SPORTS
SOFTBALL TEAM PICKS UP FIVE VICTORIES
THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
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WOMEN'S BASKETBALL FACES EVANSVILLE
WWW.KANSAN.COM
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MONDAY, MARCH 24, 2008
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MARCH MADNESS
SWEET VICTORY
Senior forward Darmell Jackson yells in celebration during the first half of Kansas' game against the University of Nevada Las Vegas Saturday night. The Jayhawks defeated the Runnin' 75-56. They advance to the Sweet 16 with the win.
Jon Goering/KANSAN
"Five-game" helps Jayhawks run past Rebels, 75-56
BY MARK DENT mdent@kansan.com
OMAHA, Neb. — Joe Darger, UNLV's tallest starter, stood at 6-foot-7. Oh, and he preferred shooting threes to banging in the paint.
Seniors Darnell Jackson, Sasha Kaun and sophomore Darrell Arthur wouldn't admit it, but they had to have been drooling. Those guys were almost that tall in middle school.
"We thought wed play big," Kansas coach Bill Self said.
It just didn't happen. The Jayhawks beat the University of Nevada Las Vegas 75-56 on Saturday at the Qwest Center, pulling away when they started using a smaller, four-guard lineup in the second half. The victory moved
"We take pride in games like this, where guards have to step up and make big plays."
Kansas into the Sweet 16, where it will play Villanova on Friday in Detroit.
SHERRON COLLINS Sophomore guard
By the 10:55 mark of the second half, Kaun, Arthur and Jackson all had at least three fouls. They had combined for a measly 18 points. The inside game wasn't working as planned. Kansas led 50-42 but showed no signs of putting UNLV away. Outside shots weren't falling. The Runnin' Rebels' Wink Adams kept getting to the foul line.
Robinson also got an important boost of confidence. He scored 13 points for the game and scored on a three-pointer and a drive to the basket during the stretch Kansas used to pull away. In the previous four games, he'd scored just 12 points combined. As Robinson walked into the locker room with Collins afterward, he told him how much he needed a game like this.
"You can't get scared at this point, but we were a little concerned," senior guard Russell Robinson said. "We didn't crack them like we wanted to, and we knew they weren't going to go away."
Something needed to change. It was time for "five-game," KU's name for its smaller offense that features four perimeter players. Self saw that UNLV's big men didn't post up much, so replacing a post player with a guard wouldn't hurt the defense. And hey, no offense to the Rebels' guards, but sophomore guard Sherron Collins knew he and his teammates were much faster.
Collins wanted a good one, too. He didn't even practice Friday because of a sore left
“五-game” seemed like a perfect option, and it was. With Collins, Robinson, Brandon Rush and Mario Chalmers on the floor at the same time, Kansas pulled away, outscoring UNLV 15-7 in a seven-minute stretch.
"I thought wed be able to get the ball inside more than we did," Robinson said. "But we didn't. We adjusted. The main thing is we got the win."
knee and still wore a brace. The injury limited him slightly, but he finished with 10 points and one killer crossover.
"Midway through the second half," Self said about Collins and Robinson, "it was those two's game."
The four-guard line-up worked,but don't expect it to become a
staple next week in the Sweet 16. Saturdays game gave Self more confidence to use it, but "five-game" is usually called on when the team needs to mix things up, the big guys are in foul trouble or the other team lacks a major post presence.
Collins is one Jayhawk who wouldn't mind running with Rush, Robinson and Chalmers more often.
"We take pride in games like this," he said, "where guards have to step up and make big plays."
The Wildcats, an 11-seed, didn't expect to advance to the second weekend in Detroit. The Jayhawks did.
No postgame celebration took place in the locker room afterwards. The players showered and answered questions from the media. Chalmers folded a piece of paper on Robinson's head while he was on camera, and several other players joked with each other. That was about as far as the iow went.
WOMEN'S BASKETBALL
The Sweet 16 is old news. Jeremy Case, a fifth-year senior, has been there three times now. He wants more.
"We're happy to be in the Sweet 16," Case said, "but we're supposed to be there. We felt like that at the beginning of the year. Our main goal is to get to the Final Four. We're happy but not satisfied."
— Edited by Daniel Reyes
Jayhawks look forward to another Fieldhouse game
Kansas meets Evansville at home in second round of WNIT games
BY TAYLOR BERN
tbern@kansan.com
For the second time in three years Kansas will play host to a game in the Women's National Invitation Tournament.
Tonight at 7 p.m. Kansas meets Evansville in the second round of the WNIT. The
received a first round bye while the Purple Aces advanced
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Check out "The Give'n Go,"Taylor Bern and Andrew Wiebe's podcast.
to the second round with a 60-58 victory against Southeast Missouri on Thursday.
"No matter what happens these kids are excited about the opportunity," coach Bonnie Henrickson said. "Their intensity and effort in practice has been great."
Kansas last took to the court on March 12 in Kansas City when it fell 82-62 to Oklahoma State in the second round of the Big 12 Tournament.
"I'm excited just to play again and try
McIntosh also said that her team enjoyed having a week and a half in between games to focus on themselves.
to redeem that loss," senior forward Taylor McIntosh said.
On the flip side, Henrickson can see how the Purple Aces may come into the game with a little more confidence.
Either way, the Jayhawks believe that the game will be decided on the defensive end.
the advantage is that they played and had success and feel awfully good about themselves coming back from being down 17," Henrickson said.
"I think for them.
"Defensively we've
said. "If you watch that game and then the Oklahoma State game we looked like two different teams within 24 hours."
Henrickson is also looking to use Kansas' size advantage by getting freshman center Krysten Boogaard involved early and letting new starting point guard LaChelda Jacobs use her play-making ability.
Defensively we've got to turn up the pressure, try and create some offense from our defense and then be able to dominate the boards," Henrickson said.
"It's going to be a great atmosphere for us to play in and we're going to have a lot of fun with it."
LACHELDA JACOBS Kansas point guard
"I think we need to be as good defensively as we were against Nebraska (on March 11), just play with a lot of energy." McIntosh
Jacobs quickness allows her to do several things for the Kansas offense.
"It comes from me just being aggressive on the offensive end and looking up and finding my teammates," Jacobs said.
This season Allen Fieldhouse has provided comfort rarely found on the road for
the jayhawks. That's why they're especially excited to get this game at home.
"It's going to be a great atmosphere for us to play in and we're going to have a lot of fun with it," Jacobs said.
Edited by Sasha Roe
Jon Goering/KANSAN
Kansas will play on their home court against Evansville in the Women's National Invitation Tournament at 7 p.m.
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