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The University Daily Kansan
Sports
Trivia question
Starting with 1997, name the five players who have been named Big 12 Conference Player of the Year in men's basketball. See page 7A.
Inside: The Kansas women's golf team finished in 10th place at the Verizon Invitational in Texas.
SEE PAGE 7A
Inside: The Dallas Cowboys waived veteran quarterback Troy Aikman yesterday.
THURSDAY, MARCH 8, 2001 For comments, contact Shawn Hutchinson or Shawn Linenberger at 864-4858 or sports@kansan.com
SEE PAGE 5A
Big 12 tourney begins today
GAME 1
No. 8 Baylor (17-10, 6-10 Big 12) vs.
No. 9 Colorado (15-14, 5-11). noon.
Baylor is coming off its most productive season in the Big 12 Conference since 1998, when the Bears won eight conference games. This year, the Bears' résumé includes a home victory against Kansas. Baylor is 2-2 lifetime in the first round of the tournament but is 0-2 when it has advanced to the quarterfinals.
"We know we'll have to be on top of our game," said Baylor coach Dave Bliss.
Colorado has also split its four opening round games of the tournament and, similar to Baylor, has failed to extend its season past the quarterfinals. The Buffaloes have been up and down all season and lost their only meeting with Baylor, 61-55, in Boulder, Colo.
The winner gets a stay of execution because top-seeded Iowa State is waiting to bury either of these teams Friday.
Texas Tech, which somehow managed to wrestle the "Worst team in the Big 12" title away from Texas A&M by losing both games to the Aggies, doesn't have much going for it. The Red Raiders didn't win a conference road game all season and will most likely be back in Lubbock. Texas, for close tomorrow,
GAME 2
No. 5 Oklahoma State (19-8, 10-6) vs.
No. 12 Texas Tech (9-18, 3-13), 2:20 p.m.
Oklahoma State ended the regular season playing a brutal five games in 11 days. The Cowboys won four of those games and finished the regular season winning five of its last seven.
The Cowboys will rely on guard Maurice Baker, who was voted First Team All.Big 12.
The winner gets a quarterfinal matchup with fourth-seeded Texas.
GAME3
No. 7 Nebraska (14-15, 7-9) vs. No. 10 Kansas State (10-17, 4-12) 6 p.m.
Nebraska is hoping experience will pay off this week. Two starters, seniors Cookie Belcher and Kimani Friend, were named to the Second and Third Team All-Big 1.2 squads. However, a sprain of Friend's medial collateral ligament earlier this month may keep him on the sidelines for the entire tournament.
Translation: Missouri rolls the Aggies and advances to play third-seeded Oklahoma tomorrow.
But Nebraska coach Barry Collier said he was hopeful Friend could be back if Nebraska managed to win a game or two.
"Eventually you play on this injury," Collier said. "There's been very little, if any swelling. That's why it's possible he'll play this week."
Kansas State, which relies on balanced scoring, can take advantage of its size down low with the absence of Friend. Forward Matt Siebrandt, who averages 10 points, could have a big day if the Wildcats make him the focal point of the offense.
— Zac Hunter
The winner squares off against second-seeded Kansas tomorrow. The Jayhawks are a combined 4-0 against Nebraska and Kansas State this season.
Rush may be a problem for the Aggies. Then again, so might everything else the Tigers do. Two of Texas &M&M's three victories came via Texas Tech, and the Aggies haven't won a game outside of Texas since December.
GAME 4
No. 6 M Missouri (18-11, 9-7) vs. No. 11.
Texas A&M (9-18, 3-13). 8:20 p.m.
"The type of player he is, you don't expect him to continue to do that," Texas A&M coach Melvin Watkins said. "It makes it difficult to match up. It makes them a better team."
It turns out Missouri swingman Kareem Rush, voted First Team-All Big 12, is not the same player he was before injuring his thumb nearly a month ago. Rush struggled from the field, going one-for-seven, in the Tigers' season finale loss at Kansas. However, Rush was able to put the ball on the floor and create his own shot, which makes Missouri dangerous.
