament.
The Jayhawks beat Louisiana State 15-12 in the semifinals and Florida State 15-13 to claim the title.
Kansas' next ultimate game will be in Lawrence on April 1-2 for the April Fools Fest.
A fourth busy club squad is the Kansas roller hockey team. Finding a place to practice has been a big headache for team captain Bill Jensen.
"We've been working with the city, and they said they would give us a place to practice at Edgewood Park," he said. "Right now, it's just a matter of the city removing some poles off the tennis court and filling in some cracks but it has taken too long."
While they wait for their practice court to be ready, the team has been working out two times a week at a roller hockey facility in Kansas City. Mo., Jensen said.
All three of the team's games this year have been against Kansas State. Sunday, the Jayhawks defeated the Wildcats 14-8 at the Garfield Community Center in Topeka. Kansas freshman Cory Spielberg led the team with five goals and Craig Mueller, a graduate student, had three.
Kansas also won its first two games of the season with Kansas State by scores of 11-4 and 9-4, Jensen said.
Any club sport that has information about its games is encouraged to call Tom Erickson, sports-writer at the Kansan, 864-4810.
INTRAMURAL BASKETBALL POLLS
Results for men's, women's and co-recreational intramural basketball teams from Hawks and Hoops, the official newsletter of Kansas intramural basketball
| | Rec | Prev | Pts |
| :--- | :--- | :--- | :--- |
| 1. Z State (8) | 10-1 | 3 | 80 |
| 2. Dog Pound | 11-2 | 1 | 72 |
| 3. Beoger | 9-3 | 2 | 64 |
| 4. Phi Delta Theta A1 | 7-3 | 4 | 56 |
| 5. Addictions | 3-0 | 5 | 44 |
| 6. Delta Chi | 7-3 | 7 | 38 |
| 7. The Aerial Display | 8-1 | 6 | 26 |
| 8. Phi Kappa Psi (Red) | 7-3 | 8 | 24 |
| 9. Zeta Beta Tau | 8-3 | NR | 22 |
| 10. Beta Theta Pi | 9-3 | NR | 20 |
Men's Top 10 for March 1, 1995
Women's Top Five for Feb.15, 1995
Rec Prev
1. 4U2NV 3-0. 1
2. KUVB 3-0. 2
3. The Pearletts 5-1. 3
4. K A. 2-1. 5
T 5. Alpha Gamma Delta 8-4. NR
T 5. Delta Delta Delta 8-4. NR
Co-Rec Top Three for Feb. 15, 1995
Rec Prev
1. Smooth Strokers 3-0. 1
2. The Aerial Display 3-0. 2
3. Mayberry 3-0. NR