A) B) C) D) E) F) G) H) I) J) K) L) M) N) O) P) Q) R) S) T) U) V) W) X) Y) Z
THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN SPORTS
FRIDAY, JANUARY 28, 2011
See inside for game day poster
MEN'S BASKETBALL|10A
WWW.KANSAN.COM
Take the poster inserts in today's issue and bring them to the game to do your part to spirit Allen Fieldhouse as a reunited Kansas team takes on in-state rival Kansas State at 6 p.m. Saturday.
PAGE 12A
FLOCK TOGETHER
A state of brotherly love
In wake of teammates' tragedy Jayhawks must maintain focus
BY TIM DWYER
tdwyer@kansan.com
Thomas Robinson buried his mother Thursday. The whole team was there, along with coaches and support staff.
"There was a great sense of pride that I felt," Self said about the team's support of Robinson, "because I saw how close they were."
Next, Josh Selby will bury one of his best friends today. He won't be able to do it in person. Incllement weather in the Northeast and wishes from his family that he not push his luck prevented it. So he returned last night with the Jayhawks, minus one man: Robinson, who remained with his little sister in Washington, D.C., but will return to play Saturday.
It's been an emotional week for everyone involved. And the last time the lajayhawks took the floor at Allen Fieldhouse with this much emotion, a 69-game home-court winning streak was ended. Saturday's loss to Texas, of course, was put into perspective by the news of Thomas Robinson's mother's death Friday night, but losses in basketball count the same, regardless of the circumstances.
NO. 6 KANSAS VS.
KANSAS STATE
And so the Jayhawks will don their jerseys on another Saturday with heavy hearts overshadowing the fact that they'll play another dangerous opponent desperate to see them unseated as the six-time reigning kings of the Big 12.
"The players were saying. 'He doesn't deserve this. He doesn't deserve this," coach Bill Self said. "Of course, nobody does, but bad things happen in life. Certainly, they've rallied around that quite a bit. The guys' attitudes are good."
Where: Allen Fieldhouse
Time: Saturday, 6 p.m.
TV: ESPN
Get Saturday's inside scoop
GAME DAY | 10A
Check out stats for the Sunflower Showdown on the Sunflower State's birthday.
The Jayhawks will need to avoid the pitfalls of last Saturday against the Wildcats tomorrow. Kansas came out of the gates firing, taking an 18-3 lead and looking like it was going to run Texas out of the building. But like Self said after that game, a
SEE NEW STREAK ON PAGE 11A
Senior guard Tyrel Reed puts up a one handed shot after driving to the basket Tuesday against Colorado. Reed finished the game with 14 points
WOMEN'S BASKETBALL
Kansas seeks to end losing streak hawks head to Manhattan to fight Wildcats for a much needed win
Redshirt freshman guard Angel Goodrich drives past Kansas State toward AJerry Sweat on a lay up attempt. The Jayhawks fell to the Wildcats 59-35 in Manhattan Saturday afternoon.
Jerry Wang/KANSAN
BY ETHAN PADWAY epadway@kansan.com
The women have struggled since entering Big 12 play earlier this month, earning them a 1-5 conference record. In their latest defeat, the Jayhawks' inability to consistently make free throws hurt them, as they shot less than 50 percent from the line. Sophomore guard Angel Goodrich and sophomore forward Carolyn Davis battled with free throws all night.
The women's basketball team looks to end a four game slide against in-state rival Kansas State on Saturday at 2 p.m. The Jayhawks lost on Jan. 26 to their archrival Missouri, 66-52.
"You are talking about kids who normally make free throws. Angel goes one for four and Carolyn three for eight. That is 15 feet, never changes, never guarded. You should be able to knock them down. That is frustrating," coach Bonnie Henrickson said.
Where: Manhattan, Ks.
Time: Saturday, 2 p.m.
TV: Metro Sports
The Jayhawks have had a tough time since conference season began, and they have the difficult task of trying to defeat the 14-5 Wildcats. The Wildcats have a 4-2 record in Big 12 play this season and are currently on a three-game winning streak. On, Jan. 26, the Wildcats defeated Colorado 72-59 in Boulder, Colo.
