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Kansas guard Sherron Collins penetrates through the Baylor defense as he elevates to the bucket during the second half Monday, Feb. 2, 2009 at the Ferrell Center in Waco.
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Things can change quickly in Big 12 Conference men’s basketball.
“It’s a roller coaster. You are on top and on the bottom in the same week. You are only as good as your last game,” Baylor University coach Scott Drew said.
True enough.
Fair enough.
But as of this exact moment — entering Saturday’s 2:30 p.m. home game against Oklahoma State — Kansas University’s rebuilt basketball team happens to be at the top rung of the Orient Express.
The Jayhawks, who returned just two multi-minute contributors (Cole Aldrich, Sherron Collins) off last year’s national title team, are off to an 18-4 start, 7-0 in the league.
How’s that possible?
“By working every day in practice,” KU junior forward Mario Little said. “Knowing we don’t know the game — coach knows the game — listening to him and working every day.”
The 6-foot-5, 210-pound undersized power forward said it’s no big deal the Jayhawks are starting to get some national attention.
KU on Monday entered the AP rankings for the first time in eight weeks. The Jayhawks — who were AP’s preseason No. 24, checked in at No. 21 after an extended absence.
“We have been ranked before. I’m not tripping on being ranked,” Little said with a smile. “We know we can easily not be ranked, too. We’ve got to keep working at practice.”
Little — he contributed 12 points in 13 minutes in Monday’s 75-65 victory at Baylor — said the sky actually is the limit for this team.
“Yes, if we keep winning, of course,” Little said of the possibility of KU continuing to improve in the ratings. KU is No. 24 in the USA Today/ESPN poll.
“This is the Big 12. We have tough games coming up, a good Oklahoma State team, then Missouri right after that (Monday in Columbia, Mo.). They (voters) have to at least recognize we are a good team. We’re scratching the surface. It (KU future) all depends on what we do at practice.”
As far as his contributions at power forward ... “It’s been a team effort. If it wasn’t me, somebody else would be stepping up,” Little said.
• Bilas impressed: ESPN announcer Jay Bilas has taken notice of KU’s 18-4 start.
“Kansas coach Bill Self may be doing the best coaching job of his career,” Bilas wrote on ESPN.com. “He does not have a single starter back from last year’s title team, and has new players at almost every spot. Nevertheless, Self has made this into a Top 25 team and a contender for the Big 12 title (although I feel that Oklahoma is the best team in that league). In a year or two, Kansas will be a Top 10 team and a national championship contender.”
• New nickname for KU big man: Cole Aldrich’s dad, Walt, reports that Cole’s teammates have started calling him, “Phantom of the Phog” in connection with Cole’s wearing his Phantom of the Opera-like face mask the past two games.
“I thought it was pretty cute,” Walt Aldrich said of the nickname.
Behind the Lens: Game Over April 19, 2012
Jeff Withey says he considered leaving early April 9, 2012
Final thoughts following KU's run to national championship game April 3, 2012
Elijah Johnson and Tyshawn Taylor post-game interviews April 3, 2012
Tyshawn Taylor and Thomas Robinson: Linked through their KU careers April 2, 2012
Comments
killabees (anonymous) says…
Nice Worlds of Fun reference.
johnsont1 (anonymous) says…
great article... maybe needs a different title. don't ya think?
drgnslayr (anonymous) says…
Every game counts big now... they've got to show up ready to play for every game from here on out. They need to stay up at the top with OU so we can face them down in Norman for the Big 12 regular season title. That will only happen if they take every one of these next games seriously and come ready to play.We've seen them reach to their season's highest level of play in the second half of the Baylor game. Now they need to maintain that effort and keep climbing. It's like they shifted up a gear!Go Hawks!
DrRoach (anonymous) says…
NO! That was not there highest level of play-- you must of missed some earlier games.And oh-by-the-way, while most of you were crying in your beer 2 months ago about how this team could be .500 at this point: I correctly predicted, (or closely), a 20-5 record at the 25 game mark. i am the bill self basketball god. always have been, always will be. he is the greatest coach in the game today. Albeit close.Roach- OUT!!!
Hawklin (anonymous) says…
Worlds of Fun reference is nice killa, but like many articles here its flubbed info. The Orient Express has been gone for years.
wi_jayhawk (anonymous) says…
"Phantom of the Phog" is great, as long as Cole doesn't start disappearing during games...
