Wednesday, January 24, 2007

Bracing for boos

KU's Arthur ready for chilly reception

By Gary Bedore

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Photo by Thad Allender

Kansas University's Darrell Arthur, left, battles Towson's Tommy Breaux for a rebound earlier this season. Arthur, a freshman, chose to attend KU after favoring Baylor just a day earlier.

Waco, Tex. — Kansas University freshman Darrell Arthur, who led Dallas South Oak Cliff High to a pair of Texas large-class state championships the past two years, does not expect a hero's welcome tonight when he returns to the Lone Star State.

That's because the Jayhawks' opponent is Baylor - the school that finished runner-up last spring in a much-publicized recruiting battle for the McDonald's All-American.

"I think they will boo," Arthur, KU's second-leading scorer, said of the Ferrell Center faithful, who are expected to pack the 10,284-seat arena for a 7 p.m. tip.

How bad will the booing be?

"Real bad," he said with a grin.

He is well aware Baylor fans last spring salivated at the thought of Arthur - who prepped a short hour and a half drive from Waco - joining fellow hamburger All-American Tweety Carter in what would have been a top-10 recruiting class.

"It will be real awkward (tonight) because I was very close to their coaching staff," Arthur said of head coach Scott Drew and his assistants. "They are a program on the rise. I just have to compete real hard and help us go for the win."

Arthur said Drew "was pretty upset" last May 9 when Arthur informed him he'd chosen KU one day after postponing a news conference in which he was all set to announce for Baylor.

Drew, in fact, was devastated after learning Arthur had a dream in which he pictured himself running the court in a KU jersey.

Arthur expecting rough welcome against Baylor

When the Kansas men's basketball team takes the floor at the Ferrell Center in Waco, Texas, don't expect any standing ovations.

"I just want to go jump in Lake Waco," Drew said at the time. "We had him and then we didn't."

Drew realizes Arthur would have made an imposing frontcourt with South Oak Cliff high school teammate Kevin Rogers, a 6-foot-9 BU sophomore who actually attended Arthur's media session, thinking - 24-hour delay or no delay - the player would select the Bears over the Jayhawks.

"It hurt a little," Rogers said of results of the news conference, "because I thought he'd come to Baylor. But he made the best decision for himself and his family. He's still a good friend, and we talk a lot."

Arthur respects his pal for not holding a grudge. Rogers forgave Arthur, as did Arthur's own grandmother, who at the time favored Baylor because of its proximity to Dallas.

"He was happy with my decision," Arthur said of Rogers, who leads BU in scoring (12.4) and rebounding (6.8). The two helped South Oak Cliff to a 32-7 record and state crown in 2004-05.

"He didn't want me to go to Baylor just because he goes there, and I respect that. He was trying to recruit me a little bit, but he just wanted me to do my own thing.

"He kind of wanted us to be apart from high school and see how things worked out, so I thought that was pretty cool."

Rogers actually almost attended KU a year before Arthur's arrival. The Jayhawks led for Rogers in recruiting until the day coach Bill Self landed a commitment from Julian Wright.

KU vs. Baylor

Comments

LAHAWK (anonymous) says...

Darrell, let's not try and impress everybody tonight. They all know you can play and so do we, so stay in the framework of your team and let's walk away with a hard fought victory. We are all glad you chose to play for the HAWKS. Forget the boo's, and play hard and smart.

go hawks

January 24, 2007 at 8:42 a.m. ( | suggest removal )

jaybate (anonymous) says...

Did other major programs like Duke, UNC, Arizona, UTAustin, or UCLA recruit Arthur, or was it always Baylor and KU?

January 24, 2007 at 8:52 a.m. ( | suggest removal )

chase353 (anonymous) says...

Baylor being in the Big 12 will make it worse. Ask Hinrich, Collison, and LaFrentz about the first time or two going home to IA.

Good luck Darrell I'm looking forward to a great game.

January 24, 2007 at 8:52 a.m. ( | suggest removal )

rockbrooklynchalk (anonymous) says...

LSU, Texas, and Baylor went after Darrell hard. UNC went after him when he was an underclassman but tailed off by the time he was a senior.

January 24, 2007 at 9:06 a.m. ( | suggest removal )

JayCeph (anonymous) says...

I hope they boo a lot because that will mean that we are getting the better of them. For every boo-bird in their cage, I want our team to look into the stands and flash a smile and pull out a hearty win. A big fat 'W' after the game will silence all their cries of sour grapes.

January 24, 2007 at 9:40 a.m. ( | suggest removal )

Jayhawk86 (anonymous) says...

God, I still remember that horrible loss at Baylor in '01. I think we were ranked 6 or 7 and they were winless in the big 12 in the middle of February. They played out their azz and beat us. I was in total disbelief. Now that was one of those losses where you were thinking WTF? I may be mistaken, but I think that was the only big 12 game Baylor won that year. Please lets not have a repeat of that miserable day.

January 24, 2007 at 9:45 a.m. ( | suggest removal )

LAJayhawk5 (anonymous) says...

Best way to get a recruit like Arthur? Don't be Baylor. Suck it, Bears.

rout on the road tonight!!!!

January 24, 2007 at 10:16 a.m. ( | suggest removal )

lalawguy (anonymous) says...

I remember that game in '01. The Bears came out strong because of the bulletin board material created by Kenny Gregory who "complimented" a sub-par team by saying something like "They aren't Texas A & M or Baylor."

Baylor was up by something like 20 by the end of the first half (which I think was a KU record at the time). Fortunately, KU came back and brought the lead under 10, but it was still too much to close the deal. I think the Jayhawks lost by 7. The lesson is that you can never underestimate any Big 12 team and you should never criticize any team before you play them.

On the plus side, I do think KU ended up schooling Texas A & M that year.

January 24, 2007 at 11:24 a.m. ( | suggest removal )

KUGreenMachine (anonymous) says...

i don't think that the baylor fans are smart enough to boo him! haha

rock chalk jayhawk!

January 24, 2007 at 12:20 p.m. ( | suggest removal )

bmcmich1 (anonymous) says...

I agree 100% with the first comment posted by djkc28--it's always nice to throw in a little human interest story before the game, but the importance of whether or not DA gets booed is miniscule compared to how bad we need a win and bounce back after that debacle on Saturday. That game made it painfully obvious that no game in the Big XII is a given, and tonight we need to take matters into our own hands by dictating the play right off the bat and never look back.

January 24, 2007 at 1:39 p.m. ( | suggest removal )

actorman (anonymous) says...

I think we were ranked 6 or 7 and they were winless in the big 12 in the middle of February. They played out their azz and beat us. I was in total disbelief. Now that was one of those losses where you were thinking WTF? I may be mistaken, but I think that was the only big 12 game Baylor won that year.

_________________________________________________________________

Yes, you are mistaken. These things can be easily checked out. Although Baylor wasn't a very good team, they did make the NIT that year so they weren't THAT bad. They were 4-6 in the conference going into the KU game, and ended up 6-10 -- although they did make it to the semifinals of the Big XII tournament.

January 24, 2007 at 2:38 p.m. ( | suggest removal )

jcsmith (anonymous) says...

Who gives a damn about a loss in '01. this is 2007 folks.... Enough of the bringing up losses from several years ago. Focus on whats happening NOW.... Tonights game at Baylor is what matters. I'm so tired of hearing people compare possibilities of this year with events from 5-10, 20 years ago. Who cares. Thats then. This is now. Get with the program.

January 24, 2007 at 3:27 p.m. ( | suggest removal )

jross1972 (Johann Ross) says...

jcsmith...

get some anger management please. no one cares what youre tired of whilst youre throwing your hissy fit. true, it may not have an impact on tonight's game, but do you really need to go into meltdown? I mean honestly!

January 24, 2007 at 3:58 p.m. ( | suggest removal )

Muska (anonymous) says...

The Baylor loss in 2001 was indeed pretty ugly. I just hope that all the people still crying that Roy left realize that Roy lost some games to sub-par teams (usually later in the season) just as Bill has recently. I remember the Kenny Gregory bulletin board material as well as Terry Black of BU playing out of his mind that night. It also reminds me of the time when Kirk Snyder of Nevada lit us up for 30 points and an upset a few years back as well. What people need to realize is that any team can beat any team in America if they get hot at home. The visiting team, whether superior or not, should always bring their "A" game regardless of their opponent. This worries me due to the fact that we have not come even close to being consistent at all this season. Anyway, I predict as jaybate does, if KU gets hot early and stays out of foul trouble, we win big whether the Bears play well or not. If we pick up some early fouls, miss free throws as usual and don't pick up the slack (which we undoubtedly should), look out.

January 24, 2007 at 4:02 p.m. ( | suggest removal )

JayCeph (anonymous) says...

jcsmith, you have a point... focus on what's happening now. I think a lot of what we are reading on these boards is a direct reflection of what is happening now. That just so happens to be a frightful parallel to what was going on in the past. Too many teams and games that the Hawks should win have been getting away from us. Granted, its only 3 games thus far, but look who the losses came at the hands of. That is why it is so prominent in the minds of most 'bloggers.'

Baylor is a team that KU should beat. So people are now getting edgy. ORU was in our house and beat us, DePaul was down by 14 in the second half and beat us, TTech took us out of our game by dictating tempo and they beat us. These are just examples of the losses.

Iowa State almost beat us but the good-guys were lucky enough to force over-time and then squeak out a 4 point win. At home, again, we played a team that had no business playing us close... Miz-zero. It was a rivalry game, we were on Big Monday on ESPN and they narrowly lost to us (thanks to a break-out game by our little Chicago phenom).

The current squad looks disoriented at times and isn't quite living up to potential. That is why people are saying, "Watch out for the Bears. Remember what they did to us in 01..."

The intent is to address focus and not take any game lightly while still executing your plan and soundly living up to potential while silencing the critics.

Everyone is focused on the 'now' while hopefully learning from the past. If we didn't do that, we might be doomed to repeat it, no?

January 24, 2007 at 4:04 p.m. ( | suggest removal )

okjhok (anonymous) says...

I had this posted in another forum, but this seems to be where it's at...

BU's success will have to come from Jerrells and his backcourt mates. If KU brings the defensive intensity that was sorely lacking Saturday, it could be a fun game. If not, I look for another grind-it-out effort against a lesser opponent, which is getting really old.

On a side note, wouldn't it be nice if KU brought it every second of every game like UNC, Florida, and UCLA do right now. If you don't know what I'm talking about, try and catch one of their games. As much as it pains me to say it, I'm envious of those programs right now. Where's the passion? This team must learn to get up for teams other than Florida and Ok State. Although, I'm not sure that's something that's learned. It'll be interesting. Let's take it to 'em tonite!

January 24, 2007 at 4:12 p.m. ( | suggest removal )

srj (anonymous) says...

Also remeber Baylor just had there butts handed to them by a not very good (but better then expected) OU.

January 24, 2007 at 4:22 p.m. ( | suggest removal )

beatleboy500 (anonymous) says...

if the baylor fans boo, i think that darrel should moon the crowd after an alley-oop. that's one way to get on sportcenter and show baylor which school's better!
Rock Chalk Jayhawk!

January 24, 2007 at 6:14 p.m. ( | suggest removal )

BABBOY (anonymous) says...

Good peace making points there jayceph. Great post okjhok. I still think the Dartmonth game which I think was right after the Florida game was one of our best games because they were so prepared for a lay down opponent.

Anyway, the Baylor game is soon to start so I am sticking to postive thoughts. GO KU!!!!

January 24, 2007 at 6:33 p.m. ( | suggest removal )

okjhok (anonymous) says...

Well, since, for some reason, the game is blacked out here in OK, I'm relegated to the forum, and internet updates. Woe is me. Anyway, looks like the boys are feeling all right tonight. Of course, not being able to see the action, I have no idea if it's a product of stifling defense or if BU just sucks that bad. Either way, I'm happy with the score.

On the other hand, I'm even more frustrated, not being able to figure out why this team can't be more consistent. Oh well, could be worse. I could have been born in Missouri.

January 24, 2007 at 7:54 p.m. ( | suggest removal )

KUGreenMachine (anonymous) says...

i knew their fans wouldn't be smart enough to boo!!! hahaha

rock chalk jayhawk

January 25, 2007 at 4:22 a.m. ( | suggest removal )