THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
MONDAY NOVEMBER 23, 2010
MONDAY, NOVEMBER 23, 2009
SPORTS
WOMEN'S BASKETBALL
3B
Morris transcends role as sidekick
Coach praises senior guard Sade Morris' skill, teamwork as she joins 1,000 point club
BY ANDREW TAYLOR ataylor@kansan.com
Senior guard Danielle McCray, who was recently put on the Naismith Award watch list, sometimes gets nicknamed Batman, while fellow senior guard Sade Morris often finds herself relegated to the role of Robin, Batman's sidekick.
During Kansas' 77-66 victory against Michigan, though, as McCray struggled to find any sort of rhythm, "Robin" stepped out of the shadows and into the spotlight.
"We refer to Danielle and Sade all the time as Batman and Robin," coach Bonnie Henrickson said. "Well, Robin was pretty good today."
Morris had a career game as she torched the Wolverines defense for a career-high 26 points. That total boosted her career
total to 1,002 points.
"I didn't know anything about breaking the 1,000 point record, I just came ready to play," Morris sai.4
As Morris shined in Kansas third game of the season, McCray, the other half of the "dynamic duo" and only other current Kansas women's basketball player to reach the career pinnacle of 1,000 points, failed to steadily produce.
McCray had an especially rough first half against the Wolverines. In 19 minutes of play, McCray only mustered six points while turning the ball over five times.
"I kind of got a little antsy in the beginning and my shots weren't falling," McCrav said.
McCray didn't fare much better in the second half as she only improved her point total to 11
on 5-of-20 shooting throughout the game. She did cut back on her turnovers, though, only giving the ball away once in the closing half.
"I knew she was struggling, so I just did my best to kind of penetrate and get some fouls," Morris said. "I thought she did a great job going in and rebounding."
The way the two interacted — Morris stepping up to fill the void in light of
McCray's struggles — was reminiscent of the way the two players worked together in the Jayhawks run to the WNIT championship game last year.
"When Danielle struggled at the end of last year, not that she struggled much, Sade was good," Henrickson said. "I thought that's what she looked like a lot today."
that made up the WNIT for the Jayhawks, McCray averaged 29.4 points per game. Morris quietly scored 17 points per game.
"We refer to Danielle and Sade all the time as Batman and Robin. Well, Robin was pretty good today."
In the stretch of five games
"There was such a spotlight on Danielle, and rightfully so, but I think a lot of people really lost track of how good Sade was in that run." Henrickson said.
In the Jayhawks' next game against the No. 9 Xavier
Musketeers, Kansas will benefit from Morris and McCray working together as they did throughout last year's postseason run.
"I think we both need to be on the same page," McCray said. "It's great to have another player step up like she did tonight."
Edited by Brenna M. T. Daldorph
Ryan Waggoner/KANSAN
Sade Morris keeps one step ahead of a Wolvenine in Sunday's game in Allen Fieldhouse. Morris scored a career-high 26 points and reached a career total of 1,002. She is only the 21st player in Kansas Woman's basketball history to join the 1,000 point club.
GAME BALL:
SADE MORRIS
The senior guard racked up a career high 26 points and passed 1,000 career points in a Kansas uniform. She stepped up when teammate senior guard Danielle McCray was ice cold from the field and was her usual self as a defensive force on the other end.
QUOTE
"I'm not gonna put money on it, but I feel certain that that team's not going to finish last in the Big Ten."
STAT:1,000
Henrickson
— Coach Bonnie Henrickson said of an improved Michigan team.
Congratulations to Sade Morris, perhaps the most consistent player on the team. She became the 21st player in Kansas women's basketball history to join the 1,000 point club.
REASON TO HOPE:
IMPROVED BENCH PLAY
The Kansas Jayhawks saw a marked improvement in the production of players coming off the bench against the Michigan Wolverines. After the group collectively scored only three points against the Iowa Hawkeyes last Thursday, they provided 13 points Sunday in their relief of the starters, Freshman guard Monica Engelman and junior forward Nicollette
Smith both played extremely well in their minutes off the bench, scoring four and nine points respectively.
REASON TO MOPE:
Poor play in the opening minutes of the second half
In almost every single game the Jayhawks have played this year, the team has come out sluggish in the second half. That was no different yesterday against Michigan as Kansas allowed the visitors to score 17 points before the first media time out of the second half. That permitted the Wolverines to crawl within six with less than 15 minutes to play. The Jayhawks need to develop a killer instinct coming out of the
locker room, or theyll continue to let teams get back into games.
