8B
GAME DAY
THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
KU
TIP-OFF
WHAT'S AT STAKE?
A No.1 seed in the NCAA tournament is probably out of the Jayhawks reach unless some big-name teams (UCLA, Florida and North Carolina to name a few) start tanking down the stretch. A two seed is fully achievable, though, and if Kansas can stay undefeated through the Big 12 championship game, there's a good chance that they'll find themselves in that spot. That should be motivation enough for the Jayhawks, who don't want to risk running into a first-round opponent that has an NBA player.
STAR WATCH
Sophomore forward Julian Wright is the emotional center
of the team,
as the players
often feed
off of his big
plays. Against
Iowa State.
he'll have the
opportunity to do
pledge of maneuvering both inside and outside the paint — as long as he keeps himself out of foul trouble.
QUESTION MARK
WILL THE JAYHAWKS BE
LOOSE?
That's the word coach Bill Self used to describe them going into last Saturday's game against Nebraska, saying they had a sloppy practice the day before. Iowa State is a better team than Nebraska, and an overtime game in Ames should scare the Jayhawks into playing hard on Saturday.
3 REASONS KILL WINS
ONE — Depth. The Jayhawks have Darrell Arthur and Darrell Jackson sitting on the bench. The three could start for the Cyclones. Now with Russell Robinson hurt and Sherron Collins taking his starting spot, the Jayhawks have less depth, but still more than Iowa State.
TWO — They're on a mission. The players really want to win the Big 12 regular-season title, and have been following Texas A&M's every move. They aren't going to do anything that would mess up that up now.
THREE — An odd start time. Five p.m.? Nobody plays basketball then. While the Cyclones are thinking about dinner, the Jayhawks will be throwing up alley-oops.
LIFE IN THE FAST LANE
Kansas to speed up tempo with Collins in starting lineup
KANSAS VS IOWA STATE 5 p.m. Saturday, Allen Fieldhouse, ESPN
Kansas 24-4,11-2 Big 12
OFFENSE
The Jayhawks hottest offensive player won't enter the starting lineup until the first timeout. Freshman guard Sherron Collins doesn't just have a hot shooting touch right now, he's also come up big in both games against Kansas State and Missouri.
In Ames the Cyclones took advantage of a Jayhawk offense that wasn't clicking early, but late in the game sophomore guard Brandon Rush stepped up and carried the team to victory. A sluggish offense hasn't been a problem for the Jayhawks in recent games, as they have turned in some of their highest points totals of the season.
DEFENSE
All season long the Kansas defense has been spectacular, and there's no reason to think that won't continue against the Cyclones. When March rolls around, the Jayhawks will depend on that defense to take advantage of fatigued teams and create turnovers with pressure.
One question mark has been the on-and-off play of the big men, who have struggled with foul trouble and "playing soft." Coach Bill Self now has answers for both these problems on the bench. Freshman forward Darrell Arthur has stayed out of foul trouble recently, and junior forward Darnell Jackson provides the attitude that Self is looking for in the paint.
Iowa State 14-13,5-8
OFFENSE
MOMENTUM
Mike Taylor is a gunner. He can score, but he shoots the ball from anywhere at anytime. The thing is, that's the only way Iowa State can score. No one else on the team is a true threat. The Cyclones' offensive ineptness is best illustrated by their most recent game: a 55-53 home victory against Colorado. That's right Colorado. No team had scored less than 60 points against the Buffaloes this entire season. Iowa State's best chance to score against Kansas will be from the outside. In the teams' first matchup, the Cyclones made 10 three-pointers.
DEFENSE
For a Saturday afternoon game against Nebraska, students took their time filing into Allen Field-house, and never seemed to be fully engaged in a blowout game. Expect the same thing on Saturday, as Iowa State isn't the marquee opponent that Jayhawk fans get excited about this time of year. The only danger is that the players feel the same way and show up "loose" to the game. Even if they do, it's nothing that can't be overcome with a good halftime tongue lashing from the coach. Expect the Jayhawks to win by at least 15.
The Cyclones do a good job of slowing games down and turning them into a grind it out affair. They did this against the Jayhaws the first time they played and had success. Since then, Kansas has improved against teams such as these and proved it could win a slow game Monday against Kansas State. The Cyclones tried some zone defense the first time these teams played and had success. Kansas, however, has gotten better against the zone as the
eason has progressed and won't be afeffected nearly as much by a zone, Iowa State will not have nearly as much defensive success this time, and Kansas will likely force a fast tempo.
MOMENTUM
It's hard to believe that this team started conference play 2-0 and took Kansas to overtime in early January. Since then nothing has gone right for the Cyclones. They are a mediocre team, just like everyone thought they would in the preseason. This year isn't a total waste. Other than a loss at Colorado, Iowa State has won every game that it was supposed to. Plus, it scored a good upset at Missouri earlier this year. Greg McDermott is an excellent coach and has quality young talent in place. Next
chance to finish in the top half of the Big 12 and compete for a berth in the NCAA Tournament. But this season is already over. The Cyclones don't have a prayer Saturday against the Jayhawks.
ISU TIP-OFF
WHAT'S AT STAKE?
Nothing, Iowa State is not going to be playing in the NCAA Tournament or the NIT. The Cyclones just need to come out and hard and hope Kansas doesn't punish them as badly as they did Nebraska last week. The more minutes for Iowa State's young players the better. They are the ones who need experience against top competition such as Kansas.