OakvilleJHawk (anonymous) says…
I keep preaching 16-0, it can happen, just believe...Texas-over rated??... Oklahoma and Missouri there??- tough but not impossible,.. The rest of the schedule??-KU plays to potential, better than all.Rivals.com currently has Kansas as the fourth best fourth seed. Gives some perspective to the team based on last off season how some doubted that we would even make the playoffs. Credit to coaching staff and players for not accepting any excuse like youth, inexperience or injury as a reason for less than stellar bball. Good post, Dr Roach, but if you ever sign off like JIm Rome again, you will be banned from this site :}I certainly hope the Moms of our freshmen player have John Wall's Mom's phone number. I can't think of any better recruiting tool than the Mother Network!! Oh, I guess I better check to see if this is a NCAA violation!! What a bunch of DOLTS!!!Things on the downswing: The Stock Market, the Temperature, Rick Barnes coaching ability evaluation [ shades of the Ted Owens Syndrome - recruit like a champ...coach like a chimp]The new nickname is catchy, but Cole will always be the condor!!!!For the first time EVER I actually keyed into KU Football on this site in February!!! Hey Jaybate, KUShaw, Lebowski, 100, kuproud..wake up you guys, daylight's a burnin'
KUPROUD (anonymous) says…
yaawwn! Good morning, Oakville. Late night watching a couple of good ballgames. MU and A&M both impressed me, and I was hoping to see KU on top of the Big 12 alone today. Alas, not to be. I am convinced that there is very little separating the top 6 teams, and both home and road games will be in question. ok, ks, mu, tx, ksu, a&m, a few made or missed shots late in the game will tell the story. In my completely unbiased opinion, the edge right now goes to KU because of coaching. Although we are young, it appears to me that our players are at this stage buying into and playing the coach's brand of ball more consistently than the others, who tend to get caught up in the helter skelter pace and take a lot wild shots. Now, don't prove me wrong, hawks.
kustrong (anonymous) says…
Steadily Getting it Done!Rock Chalk
OakvilleJHawk (anonymous) says…
Back atcha kuproud..drgnslayr and I must be early birds. My grand celestial plan..KU and OU continue to win...UCONN chokes against someone...OU eventually attains the #1 Ranking and immediately after, KU fulfills the season long "Curse of the Number One" and beats OU in front of a shocked nation!!!Sounds pretty good, I think.
kusarge (anonymous) says…
Rick Barnes CANNOT coach. As for recruiting, can't really say, but....with the biggest athletic budget in the nation, I could recruit a top 25 team to Texas.
jhyphene (anonymous) says…
Cute?
kushaw (Chris Shaw) says…
Rick Barnes can most definitely "Recruit". He just doesn't have the "Patience" to teach any discipline. That team has every component except the one major "Ingredient" to make the "Entree" superb. He has the Pasta and Sauce, but no freaking "Meatballs". TJ Ford, Daniel Gibson, and Augustine have all been staples of Texas basketball and right now they have no true point guard and right now it's showing in their "L" column. Think about this for a second (This is worst case scenario, I hope). If KU goes 4-5 in it's next 9 games they would still finish 11-5 in the Big 12. What's funny is that most of us would have "Taken" that record during conference play. My how things change in just 7 games. Okie State is playing awful right now so I hope they don't find a "Mask" and "Cape" all of a suddent (That's 1 win). KU still has Nebraska and Iowa State at home (Tha't win 2 and 3). KU still has Missouri, Texas at home so maybe KU can get a win there if not both. KU is still on the road at K-State, Missouri, Texas Tech, and OU and I would be happy with a record of 2-2 (That would be wins 4 and 5). So, if you take a split with the Missouri and Texas INMHO worst case scenario KU would finish 13-3. As one poster above stated, going 16-0 is a possibility, but very unlikely. This is actually one time I would be gladly to "Eat Crow", but I don't see how KU can go 16-0. There is going to be some "Bump" along the way. If KU somehow lost at home, how would this team react to that? I"m not really sure. It's looking well, but KU has got to take care of business against the Nebraska's and Colorado's of the world. MIssouri did not take care of business and they are "Looming" in third with two losses. A win against Texas certainly helps Missouri, but Missouri hasn't hit the chunk of their schedule yet either.