Athletics department
Despite cuts, budget to increase
By Zac Hunter
By Zac Hunter
sports@kansan.com
Kansan writer/swittier
Kansas athletics director Bob Frederick said he was sorry about cutting men's tennis and men's swimming and diving from the athletics department budget.
He also said there were no "prospects for significant revenue sources on the horizon."
But despite the Athletic Department saving $600,000 from next year's budget and $3.6 million during the next five years by cutting both men's sports, the athletics budget is expected to increase by $5 million in the same time span. Forty percent of the increase is devoted to football, according to budget projections released to the Kansas Athletics Corp
released last weekend.
The department plans to increase football coaches' salaries by $200,000 in fiscal years 2003 and 2004. Kansas football coaches are the lowest paid in the Big 12 Conference.
Projections for fiscal year 2006 show the football team spending $6.74 million — 24 percent of the projected athletic budget
compared to a projected $4.4 million for fiscal year 2001. The amount it brings in, however, is expected to drop about $70,000 in the next five years, the *Laurence*
Frederick: Said no prospects for revenue in sight
"The football program projections are always conservative estimates," Frederick said.
Journal-World reported.
He also said the department hoped the actual revenue the football team would generate would be greater than the estimates in the budget.
The men's swimming and diving and tennis teams are projected to spend $653,520 combined this season, and the two women's teams are slated to spend a combined $798,740.
Men's basketball makes the most money for the department, and is expected to pull in $4.74 million in fiscal year 2001 and spend $1.83 million.
Frederick said one-third of the athletic budget came from the football program through money from the Big 12 and its
own revenue.
But the money other sports may bring in is no consolation to the players and coaches, both past and present, of the teams that were cut.
"I will never return for an alumni weekend," said former Kansas tennis player Michael Center.
Center played at Kansas from 1982-86 and is now the men's tennis coach at Texas.
"My kids won't hear me talk about Kansas tennis," Center said. "People in the future won't experience what I did. I wish this would not have happened. Everyone take a breath and imagine KU without basketball. That is what I feel like today."
Shall we dance?
- Edited by Jacob Roddy
Jayhawks focused on success heading into postseason play
Bv Chris Wristen
sports@kansan.com
Kansan sportswriter
The prom of the college basketball season, the NCAA Tournament, starts a week from today.
But before they can go to the Big Dance, the No. 9 Jayhawks will have their spring formal — the Big 12 Conference Tournament, which starts today at Kemper Arena in Kansas City, Mo.
Four games tip off today, beginning with Colorado against Baylor at noon and Texas Tech against Oklahoma State at 2:20 p.m. In the nightcaps, Kansas State plays Nebraska at 6 p.m., and Texas A&M battles Missouri at 8:20 p.m.
All eight of these teams must win four consecutive games to be crowned champions, and Kansas coach Roy Williams said he knew that was difficult.
"I don't want to try to do it because that means you haven't done as well in the regular season," said Williams, whose team was seeded fifth last season but is second this season. "We had a couple years where there was one of the teams in the finals that was playing their fourth day in a row. But playing three days in a row or four days in a row, both can be pretty tough."
Regardless, Williams said anything was possible as long as the situation was right and certain things fell into place.
"I think it can be done." he said
The Jayhawks (23-5, 12-4 Big 12) will arrive fashionably late to the conference dance because they, along with No. 7 Iowa State, No. 16 Oklahoma and Texas, earned the top four seeds in the tournament and don't play until tomorrow
Gooden said he hoped a few more victories would come later in the weekend and hinted at a possible rematch with Iowa State on Sunday.
Kansas will play at 6 p.m. tomorrow against the winner of the K-State-Nebraska game. The Jayhawks have defeated both teams twice this year, and sophomore forward Drew Gooden said he was confident a victory tomorrow would be in store for the 'Hawks.
"We'll roll up to Kansas City on Friday and play our game," Gooden said. "Hopefully we win and we should do well in the tournament."
