KANSAS 28-1, 14-1 RANKED NO. 1 70 OKLAHOMA 16-9,8-7 UNRANKED JAYHAWK BASKETBALL 68 TUESDAY FEBRUARY 25 1997 PAGE 10 No.1 Kansas 70, Oklahoma 68 KANSAS (28-1) Williams FG FT TP Pierros 1-13 5-17 4 Poirres 1-13 5-17 4 LaFrentz 6-9 2-4 14 Vaughn 6-9 2-4 14 Hasele 1-4 5-10 14 Robertson 2-3 0-0 6 Thomas 1-5 0-0 6 Brandon 1-5 0-0 6 Pollard 0-1 0-0 0 Digna 1-1 0-0 0 Tolga 22-49 23-39 70 OKLAHOMA (16-9) FG FT TP 10 Najera 4-10 10 9 Brewer 7-13 5-7 19 Wayz 3-3 3-2 19 Heesket 2-8 0-0 8 Erdmann 7-22 2-3 20 Moore 2-6 1-1 5 Stone 0-1 1-0 0 Allison 0-0 0-0 0 Totals 25-63 10-13 68 Halftime: Kanasa 37. Oklahoma 23. 3-point Halftime: Kansas 31. Oklahoma 24. 3-point Williams 0-1, Pereo 1-0, LeFrazit 2-1, Hasei 0-1, Okahama 8-2 (Erdmann 4-10, Nielsen 2-3, Hee- son 6-2), Rebounds 9-3, Goals 5-1, Rebounds: Kanasa 33 (Lefrazit, Hasei 7), Okahama 37 (Erdmann 9). Assists: Kanasa 12 (Vaughn 7), Runs 6-1, Shots 6-1, Stops 6-1). 6 total fouls Okahama 24. Ai Game notes Yesterday's game marked the first time in 10 that forward Raef LaFrentz did not score 20 points or Kansas won for the first time this decade in Lloyd Noble Center in Norman, Okla., while ranked No. 1. Men's AP Top 25 The Top 25 teams in The Associated Press men's college basketball poll, with first-place votes in parentheses, records through Feb. 23. rank team rec pts prv 1. Kansas (68) 27-1 1,748 1 2. Minnesota (2) 24-2 1,658 2 3. Kentucky 26-3 1,629 3 4. Utah 20-3 1,499 5 5. Wake Forest 21-4 1,438 4 6. South Carolina 21-6 1,374 9 7. Duke 22-6 1,334 6 8. North Carolina 19-6 1,234 12 9. Cincinnati 22-5 1,208 11 10. UCLA 17-7 1,996 17 11. New Mexico 21-5 982 10 12. Clemson 20-7 973 8 13. Iowa State 18-6 877 7 14. Xavier, Ohio 20-4 853 16 15. Arizona 17-7 716 13 16. Maryland 20-7 698 14 17. Louisville 21-6 626 15 18. Villanova 20-7 664 19 19. Colorado 19-7 499 21 20. Coll. of Charleston 25-2 386 22 21. Illinois 18-8 247 23 22. Indiana 21-8 181 24 23. St. Joseph's 19-6 142 — 24. Michigan 27-9 131 18 25. Stanford 16-7 108 20 Other teams receiving votes: Georgia 87, California 76, Iowa 74, Tusia 62, Princeton 49, Wisconsin 48, Texas Tech 35, Purdue 30, N.C. Charlotte 28, Providence 27, Texas 22, New Orleans 18, Massachusetts 16, Hawaii 15, Marquette 12, Pacific 11, Pacific 9, Mississippi 5, Tulane 5, Illinois 4, St. South Alabama 2, Bowling Green 1, Long Island U, 1, Oral Roberts, Oregon 1, SW Missouri St, 1, Vanderbilt 1. Women's AP Top 25 The Top 25 teams in The Associated Press women's college basketball poll, with first-place votes in parentheses, records through Feb. 23. rank team rec pta prv 1. Connecticut (38) 26-0 1,045 1 2. Old Dominion (38) 26-1 1,006 2 3. Stanford (1) 27-1 973 3 4. Georgia 22-4 903 5 5. North Carolina 24-2 874 4 6. Louisiana Tech 23-7 820 7 7. Alabama 22-5 771 6 8. Tennessee 21-8 686 8 9. LSU 23-3 682 13 10. Florida 19-7 656 10 11. Kansas 21-4 641 12 12. Texas 19-5 621 9 13. Virginia 20-6 601 11 14. Notre Dame 24-5 662 16 15. Texas Tech 17-7 394 14 16. Stephen F. Austin 25-3 179 18 17. Vanderbilt 17-9 342 15 18. Illinois 20-6 274 17 19. Geo. Washington 23-4 242 23 20. Michigan State 20-6 236 19 21. W. Kentucky 19-7 155 25 22. Clemson 17-9 125 21 23. Arkansas 17-9 113 20 24. Purdue 16-9 108 — 25. Duke 17-9 103 22 Other teams receiving votes: Portland 95, Tulane 61, Memphis 95, N Carolina St. 42, Southern Cal 32, Nebraska 28, Utah 26, Maryland 24, Colorado 18, Louisville 13, Oregon 13, Auburn 12, St. Joseph 10, Colorado St. 9, San Diego 9, St. Defoe 10, Pittsburgh 4, Hawaii 3, Northwestern 3, UC Santa Barbara 2, Drake 1, Iowa St. 1. 