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The University Daily Kansan
"It really tells you something, when players like Drew Glean are not even starting. When you have McDonald's All-Americans, Burger King All-Americans, it is hard for us to compete." — Texas A&M men's coach Melvin Watkins after losing to Kansas 100-70 on Saturday.
Inside: Whatever happened to so-and-so?
The first Where Are They Now? is here.
SEE PAGE 8B
Inside: The Kansas women's basketball team hopes it can stop Oklahoma's potent offense.
SEE PAGE 3B
For comments, contact Shawn Hutchinson or Shawn Linenberger at 864-4858 or sports@kansan.com
Tennis gets new coach's first wins
Senior guard Jennifer Jackson shoots the ball against a Basketball Travelers defender in exhibition play earlier this season. The Jayhawks will have their hands full against high-scoring No. 12 Oklahoma at 7:05 tonight in Allen Fieldhouse. Kansas File Photo
By Aaron Johnson sports@kansan.com Kansan sportwriter
First-year coach Ross Nwachukwu must prepare his men's tennis team for its round-broin tournament Saturday and Sunday, but forgive him if he's still enloving last weekend's results.
Kansas overpowered both Southwest Missouri State and Creighton on Saturday at Alvamar Racquet Club, handing Nwachuwu his first victories after his September promotion from assistant to head coach.
"Winning the first match feels pretty good." Nwachukwu said.
Winning "the first match" feels pretty good." Nwachuwn kuad. Kansas (2-0) breezed past Southwest Missouri (0-1) 7-2 in the early match and later convincingly beat Creighton (0-1), 8-1.
Both matches were played without Kansas' top singles player, junior Rodrigo Echagaray. He had to sit out a day's competition in order to maintain eligibility for NCAA tournament play later in the season. By placing at the Region V team championships Oct. 29 in Tulsa, Okla., Echagaray had to miss one day of scheduled competition.
Junior Quentin Blakeney, sophomore Pete Streor and Junior Alex Barrangan also went undefeated.
Sophomore Eleazar Magallan stepped up in Echagaray's absence with victories against Southwest Missouri's Jan Vanco and Creighton's Olive Foth.
Blakeney said early season victories were important to build confidence.
"I was confident that we would come out strong," said Nwachukwu "We had a good week of practice."
"These two matches under our belt help our confidence going into a very competitive week," he said.
The season opener marked inaugural matches for three Kansas freshmen. David Stauffer, Andrew Metzler and Gustavo Telles saw action during Saturday's sweep.
Metzler overcame a rugged three-seed loss against Southwest Missouri State in the early match against Oklahoma, a history against Craighon's Matt Tait.
Metzler teamed with Telles earlier in the day and defeated Creighton in a doubles-match victory.
Nwachukwu was all smiles after a successful start.
"Overall the team played hard. I really look forward to an exciting season." he said.
Kansas' round robin tournament will be against Middle Tennessee State and Louisville at Alvamar Racquet Club.
'Hawks face Sooner test
Edited by Courtney Craigmile
By Jessie Meyer
sports@kansan.com
Kansas sportwriter
Tonight's matchup will test the toughness and determination of the Kansas women's basketball team when the Jayhawks tip off against No. 12 Oklahoma at 7:05 in Allen Fieldhouse.
The Sooners (13-4, 4-1 Big 12 Conference) promise to be one of the most difficult opponents the Jayhawks (7-9, 1-4 Big 12) will encounter this season.
And this contest comes at a challenging time for Kansas.
The 'Hawks need a victory tonight to snap their current two-game losing streak and begin a climb out of the recent slump that has resulted in seven losses in their last 10 games.
But that won't be easy. The Sooners are on a four-game winning streak, tied for third place in the Big 12 and have won eight of their last 10 games.
"It's going to be a 40-minute challenge for us," said Coach Marian Washington. "We have to play some of our host, beo
our pest basketball to be in a position to win."
To do that,
the Jayhawks
will have to go
to the defensive drawing board
and look for a way to stop three Sooners who average in double figures.