FairgroveJayhawk (anonymous) says…
Little has a great attitude. I haven't heard such wise words spoken from any other player this season. His mature words remind me of those spoken by some of our players from last years championship team. I will now try to emulate such mature words....Hope it spreads like stink on a mizzu fan!!!Rock Chalk!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
jchief40 (anonymous) says…
Yaaay! Yaaay! woot! woot! What's that sounds retarded. Woot? No one ever says woot but I see it more often than not on the web. No more woot! The economy sucks. Rock Chalk. Bye
OakvilleJHawk (anonymous) says…
jchie40......and your point was...?????kushaw...your realistic evaluation of the schedule is logical, but if at least one person doesn't put a dream out into the cosmos, that dream will never come true. [ I think Einstien said that...or maybe it was Mighty Mouse]. Anyway, great point about escalating expectations. If you told me we would be in the top 25 and upper half of the conference and have a chance to make the NCAA playoffs in August, I would have been thrilled. Now, I'm thinking undefeated conference record, Top Ten and #2 seed!!!If it happens, it happens but the good news is......ku will be even better next year!!!!!!i have my KU Victory Haiku ready for Saturday, but it's bad luck to pre-post. [ I'm sure Mighty Mouse said that!!]
jaybate (anonymous) says…
My dad had a great, wry saying:"Guard play is the key to victory...when you have the best big men...otherwise it is the key to the elevator."Elevators of course go up and down.There are a very few exceptions, where a truly great coach can milk a team with a short, or modestly talented tall, front court a long ways. Eddie did it in 1978. Self did it at Tulsa. But eventually they faltered. You might even say Lute Olsen went all the way with his 4 tall sticks with his ring team, but those 4 tall sticks were pretty darned athletic. There are from the early modern era to present only two examples of champions being constructed out of short front courts. Wooden architected both.Suffice it to say that for the rest of the merely great coaches, and all the lessers, if you don't have the better bigs, then your team is unpredictable--lots of highs with the perimeter runts looking sick at the edges of their envelopes and lots of lows with same sucking bad because they can't hit the broad side of a hay storage facility.The bigs are not only still tall at the end of games, they are also still able to get stick backs when they, or the guards, can't hit. Some of basketball is exceedingly simple. Good big men reduce variance. Self evident. End of point.The rest of the B12, except for OU, is unstable, because either they don't have a great post man, or they don't have a four man big rotation that can be its equivalent.
jaybate (anonymous) says…
Presently, OU has a great big man in Blake.Presently, KU has a legitimate four man front court rotation, with Cole approaching, but not yet reaching consistent dominance. Presently, OU and KU are the only stable teams.Surprise, surprise.OU is a lot more stable than KU, because Blake is a lot more stable than our big man committee.However, OU's problem is that they lack a four man front court rotation. They are trying to fool everyone with Blake and a player to be named later.KU's problem is that they lack a dominant, unstoppable big.Frankly, I'd rather have our problem.It is easier for four good bigs to stop a great big, than it is for a great big to stop four good ones.But KU's four bigs are not yet all good, and they are not yet playing as a cohesive front court ready to neutralize Blake.Fortunately for KU, the rest of the season is about building our four bigs to a point of being a countervailing force capable of playing Blake at least to a stand off, so that KU's strong perimeter play can become decisive.Willie Warren is apparently quite a player on OU's perimeter. And he is a guy we could have a lot of trouble managing, if Tyshawn is still playing timidly by the OU game. But Tyshawn is just about the ideal match up for Willie Warren, based on speed, and based on them both being green sapplings, especially when Tyshawn is backed up by four bigs and has Brady helping on one side.If the bigs develop, and Tyshawn gets tough, then this game will quickly default to Sherronatron being our edge. And when the Sooners try to shut him down, then the key will be: can Brady and Tyrel become devout and accurate trinitarians? The odds are they can.Of course we can beat OU, OakvilleJHawk...if our bigs develop on schedule; this is why I have been writing so much about the cliques and fault lines involving the bigs. Right now the guys have the experience they need and they and their coaches now know what schemes be run that can optimize strengths and limitations against good D1 competition. The key now is to take the final step in transforming this four man rotation into a cohesive Marine rifle company that focuses utterly on its job, does whatever it takes to get that job done, and takes no prisoners.
hawken (anonymous) says…
It's a little embarrassing that KU grads think Orient Express is Worlds of Fun reference. The ride was a reference to a famous train in Europe that has been featured in many books and movies. There is currently a luxury hotel chain calle the Orient Express. Hardly flubbed info.
approx (anonymous) says…
Hawken, does the Orient Express train finishes on a "top rung", as the article has stated? Being a Virginia resident, I had no idea what the Orient Express train had to do with being on a top rung, until these generous souls explained it to me. So thanks, everyone not named hawken!
