So you know Hinson wasn’t resorting to hyperbole when, asked about Kansas, he quipped: “I couldn’t see the game, they’re so big. I was standing on the chairs. That’s the biggest team I’ve ever seen.”

Aw, coach, how big were the Jayhawks, really?

“Eric Chenowith was talking to me,” Hinson continued, “and I was looking at his waistline. That’s a big sucker.”

Hinson had just watched Kansas batter the Bears, 77-43, on Saturday night in Kemper Arena, and he clearly hadn’t lost his sense of humor.

Earl Richardson/Journal-World Photo

“I think the telltale of the game,” Hinson said, “was KU held four of our starters to 3-of-28 shooting. The other telltale time was the start of the second half when we had five straight trips and didn’t make a shot. Defensively, Kansas was awesome.”

Hinson wasn’t feeling too bad at halftime. Kansas led, 44-30, but the shorter Bears had forged a 22-22 stalemate on the boards. Then came the start of the second half and SMS wasted its first eight trips down the floor. That was telltale, all right. The Bears shot only 20 percent (6 of 30) in the second half and scored a mere 13 points. KU also finished with a 49-36 rebounding bulge.

Other than Mike Wallace, a 6-8 junior, the Bears’ starters were awful. Wallace finished with 24 points more than half the team total while the other four starters scored seven points total. Guards Robert Yanders and Luke Dobbins were a combined 1-for-9 from the floor. Forward Charles Gaines was 1-for-7 and, worst of all, Scott Brakebill missed 11 of his 12 shots.

Going in, Brakebill, a 6-8 junior, was the Bears’ leading scorer at 16.1 points per game.

“I’ve never played a game like that, not even in high school,” a disappointed Brakebill said afterward. “I feel I let the team down. I felt a lot of pressure from them defensively. Not getting it done really gets you down.”

Brakebill praised the Jayhawks’ defense, but noted: “I still think I got the shots I normally get. I just didn’t knock ’em down.”

If it’s any consolation, Hinson doesn’t plan to send his leading scorer back to his hometown of Bolivar, Mo., with his tail between his legs.

“He’s going to have every opportunity to make up for this, and he’s going to do it,” Hinson said. “But he’s not the only one. We had four guys who went 3-for-28. Four guys. Players have to make shots. If you don’t, you struggle. Big players make shots. Period.”

Wallace was the only SMS player who fit the big-player category. The Spartanburg, S.C., product made 11 of 20 shots and collected a game-high 24 points to go with a team-high 10 boards.

“Wallace was phenomenal until he got tired,” Hinson said. “He had to play 29 minutes. Kansas had only one player who played over 29 minutes and that was (Kirk) Hinrich and that’s normal for him.”

Wallace made 9-of-13 shots in the first half, but only 2-of-7 in the second half. Daniel Novak, a junior from Slovakia, came off the bench for eight points. No other Bear scored more than three.

Saturday’s defeat was the Bears’ sixth in their past seven games. Now 4-6, SMS will play on Tuesday at Bradley.

“The biggest thing is our nonconference season is over and we have a new focus now,” Hinson said. “We’re going to go back tonight it’ll be late but we’ll get up tomorrow and have a fresh outlook.

“We’ll put this all behind us.”

Before Hinson put Saturday’s lopsided loss behind him, though, he wanted to emphasize how much he appreciated Kansas counterpart Roy Williams’ willingness to play the Bears. Last year SMS won more than 20 games, but wasn’t picked for the NCAA Tournament because it had too many mid-majors on its schedule.

“We sent out 117 faxes as soon as we were not selected by the NCAA,” Hinson said. “Only two agreed to play us at a neutral site. One was Kansas. Roy Williams did not have to play us. I appreciate that he did.”