'Hawks slip by Sooners Kansas survives last-second shots by Oklahoma By Bill Petulla Kansan sportswriter NORMAN, Okla. — They just don't come much closer than the Kansas-Oklahoma game last night at the Lloyd Noble Center in Norman, Okla. This win marks the first time Kansas defeated Oklahoma in Norman since March 6. 1994. The misses from point-blank range left several Jayhawks thinking the worst. "I thought it was going into overtime," Kansas center B.J. Williams said. "I guess after all of the three-pointers they made, the luck finally shifted to us." The Sooners shot 43 percent from the three-point line. Forward Eduardo Najero, who entered the game having made only one of 11 three-point shots, sank two last night. Kansas men's basketball coach Roy Williams blamed himself for the failure to defend Naiero's bombs. "That's the coaching staff's fault," Williams said. "We just played the law of averages. We didn't expect him to be shooting the three, but he made two big ones." Kansas guard Jacque Vaughn, who netted 16 points last night, led the Jayhawks in scoring for the first time this season. Eight of Vaughn's 16 points were scored in the final 4 minutes, 25 seconds of the game. "Sometimes I have to do things that aren't in the stat sheet, but tonight it took for me to score a little bit," Vaughn said. "They were a little staggy, so I needed to create for our team. And I was able to do that." The first half started out as a defensive struggle. The Sooners, however, broke the scoring the victory marks the first time in Kansas basketball history that the Jayhawks began a season with a 27-1 record. Kansas was able to counter with an offensive surge of its own in the first half, outscoring Oklahoma 28-8. Kansas guard Billy Thomas took a pass from a driving Vaughn and nailed a three-point shot with two seconds remaining, closing out the half with the Jayhawks in front 37-22. drought and quickly jumped out to a 16-9 lead at the 9-minute mark. Kansas guard Paul Pierce said the Jayhawks were able to get the lead with defense. "We've relied on it (the defense) all year to bring us back," Pierce said. "We can control teams with our defense." Despite trailing by fifteen at half time, the Sooners chipped away at the Kansas lead. Behind the scoring of guard Nate Erdmann and guard Corey Brewer, who finished with 20 and 19 points respectively, Oklahoma came within two points of Kansas on two occasions. "A lesser team would have folded down by 15," Oklahoma men's basketball coach Kelvin Sampson said. "But we hung in there and took Kansas to the buzzer. We put ourselves in it at the end of the game, and that's all you can ask." The Jayhawks also alided Oklahoma's resurgence. Kansas shot 2 of 5 from the free-throw line in the final 46 seconds. Roy Williams, however, felt that the tight-game experience could only help the Jayhawks in the future. "We haven't been in that position very often," Williams said. "Usually at the end we're pulling away." Although his squad came within inches of bringing the No.1 team into overtime, Sampson had to tip his hat to Kansas. "We played our hearts out tonight," Sampson said. "I just can't say enough good things about Kansas." n Center Scot Pollard only logged eight minutes last night. Pollard, who is playing in only his second game after spending a month on the bench with a broken left foot, said it would take time to get back into the flow of the game. Kansas men's basketball trainer Mark Cairns said Pollard's foot was healthy enough