KUFan90 (anonymous) says…
The Orient Express was a cool roller coaster. My favorite at WoF growing up.
drgnslayr (anonymous) says…
DrRoach (anonymous) says...NO! That was not there highest level of play-- you must of missed some earlier games.----------------So which earlier road game against a quality team was a better half of basketball?
kubasketball0809 (anonymous) says…
These Jayhawks can most definantly finish at the top of the Big 12 and possibly be close to the top of the nation... I have faith in these Hawks... Mario will make a dunk here in a game or 2 lol.... If oklahoma chokes and we can beat out texas we have no problem grasping another Big 12 Title...Rock Chalk Jayhawk.....This is to the Jayhawk Nation
jaybate (anonymous) says…
hawken,Maybe give them an Agatha Christy hint, as in "Murder on..."Next, give hint of Hercule Poirot.Next try Peter Ustinov.If these do not work, try linking literary allusion to promise of a keg of their favorite brew.
didjabuti (anonymous) says…
The comment was made about a roller coaster. It definitely was a Worlds of Fun reference, and I also thought it was odd to say we're at the peak. One, because that particular roller coaster is no longer in operation. Two, because as soon as you hit the peak you go down.
didjabuti (anonymous) says…
I take it back, on the Orient there is a short level stretch once you reach the peak....Then it plummets. Although I'm sure the rest of the year there will be ups and downs and lots of screaming. Plus you always want to go back and do it again. So maybe not entirely horrible reference.
jaybate (anonymous) says…
didjabuti,No doubt we are all separated by a common language. This should be called conflation nation sometimes.There is no shame in misundestanding what someone else meant.Nor is there any shame in not writing quite clearly enough to be understood.The great thing about the medium is that at zero marginal cost, we get chances to clarify.The only shame is not giving another person a chance to be more clear in their meaning.Fully 50% of the harrangues around here deal with persons not giving each other any slack.And there is no way around this occassional misunderstanding.If you go short, the way so many prefer, then you leave stuff out.If you go long, like I often do, people get bored and don't keep reading and misunderstand because they never got what you were elaborating on.Frankly, I am endlessly fascinated both by how communication works, and by how it breaks down.Listening to persons here misunderstand each other deepens my awareness that diplomacy among states, bargaining among firms, and couples therapy are rather miraculous when they produce any positive outcomes at all.Post Script: If you like Worlds of Fun, and I always used to, try Magic Mountain on the north side of metro Los Angeles. It has to be one of the roller coaster capitals of the world, just in sheer numbers of rc's.
NH_JHawk (anonymous) says…
I echo the poster above that said the Orient Express was their favorite ride as a kid. I loved that ride even more than the Timber Wolf. Jaybate - the roller coaster capital of the USA has got to be Cedar Point in Sandusky, OH. Now that's a great rc park! Something like 15 total.http://www.cedarpoint.com/I like the rc reference. It has it's ups and downs but can be frustrating at times when you're waiting in the long line to get on.... just like it's been frustrating at times watching these freshman play up and down and we're waiting for them to learn the system. But at the end of the ride you want more and that's how I feel after watching a KUBB game. I want more! Bring on the rest of the B12. Should serve as a good barometer of our potential leading into the big dance and for next year.
hawken (anonymous) says…
Stupid comment on my part. He was obviously referring to the roller coaster not the original. I'll think twice before I shoot my mouth off next time.
jaybate (anonymous) says…
NH_JHawk,I've heard about that park. Haven't visited. Supposedly a lot of fun. Still, you won't be disappointed at Magic Mountain in LA. I've seen Green Berets wet their pants on some of the rides.