"All we can do is the same thing we've been doing. We've got to continue to play hard."
Jaclyn Johnson Kansas senior centers
Kansas senior centerr
Oklahoma has posted 90 or more points in its past three games, including its 94-76 victory against North Carolina on Sunday.
They bring strong guards to the table in juniors LaNeishea Caufield, one of the nation's best in steals with 75, and Stacey Dales, averaging 16.6 points and 7.5 assists.
Throw in Caton Hill, a 6-foot-1 forward who averages 8.8 boards and 12.3 points, and Sunny Hardeman, a 5-7 guard who shoots 47.1 percent from behind the arc, and the Jayhawks could have their hands full all night long.
"We just have to make sure we're real clear about what it is we're trying to accomplish and work real hard to stay disciplined in our strategy." Washington said.
The Jayhawks continue to rely heavily on senior center Jaclyn Johnson, senior guard Jennifer Jackson and senior forward Brooke Reves for most of their scoring, and until other players start putting some points on the board. Washington said the focus would be keeping opponent scoring down.
"We're just going to concentrate on our defense and see if we can't hold our opponents to a lower shooting percentage as we try to get some other players to step up," Washington said. "I think that is a good place for us to start."
The Jayhawks struggled on the glass against Oklahoma State and Colorado, giving them second and sometimes third chances to score. Washington said along with reducing the number of turnovers the 'Hawks had given up, rebounding and blocking out would be major factors against Oklahoma.
"We've just got to do the things that we're capable of doing," Washington said.
The biggest factor in the recent games has been the attitude the
Jayhawks bring to the floor. Staying intense and determined for 40 minutes has been a challenge, but for the most part, the 'Hawks are ready for tonight's tough competitor.
"All we can do is keep doing the same thing we've been doing," Johnson said. "We've got to continue to play hard. My attitude's never going to change. I am going to go out and fight every game. I'm going to go out and do what I'm supposed to do every game." — Edited by Sydney Wallace
Jayhawks shooting red-hot
Sophomore forward Nick Collison muscles his way toward the basket against Colorado on Monday. Collison is shooting 65 percent from the field, highest among the Jayhawks. Photo by Christina Neff/KANSAN
By Chris Wristen sports@kansan.com Kansan sportwriter
A strong defensive front never hurt a team on its way to winning a championship, but some heavy artillery fire could always come in handy.
Lucky for No. 4 Kansas, the Jayhawks have lots of weapons on the offensive end of the basketball court. For starters, six players are averaging double figures in scoring, led by senior forward Kenny Gregory's 16.7 points per game. They also have five everyday players shooting better than 50 percent from the field.
All of that adds up to Kansas shooting 52 percent from the field, the highest field goal percentage in the country. Kansas coach Roy Williams chalked the explanation for the sharp shooting to a focus on giving the ball to his bigger players.
"If you have big guys who can score then you have a better chance of shooting a high percentage," Williams said. "Then if you have guys from the outside that can make some three's to extend the defense so it gives the big guys more room to operate, then you
should shoot a high percentage."
Next, the Jayhawks have players who can hit outside shots. Sophomore point guard Kirk Hinrich is hitting 53 percent from three-point range, while senior guard Luke Axell is hitting 40 percent of his shots behind the arc. Junior guard Jeff Boscheme has been on a tear in the last four games, hitting 15 of 28 three-point attempts.
That said, Williams' squad has those very tools. He has the big boys inside who are shooting high percentages, led by sophomore forward Nick Collison's 65 percent and Gregory's 58 percent.
Collison has been a major focus of the Kansas offense since conference play began. He has made 31 of 46 shots in conference play and is among the conference leaders in field goal percentage. That accuracy has made him a prime target for passes from Hirnich.
"I'm playing well now," Collison said. "I know what I'm capable of doing out there and I don't try to do too much. I'm still aggressive and I'm just playing right now and getting some good looks."