STAR WATCH
Freshman forward Wesley Johnson has gotten lost amid all the other spectacular Big 12
is a lock for the conference all-freshmen team. Johnson averages 12.5 points per game and only Kevin Durant averages more
Johnson
rebounds per game in the Big 12. Johnson, Cory Johnson and Dodie Dunson are three freshmen who have made a significant contribution for the Cyclones this season.
QUESTION MARK
CAN IOWA STATE PROTECT THE BALL?
The first time these teams played the Cyclones only had 10 turnovers. This prevent Kansas from fast-breaking and opening up the game. The Jayhawks play best when they are running. They struggled somewhat against the slower pace of Kansas State on Monday. If Iowa State does this Saturday, it can keep the game close.
3 REASONS ISU WINS
ONE — Wesley Johnson. Johnson is capable of scoring 30 points any given game. Mike Taylor scored 21 points the first time the teams played, but he had several ill-advised shots. He also turned the ball over four times. If he goes off, it could be enough for his team to pull the major upset.
TWO — Iowa State makes it self at home in Allen Fieldhouse. Maybe it's been a while, but Iowa State knows how to win in Lawrence. It won here in 2000, 2001 and 2005. Jiri Hubalek is the only main contributor who has won at Allen Fieldhouse, but the Cyclones know from history that it is not impossible to win in Lawrence.
THREE — A Kansas off-day Kansas has been playing better than it has all season. Iowa State's only real hope is for the Jayhawks to get full of themselves and come out flat.
JAYHAWK STATS
| Player | Avg. Min. | FG-FGA | 3FG-3FGA | FT-FTA | Avg. Pts |
| :--- | :--- | :--- | :--- | :--- | :--- |
| Brandon Rush | 32.0 | 139-318 | 53-131 | 64-94 | 14.1 |
| Julian Wright | 27.3 | 132-247 | 3-11 | 58-89 | 11.6 |
| Mario Chalmers | 28.9 | 112-239 | 41-112 | 54-69 | 11.4 |
| Darrell Arthur | 20.1 | 125-229 | 0-4 | 52-78 | 10.8 |
| Sherron Collins | 21.5 | 102-194 | 39-90 | 36-47 | 10.0 |
| Russell Robinson | 28.3 | 58-137 | 17-57 | 52-77 | 6.6 |
| Sasha Kaun | 17.0 | 66-122 | 0-0 | 20-42 | 6.1 |
| Darnell Jackson | 15.0 | 54-94 | 0-0 | 48-73 | 5.6 |
| Brady Morningstar | 5.9 | 10-21 | 3-7 | 4-4 | 2.3 |
| Jeremy Case | 5.5 | 10-26 | 7-22 | 1-1 | 1.8 |
| Matt Kleinmann | 4.7 | 4-7 | 0-0 | 3-4 | 0.8 |
| Rodrick Stewart | 5.8 | 6-20 | 5-10 | 1-8 | 0.8 |
| Brennan Bechard | 1.9 | 1-2 | 1-2 | 0-0 | 0.3 |
| Brad Witherspoon | 1.6 | 1-6 | 0-2 | 0-0 | 0.3 |
KEY MATCH-UP
Rush
Brandon Rush 6'6"210 vs. Mike Taylor 6'2"165
Taylor
In the last few minutes of the first game between Kansas and Iowa State, Rush started guarding Taylor. He held him in check down the stretch and helped lead Kansas to an overtime victory. Rush probably won't defend Taylor for the entire game tomorrow. But if Taylor heats up, expect Rush to start guarding him. Also be sure to check how Rush performs offensively. He shot poorly against Kansas State and will want to redeem himself.
CYCLONE STATS
| Player | Avg. Min. | FG-FGA | 3FG-3FGA | FT-FTA | Avg. Pts. |
| :--- | :--- | :--- | :--- | :--- | :--- |
| Mike Taylor | 33.6 | 149-397 | 68-189 | 80-115 | 16.5 |
| Wesley Johnson | 31.9 | 121-267 | 27-89 | 57-76 | 12.1 |
| Jiri Hubalek | 24.1 | 93-204 | 7-21 | 45-67 | 11.3 |
| Rahshon Clark | 29.1 | 68-176 | 15-62 | 28-43 | 6.6 |
| Dodie Dunson | 22.6 | 44-132 | 25-86 | 26-31 | 5.1 |
| Cory Johnson | 12.2 | 39-72 | 5-9 | 27-43 | 4.6 |
| Corey McIntosh | 23.0 | 31-89 | 7-23 | 40-51 | 4.0 |
| Jessan Gray | 12.7 | 41-88 | 8-22 | 12-21 | 3.8 |
| Brock Jacobson | 6.8 | 9-37 | 9-36 | 4-5 | 1.4 |
| Ross Marsden | 9.0 | 9-13 | 1-1 | 1-4 | 1.1 |
| Mark Currie | 3.7 | 5-9 | 3-6 | 0-0 | 1.0 |
| Chris Ceaser | 6.9 | 2-7 | 2-4 | 0-0 | 0.5 |
| Mike Smith | 2.8 | 1-5 | 0-0 | 1-2 | 0.5 |
| Jeff Bergstrom | 2.7 | 1-2 | 0-0 | 1-1 | 0.4 |
| Dustin Streff | 2.7 | 1-3 | 0-0 | 0-1 | 0.3 |