“I sat down and watched a lot of games last week the Alaska Shootout, Puerto Rico and Hawaii. It seems to me Kansas is executing better than anybody in the country,” Middle Tennessee State coach Randy Wiel said Sunday.

“They seem to year in and out execute so well early,” added Wiel, whose 1-1 Blue Raiders will meet 5-0 Kansas at 7:05 tonight at Allen Fieldhouse. “It’s partly because they have so many returning players. It’s also because Roy (Williams) is so good.”

The Jayhawks have won 34 straight games in November since losing to Arizona State back in November 1990. They’ve put up some mind-boggling stats through five games this month.

KU averages 94.6 points per game on 57.6 percent shooting. The Jayhawks averaged a school-record 92.1 ppg in 1989-90 and hit a school-record 55.6 percent of their shots in 1985-86.

KU averages 25.4 assists per game, way ahead of the school-record mark of 21.8 in 1989-90. Also, the Jayhawks are outrebounding opponents by an average of 16.8 boards per game. The school record for highest rebound margin is 13.0 set in 1956-57.

“We have to be able to handle their pressure,” Wiel said of the KU defense. “From what I’ve seen, they really can bring some heat to the ball. We must be able to handle that and of course be able to handle Allen Fieldhouse and the crowd.”

The Blue Raiders, who have beaten St. Francis, 93-59, and lost at Tennessee State, 75-71, are led by senior guard/forward Fernando Ortiz who averages 11.5 points per game in limited duty. He had arthroscopic knee surgery in the preseason.

Ortiz scored 18 points in MTSU’s 97-77 loss to Kansas last December in Murfreesboro, Tenn.

“When he is healthy, we are a better team,” Wiel said. “He is a scorer. He makes things happen. I wish his defense was up to the rest of his game, but you can’t always have it all.”

Tonight’s game completes a three-year contract between the schools. Wiel would like to continue playing KU because of Williams, a long-time pal. The two North Carolina grads worked on Dean Smith’s UNC staff from 1986-88.

Coincidentally, both interviewed for the UNC job last summer. Williams declined a job offer; Wiel figured to be next in line had Matt Doherty not made the move from Notre Dame.

“I was very surprised,” Wiel said of Williams’ decision not to succeed Bill Guthridge in Chapel Hill. “All of us thought Roy was going to be the next coach. It was not something that was talked about, but Roy was the logical thing.”

Wiel spoke with Williams about the UNC saga when they crossed paths on the recruiting trail in July.

“It was a very tough decision for Roy. If it was an easy decision, he would have just done it,” Wiel said. “I hope I never have to make a decision like that. Leaving Kansas is kind of tough. It’s not like he’s going to a much better job. Kansas is a powerhouse, too.

“After he turned it down, I knew they’d have to go to an alternate plan. I was in Spain at a coaching clinic. When they called me to come in (for interview), they had already had conversations with Matthew. They briefed me on that.

“Matthew had some problems with contractual things. He had a player of the year at Notre Dame (Troy Murphy) that was going to stay there because of Matthew. He had (Ryan) Humphrey from Oklahoma who sat out a whole year to play for Matthew. Not to mention Notre Dame’s athletic director was not jumping for joy. A lot of things were going on … my goodness.”

Doherty accepted the job finally, meaning Wiel would return to Middle Tennessee State, where he’s coached five years.

“It did appear that way,” Wiel said of his possibly being next in line after Doherty.

He said he has not heard of any Carolina grads outwardly upset at Williams.

“Anybody that is mad at Roy is crazy,” Wiel said. “North Carolina fans are a little disappointed. It’s because Roy has a formula for success. You get a coach like Roy and the blue machine keeps rolling.”