SPORTS
UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
Tuesday, November 23, 1993
9
Jayhawks trip New Zealand
Turnovers high in 85-60 victory
Bv Gerrv Fev
Kansan sportswriter
If the turnovers in Kansas' 85-60 victory against Auckland Basketball of New Zealand didn't hint that the game was an exhibition, New Zealand's uniforms did.
New Zealand lost its luggage before last night's game and had to borrow uniforms from Pittsburgh State, and the Kansas women's basketball team struggled in the first half, ending the game with 27 turnovers.
Kansas coach Marian Washington said Kansas' defense in the second 10 minutes of the first half did not please her. But the Jayhawks did keep New Zealand scoreless for the first 6:41 of the second half.
"I was a little happier in the second half, but we've got a long way to go," she said. "They had 20 points in the paint on us in the first half. But we have kids out there that are new, and what I really appreciated was their effort."
Among the new players was freshman guard Tamecka Dixon, who
ended the game with 13 points and three assists. She shared duties at point guard with seniors Ericka Muncy and Michelle Leathers.
In the second half, Dixon took the ball to the free-throw line off the dribble and made a double-pump jump shot. That shot made the score 67-44, and from then on, the game was out of reach for New Zealand.
Dixon squared off against New Zealand guard Antonia Solomon in the contest, who had six points and seven steals. Dixon complimented Solomon on her abilities.
"I thought she played a pretty good game," Dixon said. "I will be going against some good guards during the season, like Shelley Sheetz of Colorado. She's a good player."
Although the Jayhawks did give up many turnovers, they also caused 30 turnovers with pressure defense. Freshman guard Angie Halbieb led Kansas with four steals and also contributed 13 points, including two three-pointers. Sophomore guard Charisse Sampson also had 13 points and made two three-point shots.
Kansas was five of 11 from behind the three-point line, but Washington said the Jayhawks would take what
was given to them.
"Angie Habbleib is going to be one of our top shooters and certainly Charisse," Washington said. "They know that if they're wide open I don't have any problem with them pulling the trigger. They're fine shooters."
Kansas junior forward/guard Angela Aycock, who led Kansas with 15 points, said she was glad to see Halbleib take those shooting opportunities.
"Angie is an awesome three point shooter," Aycock said. "I'm glad they did it in the game; they've been killing us in practice."
Freshmen forwards Jennifer Trapp and Shelly Canada also saw playing time last night. Trapp started the game in part because junior forward Alana Slatter was out with fluid in her right knee. She will be out two or three weeks, Washington said.
"At this point, it certainly allows us to play the young players more," she said.
Creighton will be the next opponent for Kansas on Friday in Omaha, Neb. Dixon said it was good to have this exhibition game before the season began.
"It was a good test," she said. "I'm glad it was an exhibition game, but I think this team will be good."
Kansas 85. New Zealand 60
honors
Player fgm/fga ftm/fta tp
Aycock 4-12 7-8 15
Trapp 4-9 0-2 8
Tate 6-8 0-0 12
Sampson 5-12 1-2 13
Leathers 1-4 0-0 3
Muncy 1-2 0-0 2
Dixon 6-7 1-2 13
Canada 2-5 0-1 4
Hablelb 5-9 1-2 13
Thalmann 1-1 0-0 2
Totals 35-69 10-17 85
NEW ZEALAND
NEW ZEALAND
Norris 3-11 2-5 8
Beardsley 0-0 0-0 0
Akkerman 6-14 5-6 17
Noon 0-2 0-0 0
Solomon 3-7 0-1 6
Cunningham 9-19 0-0 18
Walker 3-6 2-2 11
Bunce 0-0 0-0 0
Totals 24-59 9-14 60
Hairtime Kansas 41, New Zealand 34
*3 point goals Kansas 5-11 (Sampson 2-5,
Halibble 2-5, Leathers 1-1), New Zealand 3-8
(Walker 3, Noon 0-2, Solomon 0-1)
Rebounds Kansas 43 (Tate and Sampson
Kansas 22, Ascock 19), New Zealand
Kansas 22 (Aycock and Murcy 5), New
New Zealand 13 (Walmer 4) Total foul Kansas
17, New Zealand 18, Attendance 450.
Tom Leininger/Special to the KANSAN
Kansas' Ericika Muncy keeps the ball away from New Zealand's Antonia Solomon. Kansas won yesterday's game 85-60.
Richard Devinki / KANSAN
Kansas junior fullback Costello Good breaks through a pack of Oklahoma defensive personnel. Kansas finished the season 5-7.
