KANSAN.COM / THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN / TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 9, 2010 / SPORTS
5B
80, TEXAS 68
ETBALLREWIND
victory over No.9 Texas Monday night: Collins scored 15 points and dished off four assists.
Weston White/KANSAN
est game that he's Self said. "He was ded that. We just kind
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scoring in the Jayhawks previous five games, broke out of a slump and scored 15 points, while making 6 of 13 shots from the field. Henry's six field goals were the most he'd had since the Dec. 19 game against Michigan
Seven jayhaws scored at least seven points last night and while that scoring
distribution stands out, there were other aspects of the jayhawks offense that helped contribute to the overall success of the game
"I thought offensively we were great." Self said. "They trapped us and we passed through the traps. We had long possessions where they fouled us."
If the Jayhawks can mimic their offensive success last night against the Longhorns, they will have a memorable finish to the season.
— Edited by Anna Archibald
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"We made them go against five guys, which was very effective until I Cowan got hot late," Self said, "I thought we guarded really good. We didn't guard Damion in the first half, but other than that we played great."
fast break points. Kansas had success holding the longhorns and their quick guards — Self called Dogus Balbay "probably the best athlete in the conference?" Friday — because everyone was getting back on defense.
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Aldrich was his usual self in dominating the middle defensively — finished with a game high six blocks — and Morningstar did his usual phenomenal defensive work on the perimeter, picking three steals and causing general havoc for Texas' backcourt.
The Jayhawks were able to hold massive Texas center Dexter Pittman off the boards and off the scoreboard for most of the night. Pittman, who measures in at 6 feet 10 inches and 290 pounds, managed just three points and three boards on the night, and the Jayhawks won the rebounding battle 45-34.
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"We knew they were a good rebounding team," Henry said. "They talked about them all week as being a good rebounding team, so we just had to go out and rebound and be tough."
"I don't think there's a dominant team," Morris said. "We have a lot of faults on our team as far as rebounding and guarding. I think we came out real aggressive against these guys. I think we took their first punch and never let up."
The Jayahwacks may have had faults early in the season in terms of rebounding and defense, but those woes vanished Monday night.
Morris was beset to crown the Jayhawks as a dominant team, though.
Edited by Michael Holtz
Weston White/KANSAN
Freshman guard Xavier Henry takes the ball to the basket during Kansas' 80-68 victory at the Frank Erwin Center in Austin Monday night. Henry scored 15 minutes and had five rebounds during 31 minutes on the floor.
Game to remember
Marcus Morris was the best player on the floor for the Jayhawks, but considering Xavier Henry's recent struggles, he gets the nod in this slot. He had 15 points on 6-of-13 shooting to go along with five rebounds and two assists. The most impressive stat from Henry, though, was his zero turnovers in 31 minutes of play. He's averaged 3.5 in 22.5 minutes over the last four games.
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Game to forget
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Aldrich and Sherron Collins combined to shoot just 5-of-23 from the field, and Aldrich finished with just seven points and five rebounds. It's the second consecutive game that he's gone for single digits in both categories. He was his usual dominant self in the paint with six blocks, but even that was tarnished when he picked up his fifth foul with a technical foul.
Stat of the night
27-5
The Jayhawks had 27 points off turnovers to the Longhorns' five. It was largely a product of not turning the ball over – Kansas finished with only 10 - and forcing the Longhorns into 17 turnovers. The biggest reason, though, was arguably Kansas' most dominant defensive effort of the season.
Quote of the night
"I thought my sub for the free throw was a very smart coaching move. I've never seen that before. It'll be on ESPN Not-Top-10 for the next six months."
Bill Self, joking about Brady Morningstar's odd shoot-catch-shoot free throw.
Prime plays
1ST HALF (SCORE AFTER PLAY)
13:28 Brady Morningstar hit a three, starting the defining run for the Jayhawks (11-14)
17:15 Sherron Collins was upset after being called for an offensive foul. As we all know, an angry Sherron can be a bad thing—like when he slashed the lane for a quick layup right after. (5-7)
4:52 Sherron Collins was feeling the run the Jayhawks were on and nailed a three with a defender in his face. That capped a 22-0 run for the Jayhawks. (30-14)
10:18 After a few failed possessions on both teams, Markieff Morris brought the drought to an end by tying the game with a three. (14-14)
2ND HALF
10:55 After a bunch of dribbling and a spin move, Marcus Morris found an open lane from the top of the key and bolted ahead for a layup. (48-32)
4:01 Any momentum Texas had after getting the lead down to 10 just evaporated with Markieff Morris' offensive put-back with an and-one. (64-51)
8:59 Sherron Collins had a pretty behind the back pass to Cole Aldrich. He didn't finish the dunk he started, but it went back down anyway. The Jayhawks are pouring it on at this point. (55-36)
19:42 Damion James turned the ball over to start the second half and Xavier Henry took it in for a dunk. (36-24)
Key stats
Prized Texas freshman Jordan Hamilton and J'Covan Brown finished the first half shooting 1-for-10.
1-10
3.3
Dexter Pittman finished with just three points and three boards despite Cole Aldrich's foul trouble.
45-34
Kansas outrebounded the Longhorns, who remain tops in the Big 12 in rebounding.45 to 34.
Markieff Morris almost got a double-double with nine boards and eight points, despite playing just 19 minutes.
9.8
4-4.5
Damion James went 4-of-4 from three-point land and had five blocks. He may be the only player in the country who can do that.
0
Outside of J'Covan Brown, who finished with 28, Texas had zero bench points.
Senior guard Sherron Collins gets a hand on the ball for a steal Monday night against Texas. Collins finished with four steals in the Jayhawks 80-68 victory at the Frank Erwin Center. Kansas scored 27 points off the Texas' 17 turnovers.
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