Tomorrow, Iowa State will play the winner of Colorado-Baylor. The Cyclones beat Colorado both times the teams met this year and defeated Baylor in their lone meeting. An Iowa State victory would set up a possible rematch with Texas, who blew out the Cyclones two weeks ago in Austin, Texas.
Whomever the 'Hawks have to play, Gooden said he was confident his team could win the Big 12 Tournament and do damage in the NCAA Tournament.
"We have the potential," Gooden said.
"We have a lot of talent. We've got so much talent on this team that if we just play hard and take that out on the court and be competitive, we can go a long way."
Williams said at various times his team had shown the potential Gooden spoke of, but the Jayhawks still needed to put the whole package together if they hoped to succeed in the Big Dance.
"We haven't played our best and I'm hoping it's in front of us," Williams said. Edited by Brandy Straw
Kansas sophomore guard Kirk Hinrich got tangled up with Missouri forward Justin Gage. The Jayhawks begin Big 12 Tournament play tomorrow at Kemper Arena in Kansas City, Mo., against either Kansas State or Nebraska. Photo by Christina Neff/KANSAN
Kansas junior center Kristin Geoffrey tries to work the ball past Oklahoma forward Jamie Talbert during a Big 12 Conference Tournament quarterfinal game at Municipal Center in Kansas City, Mo. The Sooners beat the Jayhawks 80-61 yesterday to advance to the semifinal round. Photo by Laurie Sisk/KANSAN
Hapless 'Hawks lose finale
By Jessie Meyer sports@kansan.com
Kansan sportswriter
KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Kansas' turbulent season came to a close yesterday with an 80-61 loss to Oklahoma in a heartbreaking game indicative of its season.
The top-seeded Sooners picked up their first Big 12 Conference Tournament victory since the league began, eliminating the ninth-seeded 'Hawks from the tournament and squelching any hopes Kansas had at making its 10th straight NCAA Tournament appearance.
"We just didn't have enough," said Kansas coach Marian Washington, after her team finished the season 12-17 overall and 5-11 in the Big 12. "But I couldn't be prouder. I am the luckiest coach in America."
The Jayhawks, fatigued from Tuesday's first-round game against Oklahoma State, could not keep up with the fast-paced game the balanced Oklahoma team maintained in the first half in Municipal Auditorium. After the 'Hawks scored the first basket of the game, No. 7 Oklahoma (25-4, 15-1) exploded on a 13-0 run.
taking a lead it would never relinguish.
Ignited by sharpshooters Rosalind Ross and Sunny Hardeman, who each buried four three-point baskets, the Sooners dominated the offensive end of the game and forced Kansas to expend much of its energy defending the fast break.
Although senior center Jaclyn Johnson led Kansas with 21 points, she could not counter-balance four Sooners in double figures and 21 Oklahoma offensive boards.
With Oklahoma in a shooting slump, Kansas pulled to within eight midway through the second half but failed to close the gap.
The Sooners' 16th straight victory ended the careers of Kansas seniors Jackson, Johnson and
"We just didn't capitalize," senior guard Jennifer Jackson said. "That was one of the things that hurt us down the stretch."
And with that, the Sooners regained composure and pulled away, with Big 12 player of the year Stacey Dales sealing the game with a steal and layup that brought Oklahoma's lead to 20 with 5:57 to play.
forward Brooke Reves, and red-shirt junior Nikki White, who has decided not to return to the team next year.
Washington, with tear-filled eyes, credited her senior class for carrying the team and helping to salvage parts of this season.
"Had it not been for them, it would have been a very tough year," Washington said. "They fought every game. I think they've left a tremendous legacy."
But Johnson credited the seniors' supporting cast for stepping up with extra points at certain times this season.
"We probably carried this team emotionally," Johnson said. "But not necessarily with points every game."
Even without the backbone of this Kansas team next season, Washington said she was optimistic about next year's team.
But the Jayhawks have a long road ahead of them without this year's main scoring threats.
"This too shall pass," Washington said. "It makes me more determined to get things right on track."
- Edited by Jason McKee