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WEDNESDAY,FEBRUARY 10,2010
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COMMENTARY
March Madness best with 65 teams
PAGE 1B
BY NICOLAS ROESLER
nroesler@kansan.com
twitter.com/nroesler8
Sixty-five teams narrowed down to one champion in six rounds is the system that makes March Madness one of the best sports spectacles in this country. The NCAA Tournament is a polished machine that needs no fixing
Yet the NCAA may now opt out of its $6 billion contract with CBS and most likely get picked up by ESPN, allowing for the expansion of the tournament while deals get made, and people start asking for more money.
Seeding in a field of 96 teams would be much less of a concern for powerhouse teams going through the regular season.
The system in place creates the drama and intensity the sport needs. Americans and money-chasing NCAA officials need to realize that super-sizing everything does not make it better.
Arguments floating in peoples' heads are that the proposed expansion would benefit more of the 347 Division I basketball teams. Right now, only 18 percent of those teams make it into the tournament. The increase to 96 teams would expand it to 37 percent, which is still fairly exclusive. But the exclusivity is what intensifies every game during the regular season and makes conference tournaments that much more important.
The exclusivity of the tournament is what makes these no-name teams so entertaining. They're striving to reach something rare. Each conference game carries so much more importance. And fans appreciates every moment the world of college basketball brings.
Money is what is on everybody's mind sitting in the board rooms of the NCAA. Fans love March Madness so much that the NCAA assumes expanding the tournament would benefit the fans and the schools themselves. Financially, there is a thought that more money can be raked in for the schools and, ultimately, for the NCAA. But the money gained by the NCAA hurts the conference tournaments.
Edited by Megan Heacock
The NIT Tournament provides teams that don't make the main stage the opportunity to extend their season. The increase to 96 teams could possibly eliminate the NIT tournament and shorten the season for those teams.
The Big 12 Tournament in Kansas City would lose a number of attending fans and money because it wouldn't mean as much to earn the Big 12 Tournament title when your team might have already won the regular season title. Losing early in the conference tournaments would just mean more time to rest and get your team ready for the Big Dance.
The frustration and anger at the structural failure of other areas of American sports does not exist in college basketball. College football has the BCS debate. Pro basketball and baseball have a season that seems to last year-round, detracting value from each game.
Slugger in the spotlight
BY BEN WARD
bward@kansan.com
twitter/bn_dub
If you walked into the baseball team's locker room at any point during the preseason, you'd probably have bumped into junior third baseman Tony Thompson. Even before the start of official practices — even if he didn't have an individual workout scheduled for the day — he was there.
Maybe he was lifting weights or getting in some extra swings in the cages between classes. In any case, he was there.
Even after posting perhaps the best offensive season in Kansas baseball history, Thompson is still committed to improving, to keeping on course with his record-setting offensive pace last season.
Thompson may embody the personality behind this group of Jayhawks; never shy to get grass and dirt stains on their uniforms, never bogged down by inflated egos or the urge to put personal success above the team.
As he kicks back for a minute in front of his locker, Thompson unwinds by turning on some music. Most of his teammates prefer country or hip-hop, but not Thompson. He's blasting heavy metal — a genre not exactly synonymous with relaxation and one that seems a bit at odds with his personality. Just then his roommate, junior outfielder Casey Lytle, walks into the room. And like many of his other teammates, Lytle lets Thompson know how he feels about his taste in music.
"We always give him a bunch of crap about it," Lytte said, "But I think he loves it. He'll just play it even louder."
Given Thompson's preference for ear-splitting guitar riffs and thundering drum solos, it's interesting that the only loud thing about him is his bat.
his sophomore season. Thompson smashed a number of Kansas' all-time records while leading the conference in batting average (.389). Home runs (21), and RBI (82) — making him the Big 12's first-ever triple crown winner.
No slugger in the conference had ever come close, not even current Royals players Alex Gordon and John Fields, who tore up the league during their tenures at Nebraska and Oklahoma State, respectively.
Scratch that — loud can barely describe the buzz Thompson stirred in the Big 12 last season. After a modest freshman year, the Reno, Nev., native exploded onto the national scedure during
Predictably, accolades and national media attention followed, placing Thompson very much on the radar this season. It's enough of a spotlight to inflate even the coolest of heads, but for the most part, Thompson appears as if the exposure can't faze him.
Ask him about his production, and he'll praise the guys at the top of the lineup for getting on base, or the guys behind him for protection. Or he'll attribute his success to the coaching staff for logging extra hours with him.
But every now and then, Thompson's cool outer shell cracks, and he's willing to soak up the adoration — even if for
Injury temporarily sidelines Thompson A knee injury has left Thompson unable to play for the next four to six weeks; see the full story on PAGE 3B
only brief moment.
"It does motivate me a bit," Thompson said, "knowing that people actually think I can play now."
And for as much noise as Thompson makes at the plate, in all other avenues he's a pretty unassuming guy, whether introducing himself to a stranger with a quiet hello and a firm handshake, or interacting with teammates he has known for years.
"He pretty much goes about his business; there's not a lot of talk" senior second baseman Robby Price said. "He just worries about what he needs to worry about."
SEE THOMPSON ON PAGE 3B
MEN'S BASKETBALL
Henry steps up his game to help Kansas win against Texas
Freshman guild
Xavier Henry gets
a hand on the
ball for a tie-up
Monday night
at Texas. The
Jayhawks won
80-68 to move
to 23-1 on the
season and 9-0 in
the Big 12.
Weston White/KANSAN
BY COREY THIBODEAUX
cthibodeaux@kansan.com
twitter.com/c_thibodeaux
It's been so long since freshman guard Xavier Henry was in the spotlight, he was beaming while sitting at the podium after the Jayhawks' 80-68 victory against Texas Monday. His smile, something he's known for, has been absent the past couple weeks.
This time, though, Henry had a reason to show his teeth.
He scored 15 points for the Jayhawks, shooting 6-of-13 and adding five rebounds - all coming after an abysmal Big 12 campaign.
"I thought Xavier played the best game he's played in league play by far," Kansas coach Bill Self said.
During nonconference games, Henry was shooting 46 percent from the floor. That percentage dropped to 26 percent in Big 12 play.
Self said that Henry had been ineffective as a shooter, but that he was gaining a better understanding
His rebounding totals remain as steady as they were earlier in the season. And in conference play, Henry had at least one steal in each game except for the first game against Nebraska.
of the game and how to play defense.
He had seven steals against Baylor, which is a season high for any jayhawk this season.
"I've been playing defense lately as hard as I can," Henry said. "My offense hasn't been going, so I have to bring something to the team."
Granted, his game against Texas was his 27-point debut or his 31-point outing against La Salle, but it was a step in the right direction. Sophomore forward Marcus Morris, who finished with 18 points and eight rebounds against the Longhorns, said Henry's greatest trait was his persistence.
"I know he was missing a couple shots, but the thing about X is he keeps shooting." Morris said. "We needed him to step up."
Against what could have been the layhawks' toughest challenge of the season thus far, the most important duo was Henry and Morris, not Cole Aldrich or Sherron Collins.
All it took was time for the shooter to get going, whether it was time in practice or time waiting.
"I've been practicing hard lately so I've been making sure I've got all my sightseeing after practice," Henry said. "I knew eventually they were going to fall. They just weren't falling at that time."
"I would have never thought we could come to Texas and win and have our two best players go 5-of-23," Self said.
Collins and Aldrich combined for 22 points while Henry and Morris had 33. With his confidence back, Henry said he hoped he was back to his usual self.
"it's been a long time coming." Henry said.
— Edited by Kirsten Hudson