THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 29, 2008
SPORTS
7B
AT A GLANCE
Hilton Coliseum isn't a friendly place for visiting teams. Sure, the Cyclones are just 3-4 at home in conference games, but three of those losses were to ranked teams. No. 8 Baylor, No. 10 Oklahoma and No. 21 Kansas State all barely escaped Ames, winning by an average of just 3.7 points. Kansas will need to be at the top of its game to beat Iowa State, and that's bad news for a team that limps in on a three game losing streak. Freshman center Krysten Boogaard needs to recapture the fire and focus that helped her record 20 points and 12 rebounds in the Jayhawks' Feb. 2 victory against the Cyclones.
QUESTION MARK
Can Kansas out-score Iowa state in the second half?
In 14 Big 12 games, the Jayhawks scored more than their opponent in the second half only twice. In the other 12 games they tied in the second half once and were outscored the remaining 11 halves, sometimes by as much as 16. Kansas is good at getting halftime leads of 4 to 8 points but that really doesn't matter when they're great at letting an opponent go on big second-half runs. Coach Bonnie Henrickson should bring in Gene Hackman to give a "Hoosiers"-like halftime speech to get her team fired up, or else figure out how to consistently get 20-point halftime leads.
JAYHAWKS HEAD TO IOWA Kansas will have to keep up intensity in second half KANSAS AT IOWA STATE, 1:00 p.m., Ames, Iowa
McCray
Danielle McCray, 5-foot-11 sophomore guard
15.0, pp. 7.4 pp
McCray recorded her sixth double-double of the year Wednesday night, but she'll probably most remember the game for her charging foul with a chance to tie the game and 13 seconds on the clock. Still, McCray is on a tear of late — during the last five games she's averaging 18 points and 8.4 rebounds per game — and shouldn't have any trouble getting 20 points
Iowa State (17-10,6-8)
Alison Lacey 6-foot sophomore guard <14.3 ppg, 40 percent 3PT
and shouldn't have any to against the Cyclone defense.
Lacey is the engine that drives the Cyclones. She is a tough, physical guard that has no qualms about mixing it up in the lane, on dribble penetration or stepping back and draining shots from behind the arc. In the first game with Kansas, Lacey led Iowa State with 23 points and hit four three pointers. If the Cyclones are to win, she will have to carry much of the load.
Jacobs
LaChelda Jacobs, 5-foot-10 sophomore guard
— 5.3 ppg, 52 percent shooting Jacobs slashed and cut her way to eight points on 4-for-4 shooting against Texas, displaying the play-making ability that's earned her more minutes lately. She still has turnover troubles but it seems almost everyone on the team shares in that plight. The Jayhawks simply look like a better team with her on the court.
Nicollette Smith, 6-foot-2 freshman forward
Smith
- 6.5 ppg,34 percent 3PT
Against the Longhorns, Smith was a paltry 1-of-5 from beyond the threepoint line. However, each of those misses went about halfway down the basket before rattling back out. She needs to keep up her confidence and continue firing treys until they start dropping, which shouldn't take too long.
Lacey
Kelsey Bolte 6-foot-1 freshman guard
< 10.3 ppg, 5.4 rpg
Bolte will be a star in the Big 12 Conference for the next three seasons. Not only does she have the size to rebound, but Bolte shoots 41 percent from three point range and 48 percent from the field. She is as efficient as they come. Her 1 for 5 performance from behind the arc against Kansas was a fluke, but it may have cost Iowa State the game as they lost by only three. Odds are she will find her touch in Ames.
Bolte
Heather Ezell 5-foot-9 junior guard
> 9.6 pcp, 3.1 ap
Taylor Bern
Ezell is the quintessential glue player. She makes the tough plays, is smart defensively and makes her free throws. Most good teams have a player like her, and if the Cyclones hadn't lost most of their firepower in the paint to injuries, this season could be much different. She is second on the team in assists, and can handle the ball should Lacey find herself in foul trouble.
Ezell
LaChelda Jacobs
—Andrew Wiebe
ISU
TIPOFF
AT A GLANCE
Without junior forward Nicky Wieben the Cyclones have been forced to rely almost completely on their perimeter players to provide offensive punch. Fortunately that punch is fairly potent and Iowa State has managed to pull together enough to win six conference games, most surprisingly at Oklahoma State. A narrow loss to the Jayhawks in early February doesn't mean much at this point with a game to be played in the always rowdy Hilton Coliseum.
QUESTION MARK
Can the Cyclones capitalize on home court advantage?