Sports Columnist
Brian Hanni
Collison's doing the little things right, which is something Williams said he loved to see.
Sophomore forward Drew Gooden said the key was that Williams had ingrained into his players' heads the idea of taking smarter shots.
"He is playing very well," Williams said. "Nick will tell you he's shooting from two inches. Like guys who can make 'em from two inches. A lot of guys don't get it in that close."
"Coach Williams let us know early in the preseason that we were going to take better shots," Gooden said. "The teams in the past that went to the Final Four took better shots and shot a higher percentage like we are right now."
Ultimately, Gooden gave credit to one of the non-players players for the shooting success of the Jayhawks — Hinrich. Gooden credits Hinrich with getting the Kansas big men the ball inside, and for giving them the ball in situations where they can get easy baskets. Hinrich has 30 assists in the last three games — all Kansas victories — but he knows opponents are taking notice.
"It's gonna be tough from here on out," Hinrich said. "We've got a big bullseye on our chest now. We're on top and everybody's gonna be shooting for us."
sports@kansan.com
— Edited by Matt Daugherty
Royals made smart choice with Sweeney
Alex Rodriguez is not coming to Kansas City. Manny Ramirez won't be riding the Blue Wave at Kauffman Stadium, either. Mike Mussina would rather wear pinstripes than pitch at "The K."
There won't be any huge free-agent additions to the Kansas City Royals this year, but that's okay. Last Thursday, the Royals got their man when they signed Mike Sweeney for two more years.
Signing the 27-year-old first baseman was a small step in a big plan to keep Sweeney in Kansas City for the rest of his career. If the Royals manage to pull off that feat, Sweeney's signing will be bigger than any other in the major leagues.
in an era when pro ballplayers' egos are as big as their incredible salaries, Sweeney is the exception. He took less money than he is worth to stay with the franchise and community that he loves.
Some people will argue Sweeney is not the most important piece of the puzzle in the Royals organization, and in some cases, they might be right.
In this day and age, players like Sweeney just don't spend their whole careers in little markets like Kansas City. Guys who hit .333 and put up 144 RBI are usually sweep off their feet by big market teams with huge payrolls.
But Sweeney does, however, have a lot of something that not many pro athletes seem to have these days — character.
Sweeney may not possess the same defensive skills his teammate Jermaine Dye does in right field. He may not have the speed on the base paths former Royal Johnny Damon will now display with Oakland.
In addition to being the Royals best hitter, Sweeney is far and away their greatest ambassador. He encompasses everything that is still good about the pro game today. Mike Sweeney is a leader in the locker room, a hero in the community and the best role model out there for baseball's younger fans.
When he's not swinging for the fences or laying out for line drives, he's in the classroom speaking to kids about the importance of their education. Sweeney is the representative for the Royals Perfect Attendance Program. In addition, he is very active in the Greater Kansas City Fellowship of Christian Athletes, in which he speaks to youth about his faith.
His FCA speaking tour led him to Lawrence on Monday night when he spoke to two groups in the Kansas Union. Sweeney also goes out of his way to provide all kinds of sports memorabilia to be auctioned for FCA. Amidst all of that, Sweeney still finds time to organize a celebrity golf tournament every year to benefit the Medical Center of Independence, Mo. The list goes on.
Keeping Sweeney in Kansas City will not only pay huge dividends on the diamond for the boys in blue, but it will keep one of the game's greatest ambassadors in a sports town that needs him badly. The RBI will keep coming and so will all his work in the community. You just can't find value like that on the free-agent market these days.
The vision statement for the Kansas City Royals organization is called "The Royal Way." It challenges the club "to be recognized as a premier baseball organization with winning values on and off the field." It lists those values as "trust and integrity, loyalty and commitment, teamwork, accountability, pride and ownership."
No one exemplifies those traits like Mike Sweeney. He is the walking, talking, home run-hitting version of "The Royal Way."
The best part is, he's here to stay.
Hannl is a Topeka junior in Broadcast management.