jaybate (anonymous) says…
Lebowski,Copy that.All that is of paramount importance now is for them to keep improving by inches and not let anyone physically abuse and intimidate them any more. No more Nebraska games. Nebraska was particularly disheartening, because Nebraska doesn't really have any prison bodies, which Texas and OU will bring to the table. Nebraska just had punks. Texas and, especially OU, have the muscles to hurt them bad, if they have to. And Capel proved last year that he is willing to play as dirty when he's down as Bob Knight, Coach K, or Lute Olsen ever were. I figure we can beat Texas, almost as we are.OU will require development of the bigs into a cohesive four man rotation; that should happen by game day with the Sooners.What I can't forecast is whether these guys will get tough enough to handle what OU will dish out, should we get 10-15 points up. It won't be pretty. Ask RR about how it feels to get Capelled into the cheap seats?Regardless, this promises a lot of drama.They are going to keep getting mugged by the thug ballers, who have tapes that reveal you can beat them up and they don't retaliate in kind.Thug ballers need to know that the payback will hurt more than what they dish out; that was what was so great about last year's KU bigs. Hurt us and we'll treat you baaaaaaaaaaad! Be nice and we'll be nice.I don't see the muscles on Cole and the Twins to dish out what it would require to discourage the thugs.Hence, I expect to see some more crimson blood this season dripping on blue shirts and I really wish that wouldn't happen again.
PAHAWK1 (anonymous) says…
Lately, this team is playing with confidence. They find a way to win games. KU could have been 20-2 and top-10 in both polls. They have won last seven games (4 on the road). IMHO that is not a roller coaster ride. Is it possible that we perceive it bacause of our high expectations? By the way, Big East and ACC are overrated. And so is Texas.
Omegatron (anonymous) says…
"Bilas impressed: ESPN announcer Jay Bilas has taken notice of KU’s 18-4 start.“Kansas coach Bill Self may be doing the best coaching job of his career,” Bilas wrote on ESPN.com. “He does not have a single starter back from last year’s title team, and has new players at almost every spot. Nevertheless, Self has made this into a Top 25 team and a contender for the Big 12 title (although I feel that Oklahoma is the best team in that league). In a year or two, Kansas will be a Top 10 team and a national championship contender.” "A year or two for the top 10? What, the season is already done? There's no games left, There's no post season tournaments? ESPN announcers, gotta love them...
firket2000 (anonymous) says…
jaybate I noticed you didn't include Little in w/ the Twins & Cole on not having enough muscle so do you expect him to be the enforcer?
nobodylikesmizzou (anonymous) says…
OmegatronI'm actually with Bilas on this one. He is echoing what many have said on these boards all season...We are essentially an overachieving team, despite the two losses that got away and a fairly soft Big 12 schedule. And while some would rank us higher, to me we're ranked about right. As you said, there are plenty of games left, but a lof of teams would have to lose and we would have to win a lot of them...Possible yes, but realistically, we should be expecting a couple bumps before it's all said and done...To think we will be contending for a championship this season is mildly unrealistic, but in a year or two, as Bilas noted, when the players we have develop and we add some more pieces, we will be a contender. Notice that Bilas said WILL. If he wanted to say Kansas could be a contender this season, he could have, but using that logic, anybody CAN be a contender. But he recognizes that Self will have this team ready for a championship once we have a bit of experience under our belts.Don't hate on Bilas-- he is one of the most consistently pro-Kansas commentators that has ever graced the wonderful world of Bristol, CT
jayhawkcomet (anonymous) says…
Love the Marine rifle team reference jaybate! ~~ various devastating weapons all greased, cleaned, and loaded, team members firing in perfect accord toward a common goal. Not there yet, but getting there. WooHoo! Rock Chalk KU! Simply one thrilling season!
rockchalkjayhawk4ku11 (anonymous) says…
The Orient Express is now that stupid dragon ride that spins around.