KANSAS VS. KANSAS STATE
Sophomore guard Brittany Chambers leads Kansas State in scoring with 15.2 points per game. Chambers is also the leading rebounder for the Wildcats with an average of six rebounds per game.The Jayhawks will need Davis and junior forward Aishah Sutherland to return to form. Sutherland, second in the Big 12 with an average of 8.7 rebounds per game, was held to just five rebounds against the Missouri Tigers Wednesday night.Davis managed to grab only two rebounds, despite averaging 7.9 on the season.
"We've not won the toughness battle. It doesn't matter who we play in this league, you have to be able to fight," Henrickson said.
Edited by Marla Daniels
HALFTIME HONORS
Simien to join list of retired jerseys
The retiring of Wayne Simien's
Simien
jersey lends a little more excitement to ESPN's College GameDay, which will telewise Say
Saturday'e
game against Kansas State.
COMMENTARY
game against Kansas State. As announced in early October, the former All-American will join his former teammates Nick Collison, Drew Gooden and Kirk Hinrich in the rafters of Allen Fieldhouse.
"My last time in Allen Fieldhouse was against K-State." Simien said in an October release. "Now I have the chance to step back on the court in front of the fans against K-State, in the Sunflower Showdown. That's Kansas Day and it's also my son's birthday; that's pretty cool too."
Simien was a Consensus First-Team All-American his senior year in 2005. He was also Big 12 Player of the Year that season.
The Miami Heat drafted Simien 29th overall in the first round of the 2005 NBA draft. He retired from the NBA in 2009 to become a Christian minister in Lawrence.
— Corey Thibodeaux
Saturday is a day worthy of celebration
BY NICO ROESLER
proesler@kansan.com
Kansas Day. It's not a national holiday or even a holiday many Kansans visibly celebrate. But this year, it falls on the same day as a civil war for the state's basketball pride.
From Kansas City to the western town of Kanorado, everyone will be watching as ESPN's College GameDay comes to Lawrence on Jan. 29.
Players will enter the game with mammoth pressure on their shoulders to win a rivalry that has the power to split friends and families.
Along with the exuberance at tip-off comes the threatening realization that this Kansas Day, the Jayhawks' hopes for a Big 12 title could be tarnished or Kansas State's chances for making the tournament could become slimmer.
With a 13-7 overall and 1-4 conference record, K-State will likely have to win eight of its next 11 games to make the NCAA tournament. The Wildcats are looking up at the ladder of top 25 teams with a bruised chin since falling down the rungs from their preseason ranking at No. 3. Heading into the Sunflower Showdown, the Wildcats are desperately fighting to redeem themselves and save their season.
Kansas has a lot to fight for as well. Not only will a Kansas loss virtually knock them out of Big 12 title talk for the first time since 2004, but the team is fighting for something bigger.
A patch will be worn for the second time on the left shoulder of every Kansas jersey with the letters "LR" for Lisa Robinson, the late mother of KU sophomore forward Thomas Robinson. The team returned from Lisa Robinson's funeral on Thursday in Washington, D.C., only to immediately start preparing for the biannual rivalry.
A teammate. A brother.
In the larger scheme of things, the game is just a moment in the middle of a long season. But for fans, seeing Thomas Robinson's strength to get through this tragedy will provide far more inspiration than any victory. It will be his strength this season that will bring fans, families, friends and even rivals together.
This situation brings back memories of the tragedy in 2005 when a car crash resulted in the death of former Jayhawk Darnell Jackson's grandmother and the temporary immobilization of his mother. In the emotional outpouring that followed, Jackson proved to be a rallying character for the 2008 national championship team.
Robinson is not just welcomed, but embraced by the fans who love him. He will likely be a similar emotional anchor for this Kansas team.
Meanwhile, K-State will look to land a win in the Big 12 to try to get back to .500 in the conference.
So, on this day, the 150th birthday of Kansas, let the battle begin.
GameDay air Saturday at 9 a.m. on ESPNU and at 10 a.m. and 7 p.m. on ESPN.
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Edited by Tali David