Jayhawks looking forward to successful 1994 season
22 seniors will give leadership to team
By Matt Doyle
Kansan sportswriter
Former Kansas All-American running back Gale Sayers said in early August that a Jayhawkloss to Florida State in the Kickoff Classic could kill the Jayhawk football program.
Kansas lost to Florida State 42-0, which started the Jayhawks off toward a 5-7 season. But several Jayhawk players said after Saturday's season-closing 28-0 victory against Missouri that the Kansas program was not dead.
"Definitely not. Next year they can go nowhere but up," said departing senior defensive tackle Chris Maumalanga. "There is a lot of talent on this team and a lot of heart. Heart is sometimes more important than the talent you have."
The Jayhawks displayed a lot of heart throughout the second half of the season. It would have been easy for the Jayhawks to give up on the season after a stunning 41-16 defeat at home to Utah on Sept. 18 and a tough 10-9 loss at Kansas State on Oct. 9.
Senior free safety Clint Bowen said that after the loss at K-State, which left Kansas' record at 2-4, he and his teammates would not give up for the last half of the season. They did not, and Coach Glen Mason did not let that go unnoticed.
Mason said the team's lack of success, as well as the injuries his team accumulated throughout the season, could have really hindered his program during the final half of the season.
"My program is great because if it wasn't solid we would have crumbled, we would have absolutely crumbled," Mason said. "The second half of this season said more about my program than winning last year and going to a bowl game. I'm more proud of this team than I was of that team."
This Kansas team easily could have joined last year's a bowl team. Two one-point losses, at K-State and the 21-20 heartbreaker against Nebraska on Nov. 6, were the difference between a 5-7 record and a 7-5 record. At 7-5, with a 5-2 record in the Big Eight, officials from the Copper and Alona Bowls would have certainly considered the Jayhawks for their games.
The victory against Missouri gave returning Jayhawk players a positive feeling heading into preparations for the 1944 season. Mason said that he would have 34 returning starters in 1994, more than any other team in college football.
Mason was forced into using 46 different starters during the 1993 season because of the rash of injuries. Junior linebacker Don Davis said the number of experienced players returning will help the Jayhawks next season.
However, the Jayhawks will spend Christmas at home this year, and not in Tucson, Ariz, or Honolulu.
"We could be 7-5, but we can't control that now," said senior center Dan Schmidt. "We really came close, but I can take pride that the senior class gave great leadership and the younger players stepped up when needed. That's why the future of this program will be outstanding."
"The attitude from this season will carry over into next year," Davis said. "We will have 22 seniors next year, so we'll have good leadership."
Richard Devinki / KANSAN
Kansas freshman running back Mark Sanders runs for yardage against Missouri. He will be one of four running backs that will compete for starting positions next season.
Sophomore linebacker Ronnie Ward said this season was a learning experience which should benefit players returning next season.
SPORTS BRIEFS
"We really showed a lot of character and kept a positive attitude, which pushed us through the season," he said. "During the offseason, all those guys that were injured will get healthy. And now we'll have a lot of experience returning because of all the injuries this year."
WOMEN'S CROSS COUNTRY Kansas last in national meet
The Kansas women's cross country team had a rough time in its first championship meet in team history. The Jayhawks came in last in the 22-team meet in Bethlehem, Pa.
The team finished with 471 points and was led by Julia Saul. She finished in 65th place with a time of 17 minutes, 40.3 seconds. Melissa Swartz was the next Jayhawk to cross the finish line in 120th place.
Villanova defeated perennial power Arkansas for the women's title with 66 points. The low score wins in cross country. Arkansas continued its dominance of the men's national meet, taking first place defeating Brigham Young.
The women's Big Eight teams were led by Colorado, which finished 14th, and Nebraska, which finished 20th in the meet.
PROFESSIONAL FOOTBALL
49ers march over Saints
SAN FRANCISCO—In a stunning show of power, the San Francisco 49ers swept away the New Orleans Saints 42-7 last night and reasserted themselves as the dominant team in the NFC West.
Merton Hanks gave the 49ers 'top-ranked offense a jump start as he returned a first-quarter interception 67 yards and scored. His second interception set up the first of three, second-quarter downs and the Saints, 6-4, found themselves down 28-0 at halftime.
It got worse from there, with the Saints all but conceding late in the third quarter. Trailing 42-0, Wade Wilson was pulled and replaced by Mike Buck. San Francisco also let up, pulling its front-line offense and replacing Young with Steve Bono.
By Mark Button
Kansan sportswriter
Jayhawks to face Gophers in NIT semis in Big Apple
Kansas coach Roy Williams is not having Thanksgiving dinner for the Jayhawk basketball team at his house in Lawrence this year.
