4B
KU 89 - ISU 52
the university daily KASAN
MONDAY, FEBRUARY 26, 2007
Anna Faltermeyer/KANSAN
Sophomore forward Julian Wright goes up for a basket in the first half of the game against Iowa State Saturday. Wright finished the game with 12 points and eight rebounds.
"I hadn't really thought much about that," Kansas coach Bill Self said. "Florida getting beat, to me, is still a No. I need if it doesn't get beat the rest of the way."
BASKETBALL (CONTINUED FROM 1B)
Self might have given the Gators credit, but he didn't dispel the notion of his team getting the highest seed for the NCAA Tournament.
"All we need to do is go play well Monday," he said. "Then, I think a lot of things will happen in the next two weeks. Only one team wins each tournament, so there's going to be some losses."
Regardless of what happened to other teams, Kansas played like a No. 1 seed in its quick, methodical drubbing of Iowa State.
The Jawhays forced six turnovers to race out to an insurmountable 20-4 lead at the 9:39 mark. Their psky defense bothered the Cyclones throughout the entire game. Kansas led Iowa State 41-15 at half, held it to under 33 percent shooting and stole the ball 14 times during the game. It was an improvement from the first time the two teams met. The Jawhays needed overtime to bury the Cyclones that game and only had two steals.
"We didn't want that to happen again," freshman forward Darrell Arthur said. "We just came out hungry and played together."
Offensively, Kansas put together another balanced performance. Sophimore guard Mario Chalmers led six players in double digits with 18 points. By causing turnovers and running after defensive rebounds, the lavwhaws forced a quick tempo.
Earlier in the season, Self might have been reluctant to allow so much offensive freedom. Now, he is more
Kansas 89, Iowa State 52
Iowa State 15 37 — 52
Kansas 41 48 — 89
** Iowa State — Johnson 2-11 2-13**
* 3:16 Clark 2-2-2 7; Hubalek 3-10
* 0-1-6; McIntosh 1-2-5 7; Taylor
* 3-10-0 7; Dunson 3-7 0-0 8;
Jacobson 1-2-0 0-3; Currie 1-0-1 0;
Ceaser 0-0-0 0-0; Gray 0-3-0 0;
Johnson 2-5 1-2 6; Bergstrom
0-0-0 0; Marsden 0-0-0 0; Streff
0-0-0 0; Smith 1-2-0 2; Totals
18-5 10-15 52.
content to sit back and let his players retewel he on the offensive end.
"I trust our guys," he said. "I think they feel more confident with what we're trying to do and can make their own adjustments on the fly. Our confidence level is pretty good right now."
That's obvious when looking at how dominant Kansas has been since a Feb. 3 loss to Texas A&M. In the six games since then, the layawks are bludgeoning opponents by an average of more than 27 points per game. Their last four opponents have shot less than 33 percent, and three of those scored less than 50 points.
While blowing out other teams is never a bad thing, it could prove detrimental when Kansas is in the NCAA Tournament. The Jayhawks will be playing more competitive teams, and games will likely be decided in the game's last five minutes, rather than the first five.
"From a coach's perspective, you'd like to have a nice balance," Self said. "In a perfect world, wed play more close games. But the reality of it is
**Kansas** — Wright 6-8 10-12
Kaun 5-7-0-10 Collins 4-9-2-4
12; Chalmers 6-9-4-18 Rush
2-8-0-10 Arthur 6-13 3-5 15;
Stewart 1-4-0-2; Bechard 0-0-0-0;
Morningstar 1-1-0-1; Jackson
3-6-4-10; Witersonps 0-0-0-0;
Kleimmann 1-2-0-2; Totals 35-67
13-21 89.
Records — Iowa State 14-14,
5-9 Big 12 Conference, Kansas
25-4, 12-2.
we're playing pretty well right now. If we keep playing well like this, we'll play well down the stretch"
The layhawks might get the opportunity to play a close game down the stretch against the Oklahoma Sooners tonight and again against the Texas Longhorns on Saturday. Winning those two games would continue to increase the layhawks' chances of earning a No. 1 seed. For now, Self said his team was focused on each individual game, not about what was going on around the country.
Sophomore forward Julian Wright said if the team did that, the best was vet to come.
"I hope we were not at the top," Wright said. "Were getting much better and playing more loose. We like the way we were playing."
Kansan sportswriter Mark Dent can be contacted at mdent@kansan.com.
big 12 standings
- Edited by Darla Slipke
1. Kansas 12-2, 25-4
4. Kansas State 9-5,20-9
2. Texas A&M 12-2, 24-4
5. Texas Tech 7-7,18-11
3. Texas 11-3,21-7
6. Missouri 6-8,17-10
6. Oklahoma 6-8.15-12
8. Nebraska 5-8,16-11
8. Oklahoma State 5-8,19-9
10. Iowa State 5-9,14-14
11. Baylor 3-11, 13-14
12. Colorado 2-12,6-18
1st Half
Amanda Sellers/KANSAN
Michael Phillips/KANSAN
2nd Half
The Jayhawks dominated the paint throughout the game, allowing the Cyclones just three layup attempts. Iowa State didn't have much of a shooting touch early, making just 5 of 28 shots. The Jayhawks made 60 percent of their three-pointers, making them almost as effective from behind the arc as they were from the free-throw line (61 percent). The Cyclones made a respectable 67 percent of their free throws on Saturday, just 4 percent below their season average. Shot chart information compiled by KU Athletics.
Sophomore center Matt Kleinmann tosse up a shot past two Iowa State defenders during the second half of Saturday's game. Kansas held on to a solid lead in the second half, which allowed for more action from bench players. Kleinmann had two points for the lancers.
Top 3 Players
Chalmers
Arthur
Sophomore guard Mario Chalmers scored a game-high 18 points, grabbed seven rebounds and dished out three assists.
Freshman forward Darrell Arthur scored 15 points and grabbed a game-high 11 rebounds, including seven offensive boards.
Sophomore forward Julian Wright scored 12 points off 6-for-8 shooting and pulled down eight rebounds.
Wright
14
et in the fi