SPORTS / WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 27, 2010 / THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN / KANSAN.COM
BIG 12 (CONTINUED FROM 10A)
Big 12. If the Jayhawks want to make the NCAA Tournament, they will need to approach something close to an 8-8 mark by season's end. Most tournament teams can win in their own conference.
Kansas hasn't proven it can do so yet, but with six home games and a few winnable road tests to go, the chance to change still exists.
"Any given day, any team can lose, whether you are at the top or the very bottom." Morris said.
Lineup alterations or strategic
adjustments might be the start of what looks like the need for a midseason boost for Kansas.
Whether or not those potential changes are the answer, Kansas needs to find a way to change its course, and it's going to be tested against the best of the Big 12.
Edited by Kate Larrabee
That test starts tonight against Colorado.
"It's got to happen Wednesday," Henrickson said. "Non-negotiable."
Key to the game
Turnovers
The last time the Jayhawks won the turnover battle was Dec. 30 against Pepperdin. Since then, Kansas has accounted for more turnovers than its opponents in six consecutive games. What makes this such an alarming statistic is that in those six games, Kansas is just 1-5. The Jayhawks will need to find a way to generate turnovers and maintain possessions to salvage their season.
Keep an eye on
Danielle McCrav
There's no sugarcoating here; senior guard Danielle McCray hasn't played her best in the last two games. For an average player, 6.5 points per game in the last two contests might seem like a solid contribution. But McCray is not expected to be average. She is the undisputed leader of the Jayhawks. Kansas has shown an inability to win games without McCray playing to the best of her ability. Essentially for Kansas
to have a shot at beating Colorado, McCray needs to break out of her slump.
Opponent to watch
What McCray normally is for the Jayhawks, junior forward Brittany Spears is for Colorado. The Pasadena, Calif., native has five double-doubles on the season, including one in Big 12 games. She also averages almost 18 points per game. Because Kansas' post players have suffered through some recent struggles, Spears may have a big game in store.
Brittany Spears
Score prediction
Kansas 67, Colorado 59
NHL
Leafs fall to Kings in fourth straight
TORONTO — Dustin Brown assisted on all three of Los Angeles' second-period goals and Jonathan Quick made 25 saves to lead the Kings to a 5-3 victory against the Toronto Maple Leafs Tuesday night.
twice for the Maple leafs, who lost their fourth straight.
Jonas Gustavsson made 28 saves and Niklas Hagman scored
The Leafs had been on the road for five games, returning home with four losses following an uninspiring trip through Florida.
The Kings' captain, was named an alternate captain for the U.S. Olympic team earlier this month.
Associated Press
ASSOCIATED PRESS
COLLEGE BASKETBALL
South Carolina's Lakeem Jackson celebrates with fans after South Carolina upset Kentucky Tuesday in Columbia, S.C. The Gamecocks defeated the Wildcats 68-62
ASSOCIATED PRESS
Kentucky suffers first defeat
COLUMBIA, S.C. — Kentucky's return to No. 1 might not last very long.
Devan Downey scored 30 points and South Carolina sent No. 1 Kentucky to its first loss of the season with a 68-62 victory Tuesday night.
The Wildcats (19-1, 4-1 Southeastern Conference) moved atop the rankings for this week for the first time since 2003. They were cautioned by no less a fan than President Barack Obama earlier Tuesday to keep their focus and play with the same passion that brought them to the top.
The president or Kentucky didn't count on Downey, the SFC's leading scorer to break the 30-point mark for the fourth time in six league games for South Carolina (12-8, 3-3).
The Gamecocks had lost all seven previous games they'd played against No. 1-ranked teams.
DeMarcus Cousins matched his career best of 27 points to lead Kentucky, which had been the nation's last unbeaten team.
Downey had seemingly hit a game-winner at Florida Saturday, scoring on a driving layup with 5 seconds left until the Gators' Chandler Parsons outdid him with a winning 3-pointer.
This time, though, Downey and the Gamecocks would not be stopped — even after the Wildcats' fabulous freshmen of John Wall and Cousins seemed to take things over.
Fans rushed the Colonial Life Arena floor when the buzzer sounded, Downey hugging whom ever he could and screaming, "I told you so!"