Omegatron (anonymous) says…
"I'm actually with Bilas on this one. He is echoing what many have said on these boards all season...We are essentially an overachieving team, despite the two losses that got away and a fairly soft Big 12 schedule. And while some would rank us higher, to me we're ranked about right. As you said, there are plenty of games left, but a lof of teams would have to lose and we would have to win a lot of them...Possible yes, but realistically, we should be expecting a couple bumps before it's all said and done...To think we will be contending for a championship this season is mildly unrealistic, but in a year or two, as Bilas noted, when the players we have develop and we add some more pieces, we will be a contender. Notice that Bilas said WILL. If he wanted to say Kansas could be a contender this season, he could have, but using that logic, anybody CAN be a contender. But he recognizes that Self will have this team ready for a championship once we have a bit of experience under our belts.Don't hate on Bilas-- he is one of the most consistently pro-Kansas commentators that has ever graced the wonderful world of Bristol, CT"I don't see were we've overachieved this year. I've seen were we've underachieved (Syracuse and Massachusetts), but to overachieve we would've had to have won one of the two major road games this year (Arizona and Michigan State) which we didn't. The only game left that an overachieving argument can be made, That I know of, is the Oklahoma game. Can't make it for Texas because they lost to both K-State and Mizzou. I'm sorry, we are not worst then those two teams.As for teams ahead losing. Texas, Duke, and Wake Forest lost last night. Oklahoma once again had to pull off a second half come back to remain undefeated.Bumps and bruises are always expected in college basketball, it's part of the game. Is there enough bumps and bruises left that will keep KU out of the Top 10? I guess we'll see...
Omegatron (anonymous) says…
Minnesota... that was the other top 25 that lost last night... I thought I remembered four....
mcorti (anonymous) says…
this is a sports article comment post. not the "hey look at me I'm a journalism student at KU and i know something" forum. no one cares what you think of the grammar and/or title of the article.
jaybate (anonymous) says…
mcorti,Speak for yourself.I care what he thinks about grammar and/or the title of the article.Why do so many people on here think they know what everyone else cares about?How can you possibly know what hundreds or thousands of other persons care about?"this is a sports article comment post."--mcortiI care that you didn't capitalize T in this.I care that "sports article comment post" is a form of lousy writing called noun-stacking.I care that you don't care about whether or not sports writers and board rats write well, or poorly.I care that you don't care that most poor writing is a product of poor thinking.I care. I can't speak for anyone else. But I sure as heck care.
jaybate (anonymous) says…
firket2000,Mario Little is clearly a stud, and a junior on the time line, but I don't see him as a stand alone enforcer. Power forward/enforcers at the four are not 6'5" tall and 220. They are 6'8" to 6'10" tall. They go 250 to 260 and they have strong, broad shoulders, cut bicepts and when they clamp down on a ball no one can rip it out. Whether they are smiley, or grim, you know they won't back down from a buzz saw. And they will step into any potential melee fearlessly and be willing to protect their teammates at any cost. Opponents bigs are basically afraid to tangle with them. For reference, Darnell Jackson was this man for last year's team. No disrespect to Mario Little, but he does not seem qualified for this role.But just as a team that lacks a dominant center can make up for it with a four-man rotation of good bigs, so too can a team that lacks a dominant enforcer make up for it with a four man rotation of bigs willing to be The Four Musketeers--the king's men--the men who believe it is not only their jobs to rebound and defend the paint, but also stand one for all and all for one against even the fiercest dominant enforcer. These kinds of four-man rotations make clear that if you harm any one of us, you harm all of us, and we will come at you relentlessly for the rest of the game with retaliation until the score is evened and you cease and desist. Collective security always trumps the single tough guy.Depending on whom you read, collective security was developed by either: a) the kingdoms of western Europe, forming armies of knights, to defend themselves from Viking piracy; orb) the Viking pirates, themselves, forming armies of knights, to institutionalize their piracy by subjugating kingdoms that occassionally sought to free themselves from the piracy.
jaybate (anonymous) says…
Game theorists and historians among you will notice the startling significance and revisionism of the second scenario. To learn more about it, read "Kings and Vikings: Scandinavia and Europe AD700-1100" by P. H. Sawyer. It will change the way you view the history of Western Civilization, AND the way you view the major players on the world stage today. But I digress.Thug ball is a form of piracy. It is a bunch of pirates coming onto a floor that belongs to the game of basketball and saying, "We are going to take this game away from you by breaking the rules with excessive violence."Little, the Twins and Cole as the knights of the European kingdoms and band together to smite the Vikings. Either that or be smited.In basketball, there is first the golden rule: treat others as you would like to be treated.But when the golden rule is broken...all bets are off.