Photo courtesy of Indianapolis Star
Kansas senior forward Richard Scott raises the victory sign after a 74-69 Jayhawk victory against Indiana in the Hoosier Dome.
Team roster
No. Name Pos. Ht. Wt.
Class Hometown
00 Greg Ostertag C 7-2 275
Jr. Duncanville, Texas
10 Calvin Rayford G 5-6 155 So. Milwaukee, Wis.
11 JacqueVaughn G 6-1 180 Fr. Pasadena,Calif.
12 Patrick Richey F 6-8 200 Sr. Lee's Summit, Mo.
14 T.J.Whatley G 6-4 175 So. Benton, Ark.
20 Steve Woodberry G-F 6-4190 Sr. Wichita
21 Sean Pearson G-F6-4210 So. LaGrange, III.
22 B.J.Williams F 6-8200 Fr. Wichita
31 Scot Pollard F-C 6-1240 Fr. San Diego, Calif.
33 Greg Gurley G 6-5210 Jr. Leawood
34 Richard Scott F 6-7235 Sr. Little Rock, Ark.
35 Blake WeichbrodtG 6-2195 Sr. Norman, Okla.
44 NickProud C 6-1230 Fr. Sydney, Australia
KANSAN
Kansas guards Jacque Vaughn and Calvin Rayford will play important roles in a full-court defense this season.
Kansas
Last Year: 29-7
Big Eight Finish: 11-3, first place
Coach: Roy Williams
Record at Kansas: 132-37 (5 years)
Strength: Coaching, Williams' winning percentage of .781 is the best of any Kansas coach and the best of any active coach in the nation. Williams has taken teams to the NCAA Final Four twice in the last four years and has guided his Jayhawks to three consecutive conference titles.
Weakness: Experience. The Jayhawks lost four starters from last year's Final Four team, including the three top scorers, guards Rex Walters and Adonis Jordan and center Eric Pauley. Besides the senior class of forwards Richard Scott and Patrick Richey and guard Steve Woodberry, only three other players have seen minutes in big games.
KANSAN
JAYHAWKS: New season brings reshuffled deck
Continued from cover.
So, what is the ace in Williams' hand? He is. With a winning presentation
Junior center Greg Ostertag will be asked to play more minutes this season as a starter for the Jay-hawks.
highest of any active coach in the
nation, Williams has become one of the premier college coaches in the game. In his five years coaching the Jayhawks, Williams' 132 victories are second only to North Carolina State's Everett Case's 137 for the most victories in a coach's first five years.
Williams' knowledge of the game and his ability to pass this knowledge to kids less than half his age has translated into three consecutive Big Eight Conference championships, a string that is still intact, and two Final Four appearances
in the last three seasons.
These accomplishments, combined with his tremendous winning percentage, have translated into awards such as the 1992 national and conference Coach of the Year and 1989 Basketball Times National Rookie Coach of the Year.
So, just what knowledge does Williams have up his sleeve?
"I've got one rule," Williams said. "The easiest way to be successful is to do what I tell you to do."
What will he tell them to do?
First, he will tell everyone to forget about last year's team and the four starters who aren't returning.
He will tell the seniors, forwards Patrick Richey and Richard Scott and guard Steve Woodberry, to lead the team by example.
He also will tell specifically Scott and Woodberry that they must become the focal points of opposing teams and not remain role players.
"The biggest challenge for Richard and Steve is that they're going to have to score this year when the other team's defense is aimed at them," Williams said. "In the past, coaches would say, 'You've got to stop Jordan and Walters,' and they weren't concerned with everyone else. Now, the defense is going to be aimed at Richard Scott and Steve Woodberry."
So, how do they feel about it?
"I look forward to it," Woodberry said.
Scott said he felt the same way.
Williams also will tell guards Greg Gurley, junior, and Sean Pearson, sophomore, that they must step up from support players to legitimate scorers.
He will tell junior point guard Calvin Rayford and
"I really feel that the other team's point guard, at the end of the game, will have his tongue dragging," Williams said.
freshman point guard Jacque Vaughn, who are battling for the starting position, that they must defend their opponents for the entire length of the court in order to wear them down.
In what may be the most crucial part of the Jayhawks' game, Williams will tell junior center Greg Ostertag to have a big year.
"Greg is extremely important to our team," Williams said. "If he has an outstanding year, our team will certainly surprise a lot of people. And he is certainly capable of having an outstanding year."
Ostertag said he could handle the pressure and would work hard to meet Williams' expectations.
Probably as important as Ostertag's year will be the development of the four freshman on the team: besides Vaughn, forwards B.J. Williams and Nick Proud and center Scot Pollard. While Proud battles injures, Williams said, he hopes that the others will learn the system quickly and be ready to contribute.
"They better be good," he said. "Because we're going to need them to be."
Just do what I tell you to do. It sounds simple enough.
If the Jayhawks do what Williams says, a fourth consecutive conference title just might be in the cards.
November 17, 1993 University Daily Kansan • COLLEGE BASKETBALL PREVIEW
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