The pair combined for 13 points during a 14-3 run midway through the second half that put the Wildcats
up 47-42. That's when Downey took over.
Downey had another three point play with 4:06 left to give the Gamecocks the lead for good at 54-51.
South Carolina's senior had a three-point play and two foul shots to tie it up.
Wall's three-point play with 40.1 seconds left brought Kentucky within 62-61. But Brandis Raley-Ross followed with two free throws to restore the edge.
Raley-Ross finished with 17 points.
Cousins had 12 rebounds to go along with his points, which tied his best performance set earlier this season against Seton Hall.
Kentucky was on its longest win streak to start a season in 44 years and figured to continue its roll against depleted South Carolina.
But the game followed a head in-the-clouds moment earlier Tuesday
when President Obama called to congratulate Coach John Calipari and the players for helping raise more than $1 million for Haitian relief.
Along with the praise came Obama's caution — stay focused Wildcats or bad things might happen.
The president's words were prophetic.
The Wildcats were ragged and out of sync. Wall, who Obama greeted with "What's going on all-star?" when they spoke by phone, was 6 of 16 from the field with four of Kentucky's 15 turnovers.
Wall ended with 19 points.
No Wildcat could corral Downev.
While the Gamecocks' senior didn't have his shooting touch (9 of 29), he went 10 of 11 at the free throw line.
Associated Press
Kansas State guard Nick Russell (12) drives between Baylor's Tweety Carter (45) and Lacedarius Dunn (24) during the first half of an NCAA college basketball game Tuesday in Waco, Texas. The Wildcats won the tight game against the Bears, 76-74.
BIG 12 BASKETBALL
Wildcats stay alive
K-State wins against Baylor in the final seconds of the game
BY STEPHEN HAWKINS
Associated Press
WACO. Texas — Jacob Pullen made two free throws with 8.2 seconds left and scored 25 points, lifting No. 11 Kansas State to a 76-74 victory over No. 24 Baylor Tuesday night.
Only three days after having their school-record 14-game home court winning streak snapped in a loss to O k l a h o m A State, the Wildcats (17-3, 4-2 Big 12) put an end to
The Wildcats hit 28 of 57 against Baylor, which had eight shots blocked after a five-game stretch when there were none against the Bears.
while Rodney McGruder had 10 for K-State, which is 4-0 against Top 25 teams this season.
Kansas State went up 66-62 with just under six minutes left when Pullen was fouled and made three free throws.
Baylor's 11-game winning streak that was also a school record.
Tweety Carter had his second consecutive 23-point game for Baylor, while Anthony Jones had 12 points and nine rebounds. Epke, Udoh was only 2-of-10 shooting (or eight points), but had 14 rebounds.
Baylor (15-4, 2-3) still had one more chance after Pullen's two free throws. But LaceDarius Dunn, who struggled all night, lost the handle in the lane after driving the court and then recovered in time to throw up a wild one-handed shot that never had a chance.
Denis Clemente scored 17 points
Carter then missed two free throws for Baylor, but got fouled again after stealing a pass and
The margin was never more than four points for either team in the final 17½ minutes in a game that featured 11 ties and 14 lead changes.
Dunn finished 3-of-13 shooting with only nine points, following a five-game stretch when he had at least 20 points four times before scoring 15 in the last game.
made two. After
K-State missed a
shot, Dunn was
fouled driving
to the basket
and hit both free
throws to tie
the game at 66 with
4:40 left.
A minute later, Pullen hit a 3-pointer. He hit another one
The Wildcats hit 28 of 57 (49 percent) against Baylor, which had eight shots blocked after a five-game stretch when there were none against the Bears.
falling down with 1:04 left to stretch the lead to 74-70.
But Carter made a quick jumper and Pullen turned it over on the Wildcats' next possession, leading to the tying basket that Dunn was credited for after Curtis Kelly was called for goalaltending with 20 seconds left. Dunn then fouled Pullen at the other end to set up the game-winning free throws.
Baylor heads to sixth-ranked Texas on Saturday, continuing a brutal Big 12 stretch which began last week with an 81-75 loss at No. 2 Kansas. K-State plays the Jayhawks next.
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