to play on, but his playing time would be determined by Roy Williams. Tvler Wirken / KANSAN "It's going to be a while," Pollard said. "I felt a step slower tonight. I've just got to be patient." Oklahoma center Evan Wiley flies past Kansas forward B.J. Williams. The Jayhawks managed to keep the Sooners down to earth long enough to secure a 70-68 victory last night at the Lloyd-Noble Center in Norman, Okla. It was the first time in three years that Kansas won on Oklahoma's home court. Dixon leads the pack of Big 12 Player of the Year contenders By Tommy Gallagher Kansan sportswriter With one week remaining in the regular season, Kansas guard Tamecka Dixon continues to bewilder teammates, coaches and fans with spectacular moves on the court. Kansas women's basketball coach Marian Washington said Dixon deserved of the Big 12 Conference Player of the Year award, which will be announced next week. "She's a great athlete, she does everything and she's unselfish," Washington said. "I don't know if there's anybody in the country that's better than she is with the ball in the open court." Dixon ranks 14th in NCAA scoring and second in the Big 12 with 21.2 points per game. She also has 5.5 rebounds, 3.9 assists and 2.5 steals per game. Dixon failed to record more than 10 points in a game only once this season. In the game against Missouri-Kansas City on Dec. 11, she scored eight points in 19 minutes. The Jayhawks defeated UMKC by 20 points. "I don't think there's a more outstanding player in the league than Tamecke Dixon," said Iowa State women's basketball coach Bill Fennelly. "She has the ability to dictate a game on each end of the court, and she has the ability and desire to carry a team on her back. The ball is in her hands too much to stop her from getting her points in any game." The toughest competition Dixon faces for the Player of the Year honor is Texas Tech forward Alicia Thompson. She ranks sixth in NCAA scoring and first in the Big 12 with 23.8 points and adds 10 rebounds per game. Thompson has led No. 15 Texas Tech through the season, although the Red Raiders probably will finish second in the Big 12 South Division behind No. 12 Texas. While Dixon's and Thompson's numbers are similar, the difference in Player of the Year voting could be where each team stands at the end of the season. Texas Tech has remained a top-25 team throughout the season, although the Red Raiders are well short of winning the Big 12, as many analysts forecasted before the season. Meanwhile, No.11 Kansas is close to On the up and up Tamecka Dixon's career statistics: Year Assists APG PPG 1993-94 42 1.6 184 6.8 1994-95 80 1.6 338 11.3 1995-96 103 3.2 543 17.0 1996-97 94 3.9 511 21.2 Totals 319 3.9 576 14.1 reaching the top 10 for the first time since Feb. 7, 1994, and appears to be in position to be host of the first- and second-round games of the NCAA Tournament. While Dixon has astonished opposing coaches and players all season, her teammates also have worn the same stunned expressions as their opponents when watching Dixon play. "Tamecka's the best player I've ever played with," Kansas guard Angie Halbleib said. "I kind of think she's unguardable. Against Colorado she elevated over three defenders and hit a jump shot. Sometimes you just have to shake your head and say, 'I wish I could do that.'" Geoff Krieger / KANSAN Tamecka Dixon sprints up the court against Kansas State. Dixon scored 217 points against the Wildcats on Saturday, which was the 14th time this season she scored 20 or more points.