+
COLUMN 3
Close games provide great experience
After another tough victory on Monday night, the Jayhawks are now 25-1 and 11-0 in conference play. Kansas is cruising toward a sixth straight Big 12 title and most likely a No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament.
But it hasn't been easy. Kansas has already played six games this season that have been decided by fewer than ten points, including back-to-back overtime games against Kansas State and Colorado. The Jayhawks struggled in victories against Memphis and Cornell and have often not looked like the best team in the country.
But these six games might just be more valuable for the Jayhawks than they will ever know. Although a narrow two-point victory in overtime against Kansas State isn't nearly as sweet as a blowout victory in Bramlage Coliseum, games like that one can make all the difference when the NCAA Tournament rolls around next month.
A team can often learn a lot more about itself in a close game than in a blowout. When the game is on the line, the Jayhawks have confirmed that Sherron Collins is their go-to-guy, have learned how to manage the end of a game and have played under pressure that can't be simulated in practice. All of these things provide valuable experience for Kansas as it prepares for the stretch run of its season.
Coach Bill Self has called on Collins several times
already this season at the end of games. Collins came up with a three-point play against Cornell and another big shot at Kansas State. His teammates were already confident in his ability to make clutch plays, but he keeps proving that he is the player who wants the ball when the Jayhawks need a score.
One of the more underrated aspects of a basketball game is clock management, and Kansas has had plenty of experience managing valuable seconds at the end of a game. The little things that good teams must know, such as when to call timeouts and when to foul the other team, have already been put into practice this season and could be really important to the Jayhawks' postseason hopes.
Something that just can't be simulated in practice is the amount of pressure that a team will feel at the
end of a big game. There is no way to practice for the pressure of playing in overtime in Bramlage Coliseum on College Gameday or holding off an upset bid in Allen Fieldhouse. When the Jayhawks play in a close game during March Madness, the pressure will be even greater, but at least they already have an idea of what it will be like.
Despite all of the close games, the Jayhawks still lead the country in margin of victory, winning by an average of more than 20 points per game. Like most fans, I would rather have the Jayhawks win by 20 points every game than barely pull out a victory, but I also realize that the team can learn a lot from struggling to a win.
One important mark of a good team is when a team can win when it has an off day. On the six occasions when the Jayhawks have had a noticeable off day, the team is 5-1. This team knows how to win big, but they also know how to win when it looks like they shouldn't be able to.
It hasn't always been pretty, but the Jayhawks just keep getting the job done this season.
Weston White/KANSAN
Kansas State coach Frank Martin speaks with Sherron Collins after the Jawhawks played the Wildcats in Manahattan last month. Kansas won 81-79 in overtime.
THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
THE WAVE FEBRUARY 17.2010
+