WHO TO WATCH OUT
FOR:
AISHAH SUTHERLAND
AISHAH SUTHERLAND
Sophomore forward Aishah Sutherland earned a double double with 12 points and 11 rebounds against Michigan. Coach Bonnie Henrickson, though, insisted that Sutherland did not look like herself in her 29 minutes of playing time. If Sutherland can produce that well on an off day, then she should be able to put up massive numbers when she's on top of her game.
— Max Rothman and Andrew Taylor
BASKETBALL
McCray makes Naismith Trophy Preseason List
Senior guard Danielle McCray was named as one of the 50 players to the Naismith Trophy Presseason Watch List. The list was released last Wednesday
and featured five other players from the Big 12: Baylor freshman Brittney Griner, Nebraska senior Kelsey Griffin, Oklahoma
State senior Andrea Riley, Oklahoma junior Danielle Robinson and Kansas State senior
McCray
Ashley Sweat.
McCray has led No. 19 Kansas to a 3-0 regular season record, averaging 23.5 points per game and 9 rebounds per game. Below are some other preseason accolades that McCray has earned for the 2009-2010 season.
■ Preseason Big 12 Player of the Year
All Big 12 First Team Member
Preseason Second Team All-American
- Lowe's Senior CLASS Award
- Preseason Wooden Award
Nominee
No.3 small forward in the nation (ESPN.com)
NFL
Gradkowski's throwing powers Raiders to a victory
BY JOSH DUBOW
Associated Press
OAKLAND, Calif. — Bruce Gradkowski provided more than a spark for the struggling Oakland Raiders. He delivered a much-needed comeback victory that the Cincinnati Bengals handed over to Oakland.
Gradkowski threw a 29-vard game-tying touchdown pass to Louis Murphy with 33 seconds left and Sebastian Janikowski kicked a 33-yard field goal after Andre Caldwell fumbled the ensuing kickoff, giving the Raiders a 20-17 victory Sunday.
The Bengals (7-3) have lost all 10 games in Oakland, including one playoff game. But this had to be one of the most painful. Cincinnati maintained its onegame lead over Pittsburgh in the AFC North after the Steelers lost
in overtime at Kansas City, yet this loss could prove critical to seedings or even a playoff berth down the stretch.
Oakland (3-7) rallied from an early 14-point deficit and trailed 17-10 with 2:06 left when Gradkowski took over at the 20-yard line. Gradkowski, who took the starting job from JaMarcus Russell this week, threw a 19-yard pass to Zach Miller, then a 16-yarder to Chaz Schilens on fourth-and-10.
After a spike, Gradkowski found Murphy near the goal line. Murphy got loose from Morgan Trent and dived across the goal line for the tying score.
Just when it seemed the game was headed to overtime, Caldwell was stripped by Brandon Myers on the kickoff, giving the Raiders the ball at the 17. After three kneel-downs, Janikowski delivered the winning kick, setting off a celebration among the few fans who showed up. Nnamdi Asomugha intercepted a last-ditch pass from Carson Palmer to seal the victory.
The Bengals scored touchdowns on two of their first three drives, but managed only three more points the rest of the way. They were done in by three lost fumbles, eight penalties and a missed field goal.
The biggest fumbles were by fullback Jeremi Johnson at the Oakland 15 and poised to add on to a 17-10 lead and the one by Caldwell. Shayne Graham also missed a 37-yard field goal in the third quarter.
Palmer completed 14 of 22 passes for 207 yards and became the first Bengals quarterback to run for two touchdowns in a game since Jack Thompson in 1979. Rookie Bernard Scott ran for a season-high 119 yards in place of the
He connected on a 10-yard to Miller in the second quarter and
drive. He did plenty with an entire week to prepare, giving the Raiders their first two-touchdown game since the opener.
then the tying TD to Murphy. He finished 17 for 34 for 183 yards, with one interception and a lost fumble, and won for the first time since his rookie year in 2006 with Tampa Bay.
www.ContinuingEd.ku.edu (keyword: testprep) · 785-864-5823
injured Cedric Benson, and newcomer Larry Johnson had two carries for 5 yards.
Gradkowski replaced Russell in two of the past three games, but was unable to lead a single scoring