'Hawks look to hook'em Kansas can win the Big 12 Conference outright with a victory against Texas, who comes to town Saturday.
FRIDAY, MARCH 2, 2007 WWW.KANSAN.COM
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THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
SPORTS
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KANSAS VS. TEXAS, 11 A.M. SATURDAY, ALLEN FIELDHOUSE
Can Durant make his own miracle?
Texas star draws comparisons to Kansas' legendary champion
BY MICHAEL PHILLIPS
ASSOCIATED PRESS
When Danny Manning led the layhawks to the NCAA title in 1988, he became the measuring stick for players who carry their team to greatness.
KANSAN FILE PHOTO
It's taken 19 years, but Texas phenom Kevin Durant might be the player to take the baton from Manning and establish a new standard for greatness in college basketball. The difference? Durant is an 18-year-old freshman.
Anybody who is even remotely associated with college basketball is taking a turn heaping praise on Durant. Kansas coach Bill Self said he would be the best player in the conference — before he ever stepped onto the court in Austin.
In 1988, Danny Manning led Kansas to its latest NCAA Championship. Can Texas' Kevin Durant, who is only a freshman, do the same for the Longhorns? So far he has averaged 24.7 points per game and has led his team to two victory vietnamese against OSU and TEXAS &M.
"I think he's hands down the best player in the country, and probably the best freshman to ever have played, and probably the most talented college player in the last 30 years." Self said. "Name one senior more talented than this guy"
Manning agrees, citing some of his childhood idols for comparison.
The best
"I like Oscar Robertson, Magic Johnson and Larry Bird," he said. "Kevin Durant is definitely in that echelon."
"I said to him, 'Look. I don't want you to think that our success or failure is on you.'" Barnes said. "I was probably saying that to make him relax, because I didn't believe it for one second."
Early in the conference schedule, as the national spotlight began to shine on Durant, he went into coach Rick Barnes' office to talk about the pressure. Barnes tried to calm the freshman's nerves.
Durant is dangerous because he can dominate the game in several different ways. At 6-foot-9, he towers over opponents and leads the team in blocks. But he also has the
versatility of a smaller player, and leads the team in steals.
Even with all that, he's known for his scoring ability. He's averaging almost 25 points per game, and a graph of those shots wouldn't reveal any pattern. He can thunderdunk from under the basket, swish a hook shot from outside the paint and make three-point shots that drop the jaws of NBA players.
Not that he'll tell you that, though. He hanged his chest after hitting a key three-pointer Wednesday night.
"He told me, 'Coach, I don't want it to be about me. I have great teammates, and they deserve as much attention as I'm getting right now,'" Barnes said.
which is about as much as he'll ever be seen hyping himself up. Talking to Barnes after the Villanova game, he questioned why the focus was on him.
It's now rare to get Durant to agree to an interview, and when he does, he uses it as a platform to praise his teammates. When a
Danny Manning vs. Kevin Durant
Kevin Durant's 2006-07 season is almost statistically identical to Danny Manning's 1987-88 season. Here's a look at how the two years stack up.
Danny Manning vs. Kevin Durant
Height 6-foot-10 6-foot-9
Position forward/center guard/forward
Points per game 24.8 24.7
Most points in a game 39 37
Minutes per game 35 34
Rebounds per game 9 11.3
national sports magazine wanted Durant for its cover, it ended up with Durant and his teammates. But that doesn't stop other Big 12
coaches from singling him out for praise.
SEE MANNING ON PAGE 2B
Durant dominates conference history
BY DREW DAVISON
BY DREW DAVISON
KANSAN COLUMNIST
DDAVISON@KANSAN.COM
March is finally here. The one month most college students dream of, from March Madness to spring break to spring training, has arrived. It is, without a doubt, the best month of the year.
Saturday, the layhawks can start the month off right by winning the Big 12 regular season outright.
Coach Bill Self has high hopes for the game. He said Thursday that he expected it to be one of the best atmospheres since held been at Kansas. Self wants it to be at the top of his list, up there with Michigan State in 2003, and Oklahoma State and Georgia Tech in 2005.
While the students will pack into the Fieldhouse and cheer on the Hawks, there is one player that can take away the regular season title: Texas Kevin Durant.
This isn't to knock on Texas guard D.J. Augustin, who is having a great year, too. But Durant is the one guy who creates match-up problems for Kansas, as well as every team he's faced.
Self said sophomore forward Julian Wright would have the tall order of guarding Durant, at least to start. Wright is agile and athletic enough to guard Durant in the low post and on the perimeter.
But the more interesting match-up would be putting freshman forward Darrell Arthur on Durant. That is, if Arthur stays out of foul trouble. Arthur is more physical down low and may be able to force Durant to take bad shots. But who an I kidding? Kansas should just hope to contain Durant with whomever it can
The stats Durant averages are ridiculous; 25 points, 12 rebounds, 48 percent from the field and 41 percent from three-point range. This is unheard of, especially in the Big 12, where stat lines for forwards usually
SEE DAVISON ON PAGE 2B
BORDER WAR
Late-game layup finalizes last victory
BY ASHER FUSCO
COLUMBIA, Mo. — With 56 seconds remaining in the game, Taylor McIntosh found herself in unfamiliar territory: the junior forward had the ball in her hands with the game on the line. McIntosh clutch layup broke a tie and helped propel the Jayhawks to a 70-66 victory against Missouri.
After leading comfortably for most of the game, Kansas took control of the ball with just more than one minute remaining and the game tied at 64. Freshman guard Kelly Kohn drove hard to her right and dribbed past the defender. As Kohn approached the basket, several Missouri players attempted to wedge themselves between her and the hoop. With nowhere else to turn, she effortlessly dished the ball to
McIntosh, who was standing alone in front of the rim.
McIntosh's basket gave her 17 points, a career high. She made 8 of 10 field goals and pulled down five rebounds. McIntosh's assertiveness on the offensive end is a welcome change from the passive tendencies she often displayed earlier in the season. Despite her 50 percent field goal shooting, McIntosh rarely demanded the ball and infrequently attacked the boo.
"We talked about Kelly taking a pull-up jumper," coach Bonnie Henrickson said. "But Taylor was begging for the ball in the lane. Kelly made an unselfish read and a great pass."
"I know I've been struggling
SEE WOMEN'S BASKETBALL ON PAGE 7B
Jon Goering/KANSAN
Sade Morris, freshman forward, reverses the ball at the top of the key. The Jayhawks defeated Missouri 70-66 in the game of the regular season.
BASEBALL
Fifth time's a charm?
Season opener rescheduled for Saturday
This spring, Jayhawk baseball just isn't Jayhawk baseball without a little weather interference, and the Western Illinois series didn't break the trend.
BY ALISSA BAUER
On Thursday, Kansas pushed back the start of its home opener for the fifth time. The Western Illinois series, slated to start Saturday and finish with a double-header Sunday, has been changed. The double-header Sunday at Hoghund Ballpark still stands, but the series will wrap up Monday afternoon. Nevertheless, Kansas (7-5) is determined to finally get a game in at home. Four straight
"The most important thing is we need to get outside on our field and be able to take batting practice on our field and have live hitters on our field in addition to the series — and play a home game," coach Ritch Price said. "There's no doubt about that."
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losses followed the cancellation of the North Dakota State series two weeks ago.
Canceling the North Dakota series left an 11-day hole without a single game. Although Price and his team firmly agreed that the extended break is behind them
SEE BASEBALL ON PAGE 2B
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