With a 73-56 victory against California Friday night, the Jayhawks will spend the remainder of this week playing basketball and eating turkey in the Big Apple.
The first game of the Presseason National Invitational Tournament semifinals, which along with the finals takes place at Madison Square Garden in New York, matches the No. 6 Jayhawks against the No. 9 Minnesota Golden Gophers. The second game features No. 1 North Carolina and No. 18 Massachusetts.
All four teams in the semifinals are guaranteed two games.
Although Williams insists that there is no one or two key match-ups, he said he was aware of what Lenard could do.
Minnesota, which defeated Rice and Georgia on its road to the NIT semifinals, boasts one of the top players in college basketball. Junior guard Vashon Lenard, 6-foot-4 and 205 pounds, averaged 16.5 points and 4.5 rebounds in the Gophers' first two games.
"I set up the trials at the USA Basketball this spring in Chicago," Williams said. "Vashon Lenard may have been the best player at the camp. He is outstanding and was one of the first selections on our Under-22 team, but he had to change because of summer school commitments."
Lenard is not the only Minnesota player that Williams is familiar with.
Williams recruited three of Minnesota coach Clem Haskins' players. Williams paid visits to the homes of both senior guard Arriel McDonald and junior forward Jayson Walton. Kansas also heavily recruited Gopher freshman forward John Thomas.
Kansas' road to the Garden also has been a short one. The Jayhawks only needed to hit the court twice. Both Western Michigan and Cal were turned away from Allen Field House without victories.
Williams said he was pleased with the Jayhawks' defensive efforts thus far, but he said to be successful in New York, the team would have to improve offensively.
"I look and see our shooting percentage is 44 percent," Williams said. "I am concerned, but I would like to see the opponents percentage stay where it is at."
Kansas held Western Michigan and Cal to 34 percent shooting from the field.
Haskins agreed with Williams that no one match-up would determine the game. He said he was concerned with the inside-outside play of senior forward Richard Scott and senior guard Steve Woodberry. Also, upon viewing
AP Top 25
Kansas moved up to No. 6 in the poll after defeating California Friday night
rank team record pta. pr
1. N. Carolina (61) 2-0 1,620 1
2. Kentucky (2) 0-1 4,625 1
3. Arkansas (1) 0-0 1,452 3
4. Duke 0-0 1,352 4
5. Michigan 0-0 1,321 5
6. Kansas (1) 2-0 1,183 9
7. Louisville 0-0 1,144 7
8. Temple 0-0 1,116 8
9. Minnesota 2-0 1,025 10
10. Oklahoma St. 0-0 913' 11
11. Indiana 0-0 844 12
12. California 1-1 791 6
13. Georgia Tech 0-0 761 14
14. UCLA 0-0 731 13
15. Georgetown 0-0 710 15
16. Virginia 0-0 637 16
17. Illinois 0-0 563 17
18. Massachusetts 2-0 469 22
19. Arizona 0-0 403 18
20. Syracuse 0-0 377 20
21. Purdue 0-0 363 21
22. Cincinnati 1-1 276 19
23. G. Washington 0-0 227 24
24. Vanderbilt 0-0 225 23
25. Wisconsin 0-0 148 —
others receiving votes; Florida St. 134, Marquette 133, Xavier, Ohio 91, Yarus 88, Ohio St. 85, Boston College 73, Connecticut 56, W. Kentucky 39, Missouri 37, Memphis 32, LSU 30, Tulane 27, Nebraska 21, Saton Hall 20, Va. Commonwealth 17, Alabama 16, Peppardine 16, Georgia 15, New Mexico St. 14, Southern Cal. 14, New Orleans 10, NE Louisiana 7, Brigham Young 6, West Virginia 5, Coppin St. 1, Towson St. 4, Arizona St. 3, Penn 3, Michigan St. 2, Providence 2, Clemson 1, Tennessee St. 1, UNLV 1.
KANSAN
Source: The Associated Press
highlights of the Kansas-Cal game, Haskins expressed worries about junior center Greg Ostertag.
"He's mobile and blocked several shots," Haskins said. "I told my coaches "This guy looks like a lottery pick." We have to keep him away from the basket. Once he gets inside we'll have problems."
Williams said that the team would get together on Sunday for a three-day late Thanksgiving feast.
Tournament Notes:
Minnesota won the 1993 Postseason NIT in March by defeating Georgetown 62-61. No team has ever won the Postseason NIT and the Presseason NIT in the same year. Only Indiana has ever won both tournaments.
Kansas is 9-1 in the Presseason NIT and has won six consecutive games in the tournament under Williams' coaching reign at Kansas.
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