4B
KU 75-CU 46
THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 15. 2007
VICTORY (CONTINUED FROM 1B)
Jayhawks's passes became sloppier and their defensive coverage looser. The result was an eight-point game with three minutes to play. A time-out by coach Bill Self and a passionate lecture was enough to trigger a 9-1 run to close the half, putting the game out of Colorado's reach.
"We were really balanced tonight, but Russell set the tone for us," Self said.
Robinson wasn't the only one to step up big. Junior forward Darnell Jackson also had a big night, logging his time because junior center Sasha Kaen entered foul trouble in the game's first minutes. Self sent Kaun a message by leaving him on the bench to start the second half. He responded when entering the game by pulling down three rebounds and finishing an alley oop.
The team didn't suffer in Kaun's absence thanks to the play of jackson, who picked up 17 minutes of court time and continued a stretch of good play that began against Texas A&M.
"He's just doing a great job of playing to his strengths," Self said. "He's got more juice than he's had in a long time, I think."
Jackson attributed his play to a renewed focus on rebounding and defense. He said he's been able to block out a back injury that bothered him at the start of the year and focus on the game.
"Now I'm taking care of myself, so I don't have to worry about that," he said.
The play of Jackson and Robinson will be a welcome addition to a team that is now in a tie for first place in the Big 12 with Texas A&M, who lost Tuesday night.
A&M lost to Texas Tech as the Jayhawks were boarding a bus to their hotel in Boulder. The players were watching the game refresh on their cell phone screens, and even coach Self joined the players in a scream of excitement when the Aggies lost.
"It's a good feeling" Kaun said,
"But we have a lot of games left."
Kansan senior sportswriter Michael Phillips can be contacted at mphillips@kansan.com.
Edited by Mark Vierthaler
Robinson
top three players
> Russell Robinson led all Jayhawk scorers with 14 points off 6-of-9 shooting in 28 minutes. Robinson also had a gamehigh six assists.
Jackson
> Darnell Jackson had a team-high 11 rebounds and two monster blocks against the Buffaloes.
> Sasha Kaun had an efficient night overall. Kaun scored 10 points, had nine rebounds, one assist and four blocks. Kaun also tallied only two fouls.
Kansas 75, Colorado 46
3837-75
2224-46
Kansas Colorado
FIELD GOALS
Kansas: Wright 3-6-2-2, Kaun 4-6-2-3, Robinson 6-9-0-1-4, Chalmer 3-6-1-2,
Rush 3-10-0-0-7, Arthur 5-11-1-3,11 Jackson 2-5-3-5, Stewart 1-1-0-3, Case 0-2-
0-0, Morningstar 1-1-0-3, Jackson 2-6-0-5, Kleinmann 0-0-0-0,
Totals 30-3.9-18-75
**Colorado:** Williams-6 2-6-3 3-7, Jackson-Wilson-3 8-0 1-6, King-Stockton-0 5-2-4 2,
Coleman-2 5-9-3 7, Thorne-1 5-1-2 3, Silas-13 3-4 11, Roby-3 9-1-3 7, Kowal-0
0-0 0, Bay-1 4-0 1 3.
Totals 15 11-5 13-2 46.
RECORDS
Kansas 22-4 (9-2 Big 12)
Colorado 6-15 (2-9 Big 12)
Attendance: 6,608
Above photo: Mario Chalmers, sophomore guard, throws out a leg in an attempt to block the ball from reaching a Colorado player. Chalmers had eight total points helping the Jayhawks defeat the Buffalo, 75-46.
Amanda Sellers/KANSAN
Photo at right: Sherron Collins, freshman guard, drives into Colorado for jeremy Williams, to shoot a layup. Collins had seven total points and three rebounds for the jawkaws.
Amanda Sellers/KANSAN
FIRST ALF: NETHER队 did much from three-point range, with Kansas going 6- of 17 and Colorado going 3- of 16. The Buffalo didn't come from inside the arc, either, shooting only 30 percent from the field.