If you like the three-point shot…you’ll certainly enjoy Saturday night’s Kansas-Rider basketball game.
For Rider’s long-distance truck drivers – make that basketball operators – are committed to jacking up 19 foot, 9 inch bonus shots. First missile will be launched shortly after the 7:35 p.m. tipoff at Allen Fieldhouse.
“We got a good taste of that against Appalachian State (Monday). They shot 14 three-pointers. Rider will probably take twice as many,” said Kansas coach Larry Brown.
The 0-1 Roughriders of the East Coast Conference converted 151 of 331 three-pointers last year. Kansas, in comparison, went 61 of 169. Rider’s Ron Simpson, a 6-6 senior, ranked fifth nationally in three-pointers with 98 and seventh in three-point percentage at 52.4.
Simpson hasn’t stopped firing as a senior. HE connected on nine of 12 three-pointers and scored 48 points in Rider’s 118-115 double-overtime loss to St. Francis (NY) College last Saturday.
Rider’s fire-em-up tendencies do not concern Brown. He’s simply had too many other things on his mind.
“We have to worry about the way we’re playing,” said Brown, totally disgusted following the Jayhawks’ 73-62 win over Appy State. The fifth-year KU coach in fact, promised grueling workouts as punishment for the effort. Those practices started Tuesday.
“It’s nice to practice. I don’t know if the kids think that, but it’s fun to have an opportunity to practice,” Brown said. “It’s hard now because of exams. We went hard on Tuesday because it was stop day. Now the next 10 days, some kids will miss because of exams. We have odd hours.”
Brown is hoping to work out many kings at upcoming practices.
“The things that concern me, the areas that upset me are 1) We don’t play harder than the opposition and I never thought I’d say that. 2) I don’t think we play as unselfishly as past teams and 3) We don’t have great execution. WE’ve gotta change those three things and I’m hopeful we will.”
Brown’s been quite glib lately in discussing his team’s shortcomings.
“I think everybody looks for excuses. We played Appalachian State and people wonder if we can’t get up for them. If it happens one game, OK, but we didn’t get up for Iowa.
“The talk of fatigue (KU recently completed a stretch of seven games in 11 days ), that’s no excuse. I didn’t see their (Appy State’s) kids tired. I saw ’em hustle, cheer on the bench, pass it eight, 10, 12 times. I look for us to be as unselfish, to play hard and do what’s asked.”
Brown has been quite vocal in attempts to get the required effort. Some say he’s been too demanding on the troops.
“I asked Turg,” Brown said, referring to former guard Mark Turgeon, now working on the KU staff. “He thinks I’ve been easy on this team. I think people fail to realize we not only lost Ced and Turg, but so far we haven’t had Pipe and Keith (Harris), plus Sean (Alvarado), Joe Young and Mark (Randall).”
Chris Piper’s just returning from groin and knee injuries, Randall and Alvarado are being redshirted, Harris in and out of the coach’s doghouse and Young ineligible.
“Those are substantial losses. We’re relying on those guys,” Brown said. “Turg and Pipe said we’ve always had kids earn the right to play by their work at practice. This year, because of graduation and injuries and problems, kids have been given the right to play. It’s hurt our team. I want to see us play hard, unselfish and execute. If we do those three things I won’t be upset and they won’t be upset.”
Notes
A limited number of general admission tickets are available…Rider, 12-16 last year, is coached by John Carpenter, now in his 22nd year at the Lawrencevill, N.J., school…Brown said Piper is still not 100 percent. “Yesterday (Wednesday) his knee was not sore but his groin was real sore. I hope he’s healthy. We need more Pipers.”…
