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DEPAUL 64 - KU 57
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THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
MONDAY, DECEMBER 4, 2006
Brandon Rush lacks leadership on,off court
When NBA scouts watch a game, they usually focus on a small handful of players to watch. For Kansas, one of those players is always Brandon Rush.
During Saturday's 64-57 loss, Rush was easy to miss, even if you were looking for him. The sophomore guard had a disappointing game, sure. But he also had a disappointing leadership performance.
Much is expected of Rush. He was a highly touted recruit who clearly has aspirations of playing at the next level. He has more athletic ability than anybody else on the Kansas team. He can hit clutch shots and defend anybody in America, but he has often proved unwilling to take the team on his shoulders.
Saturday he finished a disap pointing 1-for-7 shooting.
"He had numerous opportunities to, he just couldn't get anything good to happen," coach Bill Self said. "He missed an uncontested layup to start the second half, and if you just get one of those to go down, maybe he could get a little confidence."
Rush shouldn't just be getting confidence for himself, he needs to be projecting it to the team. He can't count on showing up in March and taking the leadership role.
After Kansas struggled against Ball State, the Jayhawks had a players-only meeting at their hotel. All the players attended, but junior guard Russell Robinson and sophomore forward Julian Wright led the meeting. If Rush doesn't lead the team off the court, he can't lead the team on the court.
Come crunch time on Saturday, it was Wright fighting to the basket and Robinson taking the key three-point shots. It's no surprise that the coaches would draw up the plays for those two, because the other players respect them.
Rush took only one shot in the final five minutes. It was a free throw, and it didn't go in.
The Jayhawks can win without Rush, and that's something that Self needs to let him know. If he continues to flounder — both in shooting percentage and leadership — he should be sent to the bench and used as a sixman.
Leadership isn't something that comes naturally, and Rush has always had problems being assertive and taking shots. In practice, he has to run on a treadmill every time he passes up a good shot.
After Saturday's game, he said that he missed "a couple layups and a lot of wide open shots." He can overcome his shooting woes; that's something even the best shooters go through. But if he wants to be a star in the NBA, he's going to have to learn how to be a leader.
Home bittersweet home
It's not on the stat sheets, but the scouts are still keeping score.
Edited by Kristen Jarboe
Chicago natives Wright, Collins perform below average
Phillips is a Wichita senior in journalism.
BY SHAWN SHROYER
ROSEMONT, III. — Saturday was supposed to be a cheery homecoming for Julian Wright and Sherron Collins.
They were supposed to return from their old stomping grounds with a sixth-straight W' under their belt.
But the fans parading onto the court after the game weren't congratulating Wright or Collins. They were celebrating DePaul's 64-57 upset of No. 5 Kansas.
Chicago, didn't post the kind of stats they had been so far this season, many of their highlights came when they were in the lineup together.
"As cool as it was to come home, I wanted to leave here with a win."
"It was probably too soon for Sherron, but pretty good timing for Julian," Self said.
For a six-minute stretch in the first half and about four minutes in
"As cool as it
JULIAN WRIGHT Sophomore forward
As cool as it was to come home, I wanted to leave here with a win." Wright said.
Wright and Collins, Kansas' sophomore forward and freshman guard, wanted to win so badly in front of the hometown crowd that coach Bill Self noticed they were uptight at the beginning of the game.
Although Wright, who attended Homewood-Flossmor High in Chicago Heights, Ill., and Collins, who attended Crane High in
the second half,
Chicagoans got to see their native sons on the court together as Jayhawks.
Neither found much success on offense in the first half, but they did help.
In the second half, their offensive production picked up and put Kansas in position to pull away.
Wright's dunk six minutes into the second half gave Kansas a 14-point lead, its largest of the game. The last three minutes they were in the lineup together, they combined for five points. Collins' three-point
contain the DePaul offense. Wright had two blocks and Collins had three defensive rebounds while playing together in the first half.
shot put Kansas up by nine, and two Wright free throws stretched Kansas' lead to 10. but that was the furthest it would go in the final 10 minutes.
For the game, Wright and Collins combined for 17 points, which is three below their combined season average, but what Kansas missed most was Wright's rebounding.
Collins, the shortest player on the Kansas roster, had five rebounds to match Wright, who had been averaging nine per game. Without Wright dominating the boards, Kansas was out-rebounded for the first time all season, 35-30.
The game was also a homecoming of sorts for Self, who coached in Illinois for three years at the University of Illinois, but he viewed the game as an opportunity to let his players return home.
Junior guard Russell Robinson and Will Walker collide as they chase a loose ball during the first half of Saturday's against defaulter in Roseville, IL.
"We want to recruit here, and if you are fortunate enough to get a good player from the area, you want to at least give them an opportunity to go home," Self said.
Kansan sportswriter Shawn Shroyer can be contacted at sshroyer@ kansan.com.
Jeff Roberson/ASSOCIATED PRESS
Edited by Kate Shiplev
Jeff Roberson/ASSOCIATED PRESS
Braelon Burns looks to pass around Kansas freshman forward Darrell Arthur. Burns finished the game with nine points.
notebook...
Kansas' record dropped to 6-2 and DePaul's improved to 3-4. It was DePaul's first victory against a top-five team since 1999 and its first victory against Kansas in the series history
》 DePaul coach Jerry Wainwright improved his all-time record against Kansas to 2-0. He was coach of the Richmond Spiders during the 2003-04 season when they defeated Kansas
This was the second straight game that Kansas held an opponent to 26 percent shooting in the first half. The Jayhawks have surrendered just 30 total first half points the last two games.
» Kansas' 26 points at the half were its fewest at the break this season. Its 57 total points were also a season low.
Kansas 26 31 — 57
DePaul 17 47 — 64
DePaul 64, No.5 Kansas 57
KANSAS
Arthur 5-11 0-10 10
Wright 4-9 4-6 12
Robinson 2-7 3-5 8
Chalmers 5-8 2-1 15
Rush 1-7 0-1 3
Collins 2-6 0-0 5
Case 0-0 0-0 0
Kaun 2-3 0-0 4
Jackson 0-0 0-0 0
Witherspoon 0-0 0-0 0
Totals 21-51 9-14 57.
DEPAUL —
SCHEME
Currie 1-1 0-2 2
Mejia 8-16 4-6 23
Clinkscales 0-0 0-0 0
Heard 1-3 3-4 5
Chandler 4-11 2-2 12
Burns 2-4 4-5 9
Walker 2-3 0-0 5
Thompson 0-1 0-0 0
Green 0-5 2-2 2
Butler 0-1 0-0 0
Clarke 1-2 4-5 6
Totals 19-47 19-26 64
RECORDS — Kansas 6-2, DePaul 3-4.
Sammey Miejs hit a two-point shot atopponeum minutes to lead Defaulto at 64-57 wins against No. 15.
Sammy Melija gets a扑 on the back from assistant the second half. Melija scored 23 points lead DePa
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guard Bra Kansas.
coach
to a 64
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