The Jahwaks may have won 53-50 in Allen Fieldhouse, but a trip to Ames is never easy. Iowa State lost to Baylor by five a week ago, and Kansas isn't playing at the same level it was when the two first met. The Cyclones also boast one of the most boisterous crowds in the country. The Hilton Coliseum is packed with an average of more than 9,000 fans for every Cyclone home game.
INTRAMURALS
Playoffs heat up competition White Ben Can't Jump defeats Team Johnson 57-48
BY WHITNEY HAMILTON
whamilton@kansan.com
There might be 16 more days until Selection Sunday for the NCAA, but things have already begun heating up in the Student Recreation Fitness Center on Wednesday night. Team Johnson and White Ben Can't Jump battled it out to get closer to the championship game.
With a nine-point lead, White Ben Can't Jump took home the 57-48 victory against Team Johnson.
Both teams played strong defense, caught rebounds when necessary and communicated to help teammates. Team Johnson had tight passes, but balls bounced off the rim instead of going through the net.
White Ben Can't Jump's ability to shoot three-pointers helped in awkward spots behind the line. Throughout the night, Sam Simpson, Columbus freshman, shot multiple three-pointers to help his team.
The tiredness of both teams quickly showed as the second half started. During free throws, both teams had time to catch a breath before getting back into the competitive game.
The second half allowed White Ben Can't Jump to take a big lead. Some nice low passing and an assist from Anthony Roberts, Baxter Springs freshman, to Kevin James, Springfield, Mo., junior, gave White Ben Can't Jump two more points to add to its score. However, before White Ben Can't Jump got too comfortable with the lead, Team Johnson quickly responded and tied up the score at 36.
As the second half ended, both teams took a quick water break and reevaluated game plans. White Ben Can't Jump led 24-21, and with the score so close, it was anybody's game.
Turnovers hurt both teams as players made careless mistakes or got trapped by the opponent. Also, foul calls made members of both
teams angry at the referees. Each team thought the fouls were either not fair or should have been called.
"We got gypped on calls," said Tarek Shaath, Dodge City freshman and Team Johnson player.
Getting the rebound after a foul shot gave White Men Can't Jump a chance to shoot from the outside. Roberts found an opening on the wing and scored a three-pointer that barely touched the net.
As the game continued, Team Johnson started to up the ante and stayed on top of its opponent. Simpson got trapped in the right corner a couple of times and had to pass the ball blindly to teammates.
Team Johnson attempted to distract its opponent by yelling during shots, but that didn't seem to help.
Team Johnson player, said. "We're not winning the national championship or anything."
With two minutes left in the game, Team Johnson received three consecutive foul calls on different players, hurting its chances for a comeback. Bench players for White Ben Can't Jump cheered from the sidelines.
"We went out there and just played and had fun," Zach Olsen, Madison, Wisc., freshman and
"We didn't want to foul or turn over the ball," Robb Lamb, Republic, Mo., junior and White Ben Can't Jump player, said. "We wanted to be smart with the ball."
As the seconds ticked, it became apparent who was winning the game, but each team continued to play hard until the end. White Ben Can't Jump advanced to the next game in the playoffs and will play Team Lego today.
Edited by Patrick De Oliveira
WHEELER (CONTINUED FROM 1B)
One student even chose to become a Kansas fan as part of a sibling rivalry.
"I've been a fan since my senior year when I got accepted and my brother decided to go to K-State, I was like, 'Eww, I will never be a Wildcat,' Kristin Brokenbough, Olathe sophomore, said.
As of Monday, there were 87 camping groups, which can have a maximum of 30 people. Many of these camping groups had odd names such as "I love lamp," or "The Sean Hamilton Experience." Not surprisingly, there were a number of groups with explicit names not fit for print, many of which were directed toward Kansas State.
For anyone who isn't camping, questions must certainly arise as to what on Earth entices these students to wait so long for a game. Some people may question whether these students even go to class, have lives or take care of their studies. But for some students, camping out is a good time to work on their studies.
"It's like a study hall," Miller said. "I like coming here because I actually get stuff done."
Some come with a particular interest in where they sit as well.
"I'm not a fan of the band side because it's really loud there," said Wilfred. "I'm going to try and sit by the players' bench. It's awesome, you like get to see player's sweat dripping
Some groups just want to make sure they get a seat in the bleachers.
down."
"We've been camping since Wednesday," Kim Ferguson, Lawrence freshman, said. "I don't think we'll be front row, but that's OK. I think we'll probably be in the middle section somewhere, hopefully."
Come Saturday, the students currently waiting inside the walls of the fieldhouse will enter into "the Phog" and fill the bleachers of the student section. They may not have had to pay a hefty fee for tickets, monetarily speaking, but these student campers have paid their dues.
- Edited by Sam Lamb
presented by THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN