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Sunday, February 10, 2008

Keegan

Keegan: Collins turns on the jets

By Tom Keegan

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Jayhawks take down Bears

The KU men's basketball team handled the scrappy Baylor Bears on Saturday night in Allen Fieldhouse.

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2007-08 Feb. 9 KU-Baylor Hoops

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Sherron Collins underwent foot surgery in mid-November after doctors discovered a stress fracture. After returning, he sprained an ankle. As the weeks passed, the world waited for the dribbling sprinter to reappear, the jet who covers ground more swiftly with the basketball than everybody else does without it.

The wait ended Saturday night. That's why if you watched Kansas University defeat Baylor, 100-90, in Allen Fieldhouse, your neck hurts from whipping back and forth, your jaw smarts from dropping, and your voice is hoarse from hollering amazement at the way Kansas played in the second half.

Scoring 64 points in a half without making a three-point shot, and turning the ball over just once in that time against a quality opponent simply doesn't happen in college basketball, except that it did. Collins, more than anyone else, made it happen.

"When Sherron puts his head down, he is running downhill," Kansas coach Bill Self said.

And the guys trying to stop him are running uphill. Collins generated about as much noise as a basketball player can in a 47-second second-half span: Darrell Arthur blocked a Josh Lomers shot, and Collins picked up the rebound and took it all the way in for a layup. Curtis Jerrells missed a three-point shot, Collins rebounded it, raced the other way and dished to Brandon Rush, who got way above the rim and gracefully dropped it in. Mario Chalmers quickly went high up for a steal and fed Collins for a layup that put KU up 67-56 with 7:55 left. Loud, louder, loudest.

Collins pushing the pace the way he did in the second half makes Kansas, no easy team to guard on its worst days, capable of big scoring outbursts.

Collins had 13 of his 17 points and all four of his assists in the second half. More than the numbers themselves, the speed at which and precision with which he compiled them portends well for Kansas as it heads to Austin to try to score a Big Monday victory against Texas.

Arthur (23 points) and Russell Robinson (22 points) score more than Collins, but game MVP honors belonged to the sophomore guard from Chicago.

"Shady was terrific," Self said of Arthur. "Russell was solid and played great, but Sherron was the spark tonight. I thought in the second half he changed the pace of the game and got us easy baskets in transition. I don't want to say that's what we've been missing, but from a health standpoint, he looked faster than he's looked all year. And that's what he brings to the table, stealing us easy baskets."

Weight problems and knee tendinitis slowed Collins late last season. This year, as he recovered from foot surgery, his legs got out of game shape.

"I'm feeling good, my weight's staying down, and my legs are coming back," Collins said. "I think I'm knocking all the rust off the nails right now."

His body has caught up to the pace at which his mind always wants to play the game, which is to say at full speed.

"Sometimes, your mind is telling you you can still do it, but your body won't let you," Collins said. "Sometimes, I got into forcing things, so, basically, I just started playing a little conservatively."

Upsets happen on nights teams make as many well challenged shots as Baylor made, but at the other end, Baylor had no answers for Collins and the rest of the KU legs in the relay race.

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Comments

jayhawker_97 (anonymous) says...

i'm so excited about Collins' return!! he's baaack!!
Collins will erase any doubts some fans still have of his performance.
welcome back, Sir Sherron!

February 10, 2008 at 4:55 a.m. ( | suggest removal )

1977kufan (anonymous) says...

Great article, Tom and exactly correct. It is super to see Sherron back on his "fast paced level". I am looking forward to the Monday night game. A win is definitely a key to the remainder of the season. Russell, please get some rest before the game with the shorthorns. Great game and work in every facet of the game from the coaching staff to every player. rock chalk, jayhawks!!!

February 10, 2008 at 8:22 a.m. ( | suggest removal )

jhwkfan162515 (anonymous) says...

I disagree with Keegan. The way Sherron played on offense does not mean we are going to beat UT tomorrow night. The way the guards played on defense means we likely will be beat by UT tomorrow night.

February 10, 2008 at 8:53 a.m. ( | suggest removal )

bobsarobot (anonymous) says...

oh definitely. we should jump all over our guards for that effort last night. texas looked dynamite in that overtime win at iowa state yesterday. a loss at texas is a sure thing. i get so mad when a team like KU wins an exciting game like the baylor game. winning shoot outs, blow outs, defensive battles and winning despite not playing well always points to a team which is sure to lose.

February 10, 2008 at 9:05 a.m. ( | suggest removal )

jross1972 (Joe Ross) says...

Here is what is concerning, if anything...

Its not that Kansas can't turn it on if we need to, we've shown that in the last two games.

But we have come out in THREE consecutive games, stumbling out of the gate. What's with the first half woes??? It makes me wonder if we are not mentally prepared to play. Now I know in the first half of the season, we had some subpar performances...by Kansas standards. Then we seemed to find a groove and we gelled. Im hoping that after the KSU loss, we build up in a similar fashion. Hopefully we're getting the kinks worked out of our system so that come tournament time we'll be brimming with confidence and swagger (I have to admit thats a hope from a biased fan).

Its not all apple pie and ice cream, though. We have some serious work to do before this team is ready to play in March. And for those of you who are tempted right now to say "oh its okay, we'll get it worked out", here's a reminder: March is a little more than two weeks away.

The time is NOW!

February 10, 2008 at 10:16 a.m. ( | suggest removal )

Jyhwk_InTigrtwn (anonymous) says...

bobsarobot - 'winning shoot outs, blow outs, defensive battles and winning despite not playing well always points to a team which is sure to lose.' huh? me, i just like wins.

what makes college b-ball so fun is how unpredictable things can be. its like weather forcasting - you can analyze the data all you want and often come up with the right guess - but not always. there are just way too many variables to say things like 'a loss at texas is a sure thing'. any player/team can get hot/cold on any given night. me, i'm gonna give the hawks the benefit of the doubt monday in tejas until proven otherwise. good teams find a way to win.

(bet you lost your 'sure thing' bet on the superbowl this year too.)

February 10, 2008 at 11 a.m. ( | suggest removal )

Lebowski (anonymous) says...

Bobsarobot,

I understand the criticism, I even agree with it to an extent. But a loss is a sure thing? What kind of fan are you? You just pick up on the bandwagon when the football team beat VTech or something?

Some people just need to chill out and root for the team without trying to analyze every aspect and constantly be on track of what's going to sink the ship. There's a lot of things to root for about this team. It annoys me that people can't appreciate a team that could very easily still be undefeated.

Russell, Mario and Sherron were 14/23 from the field with 49 points, had 12 assists and 6 steals to only 4 turnovers. WOW, they suck. Ride their asses! "Jump all over them for their effort" Obviously, they didn't play perfectly on the defensive end, but I'm not going to call their overall games anything short of good.

February 10, 2008 at 11:37 a.m. ( | suggest removal )

mickeykerr (anonymous) says...

I have always felt like Collins is the cocktail that stirs this KU's offense. With him at full speed, I think this team is more likely to go deep in the tournament. I know he's not even a starter right now, but I have always thought he's the secret for this team winning it all.

See what KC Star writer Jason Whitlock says about Collins:
http://www.kansascity.com/sports/colu...

February 10, 2008 at 11:55 a.m. ( | suggest removal )

jross1972 (Joe Ross) says...

say what you want to about KUs offense prowess. talk about the backcourt three point shooting if you want to. the progress of darnell jackson, the fact that pro prospects are on our roster, and the ability to go up and down the floor.

then let reality set in...

Kansas' success is predicated on defense, not offense. The games we played prior to KSU, we had more steals and forced more turnovers. We kept opponents down and won close games with a defense-first mindset. We held OJ Mayo to six points, didnt we?

Something about KStates performance against us has shaken our confidence, and its clear that since that game we have started games slowly out of the gate. We seem to be more reactionary than taking our game to the opponent. We can afford that against Colorado. There was doubt about the game against Baylor on our own floor well into the second half. And why? Tempo was dictated to us in the FIRST half.

Set your bouyant enthusiasm aside for the moment. We are all KU fans, but we must look at the reality. Our defense has holes in it. Texas--Abrams, Augustine, James, et al--is better than Baylor (with all due respect to a solid ball club) and we are playing them on THEIR floor not ours. If we dont bring inspired defense, we will lose this game, and all the optimism in the world wont change that fact.

February 10, 2008 at 12:40 p.m. ( | suggest removal )

Lebowski (anonymous) says...

"If we dont bring inspired defense, we will lose this game, and all the optimism in the world wont change that fact."

I agree 100% jross.

But...

All the negativity in the world won't change it either.

We are not required to look at the reality. We can simply sit here, watch games, get excited, be optimistic and hope kinks get ironed out, and be either heartbroken when KU falls short, or proudly proclaim that we believed in them all along when they put it together and win a championship. We can do that, because the reality we must face is the only impact we can have on the game is by showing up to games and unconditionally cheering the team on as loud as we can. We aren't the ones identifying and correcting shortcomings, as much as many wish they could help in that way!

There are a whole bunch of KU fans that I'm going to shush whenever KU does win the championship, because they will be invariably bitching and whining the entire way about what the team is doing wrong. (Not talking about you, jross) To say a team who has lost one game is "SURE" to lose a game... well, that person is not a KU fan, imo. Are they at risk to lose? Of course. But if someone honestly believes that this KU squad has no chance of winning any specific game, then they should just go cheer for someone else as far as I'm concerned.

JR... I agree with your view about the UT game. It can't be argued, as you preclude your view with an IF statement, which is also most likely accurate. But Bobsarobot has already marked an L on tomorrow's game. Most of the people I know who won't root for KU... it's because of KU fans like that. They're disgusted by it. Sometimes I don't blame them.

February 10, 2008 at 2:24 p.m. ( | suggest removal )

jaybate (anonymous) says...

Is it possible that Self turned the motivational juice down a notch for the Baylor game?

Was the wily old coach looking ahead to UT, despite telling his players not to?

That's one issue.

Here's the another.

Rush: 9pts., 7rb, 5 fouls
Dunn:23pts., 4rb, 3 fouls

Rush couldn't handle Dunn AND help the bigs rebound against their bigs. Our bigs have to become men about rebounding. We need Brandon to defend a good wing and beast offensively without having to lend rebounding help.

Here's one more.

KU off. rebs.--13 on 31 misses = .42 offensive reebs/missed shot
BU off. rebs.--18 on 40 misses = .45 offensive reebs/missed shot

They out offensive rebounded us by a slim margin and we tied in total rebounds.

Inference: we could not control the boards so we could not control Baylor. We just had to outscore them.

This should raise two questions:

a) how many teams will KU run into with other bigs they can only play to stalemate on the boards, as occured vs. Baylor; and

b) how many teams will KU run into that have bigs we cannot even stalemate with on the boards?

UCLA, Memphis, Georgetown and KSU could be very hairy match ups for our bigs. Memphis and KSU could cause the most trouble, because not only can their bigs play us to stalemate, but their big guards create serious match up problems that prevent KU from using their guards and wings to help out our bigs.

I reckon we can take KSU the next time with an A game.

Memphis just seems very problematic from every analytic point of view.

February 10, 2008 at 3:30 p.m. ( | suggest removal )

Jyhwk_InTigrtwn (anonymous) says...

Quote from a ku blog: (http://www.phogblog.com)

"Repeat the REAL Standings mantra after me: You prove yourself on the Road. You win championships on the Road. All you can do at Home is stay alive."

KU wins at texas in an ugly game tomorrow.

February 10, 2008 at 4:23 p.m. ( | suggest removal )

NavyHawk (anonymous) says...

The problem with the 'Hawks isn't so much that they're playing poorly, rather the opposing teams all tend to psyche themselves into a frenzy when playing Kansas. Remember, KU is THE team everyone marks on their schedule as the team to beat to make their season. Kansas has a bullseye on its back everywhere it plays, and it only gets bigger as conference play begins, especially with the unbeaten record KU had going into this season's conference schedule.

All that said, KU can't afford to let down in any game, or they'll suffer the same fate KSU did against a depleted MU squad. These kids just have to continue to bring their lunch pails to work every night. There will be nights where everything goes right for the opposing team (KSU this year, UCLA last are two that come to mind). Last night KU didn't let Baylor's nearly perfect night do it again. They just hit more deuces and shot well enough from the free throw stripe.

Go 'Hawks, beak the 'Horns!!

February 10, 2008 at 4:38 p.m. ( | suggest removal )

Jhawkerman (anonymous) says...

Let's face it ... KU is a Poor rebounding team at times .. Kaun is extremely weak at blocking out, Shady lacks the size to be effective at times against bigger centers and power forwards. Jackson and Rush have been our most effective rebounders of late. Aldrich has shown why he's a MAA but he's still learning. I do believe come tournament time he will be a major factor inside if he continues to improve at the rate he's going. Kansas has a Great basketball team and when they apply themselves there is little doubt they are the best team in the nation. Blocking out is our biggest rebounding weakness and until we learn to do a more effective job at that we are vulnerable to teams of size and quickness

February 10, 2008 at 5:41 p.m. ( | suggest removal )

jross1972 (Joe Ross) says...

Tomorrow night's game will either dispel or affirm some concerns of mine. So Ill leave it at that...

February 10, 2008 at 6:12 p.m. ( | suggest removal )

mickeykerr (anonymous) says...

jross,
Yes, defense is crucial to this team's identity. But, without sounding too simple here, it's the team who has the most points at :00 that wins. And Kansas scoring only 55 points against UCLA last year to end their season just isn't goint to cut it (sorry, no pun intended). KU's defense held a well-coached and experienced team to a respectable 68 points. But the Jayhawks were so ice cold they were missing layups! ....It was ugly. Note: Collins played hurt.

Defense may get them to another Elite Eight, but there will be a time in a championship run, that the offense has to take over. Do we really think Kansas is going to beat the likes of North Carolina, Memphis, UCLA, Duke on lots of hussle and good tough defense. One problem I see with Kansas the past few years is that their offense relies too heavily on easy points of steals. But excellent teams have great ball-handling guards. You just can't expect KU's guards to take the ball away from the likes of NC's Lawson or Memphis' Rose. Get Real!

They need someone to step-up offensively, a go-to-guy, that goes on a scoring tear, or at least initiates it. And that guy is Collins. He has a much higher ceiling than russ rob and chalmers. Mark my word: If Collins can stay healthy, he will be a dark horse in the NBA. He will have a much more successful career than anyone else on the team, more than Chalmers, more than Arthur, and yep, Rush too. Collins has been injured and had weight problems, but he rode this team last year to a conference title. He is a beast - watch out!!

February 10, 2008 at 9:52 p.m. ( | suggest removal )

oldalum (anonymous) says...

I thought bobsarobot was being scarcastic.

February 10, 2008 at 10:11 p.m. ( | suggest removal )

didjabuti (anonymous) says...

oldalum,

I thought so too. I couldn't believe anybody jumped his case. It seems like a respone to jhwkfan1625, and everything he said contradicted itself. Was it that hard to pick up?

February 10, 2008 at 10:29 p.m. ( | suggest removal )

jaybate (anonymous) says...

Isn't basketball a maddeningly complex and wonderful game to analyse?

Someone's bigs giving our bigs a tough time can indirectly reduce the effectiveness of our guards and wings because they have to play more help.

Someone's tall guards outrebounding our short guards exposes how much we rely on our short guards to cover up for our tendency to let our bigs roam far from the blocks in the pick and roll.

Sometimes Rush has to let his man score a bunch, while he goes back and plays back side help and front side lane denial to assist our bigs.

And on and on.

Its amazing how much complexity emerges from five on five basketball. It is what makes it so endlessly fascinating.

Beats hell out of a Rubic's cube.

February 10, 2008 at 10:46 p.m. ( | suggest removal )

jross1972 (Joe Ross) says...

@mickeykerr...

I never said defense was everything. i never said offense was nothing. Its very easy to answer your post. One or the other cant be sorely lacking. Our offense wasnt missing the other night, our defense was (and I didnt need Coach Self to assist in helping make the point, though he did).

So, with regard to the team having the most points at 00:00, I could cite game after game we have lost where we didnt hold teams to what we were capable of holding them to. Im not asking for miracles here. Nobody is asking this team to walk on water and then turn it into wine. Its within our capability to play well. We've shown that we can do it. Lets do it again. Can it get any less self-explanatory?

Its simple. Play some defense.

February 10, 2008 at 11 p.m. ( | suggest removal )

bobsarobot (anonymous) says...

are there more than two people on this board who understand sarcasm when it is in the form of the written word? i was playing off the previous post which stated KU would probably lose to texas because of the guard play.

February 11, 2008 at 9:19 a.m. ( | suggest removal )

jross1972 (Joe Ross) says...

bobsarobot...

if you want to roll the dice and be sarcastic, take your chances. but keep in mind that no one here can read your facial expressions or hear the inflexion in your tone of voice through black and white words. You cant really blame people then for not knowing you werent serious.

February 11, 2008 at 3:22 p.m. ( | suggest removal )