Seniors Scott, Hilgenkamp carrying Kansas this year

By Joel Mathis     Dec 22, 2001

Just before Kansas University’s women’s basketball practice ended Thursday, as the Jayhawks hooted, hollered and gathered at half-court at Allen Fieldhouse, KC Hilgenkamp laughed, smiled and threw her arms around Selena Scott and jumped on her back.

Scott didn’t give Hilgenkamp a piggy-back ride for more than a few seconds, but that’s OK with Hilgenkamp. She knows better than anybody how much weight her backcourt teammate has carried for Kansas this year.

“I think it’s interesting that players will step up,” KU coach Marian Washington said. “In our situation, trying to find ways to score, those two have done a nice job.”

Hilgenkamp and Scott will have another opportunity to add to their growing number of attempts and points today when Kansas plays Saint Louis at 2 p.m. at the Bauman-Eberhardt Center in St. Louis, Mo.

KU’s two senior guards have combined to average 26.7 points a game, more than 40 percent of the team’s total offense. It’s not common for teams to have two or three players that do most of the scoring, but these two never have racked up points the way they are now.

Scott, a 5-foot-5 point guard from Austin, Texas, has never made more than 46 baskets in a season at Kansas and already this year she’s seen 48 slip through the bottom of the net.

Last year, in Hilgenkamp’s first season at Kansas, she made 83 of 198 shots. Through just 10 games this year, she’s connected on 53 of 127, an average of 13.2 a game.

Hilgenkamp, a 5-10 shooting guard from Arlington, Neb., and Scott blended into the background of last year’s team, which featured three seniors who totaled 58.6 percent of the team’s offense.

This year, because they’re seniors, Hilgenkamp and Scott are the focal points whether they like it or not.

But circumstances don’t guarantee results and the increase in scoring is something that the two took upon themselves.

“After this summer, KC basically told me she would come back and be ready to put the ball up,” Washington said. “I think with Selena, with all the experience she’s had, I think she’s a lot more confident. She’s shooting a lot better, getting opportunities at the line and doing a lot better at the line.”

Hilgenkamp attempted more than 10 shots eight times last season. She’s done that eight times in 10 games this year and her shooting percentage is just .002 percent less than last season. Part of the reason she was hesitant to take shots last year was because shooting guard was a new position for her, said Hilgenkamp, who mainly played point guard at Hutchinson Community College.

That’s not a problem now.

“Coach knows I’m going to shoot,” said Hilgenkamp. “She told me she wants me to and she doesn’t have to tell me to do it anymore. I know that even if I’m having a bad night shooting the ball, she still wants me to put it up and I’m going to.”

Washington said that Hilgenkamp is finally showing what kind of player that she believed the Hutch transfer could be.

“Depending on how much she wants to play after this,” Washington said, “I think KC might be able to take the next step.”

The kind of shooting Hilgenkamp has done this year isn’t nearly as surprising as what Scott has done.

More than a few times in her three previous years as a Jayhawk, Scott would set up outside the three-point line and launch a ball that looked like it was headed for the moon. She’s still got some arc on her outside shots, but now, instead of hitting the backboard or rattling off the rim, they’re falling through.

For Scott, it’s just a matter of getting into a rhythm.

“If you take more shots, you’re going to make more shots,” Scott said. “When you don’t get a lot of opportunities and miss the ones you do get, it hurts you.”

Simple enough, it sure is working for her. Scott has made 48 of 101 attempts this season and is averaging a team-best 13.5 points per game. Last year she hit just 46 of 117 shots for 5.1 points an outing.

Scott gives points and individual statistics a passing glance, but they’re not what’s most important.

“It’s not about scoring points and shooting,” Scott said. “It’s about getting this program back to winning games like it was when I was recruited and a freshman.”

That attitude, more than anything, is what makes Hilgenkamp and Scott so valuable to this season’s team. Five of the 12 players on the team are new this year and Washington signed seven women to letters of intent this fall. Next year’s team won’t have any seniors and only three juniors.

“The younger players look to them for examples,” Washington said. “Sometimes it’s for them to take control and shoot and other times it’s for guidance. We need both of those right now and Selena and KC give us that.”

Senior center Kristin Geoffroy, who has started six games this season and leads the team with 5.7 rebounds per game, will not play today because she went home to California on Thursday because of a family emergency, Washington said.

Probable starters

Kansas (4-6)

C Nikki White, 6-3, Sr.

F Sharrone Spencer, 6-2, So.

F Blair Waltz, 6-0, Fr.

G KC Hilgenkamp, 5-10, Sr.

G Selena Scott, 5-5, Sr.

Saint Louis (5-4)

C Angie Lewis, 6-1, So.

F Shanda Greer, 6-1, Jr.

G Star Jackson, 5-5, Jr.

G Greta Bujaker, 5-7, Jr.

G Melissa Oliver, 5-10, Jr.

Note: The game will be broadcast live on the Internet at www.kuathletics.com.

Seniors Scott, Hilgenkamp carrying Kansas this year

By Joel Mathis     Dec 22, 2001

Just before Kansas University’s women’s basketball practice ended Thursday, as the Jayhawks hooted, hollered and gathered at half-court at Allen Fieldhouse, KC Hilgenkamp laughed, smiled and threw her arms around Selena Scott and jumped on her back.

Scott didn’t give Hilgenkamp a piggy-back ride for more than a few seconds, but that’s OK with Hilgenkamp. She knows better than anybody how much weight her backcourt teammate has carried for Kansas this year.

“I think it’s interesting that players will step up,” KU coach Marian Washington said. “In our situation, trying to find ways to score, those two have done a nice job.”

Hilgenkamp and Scott will have another opportunity to add to their growing number of attempts and points today when Kansas plays Saint Louis at 2 p.m. at the Bauman-Eberhardt Center in St. Louis, Mo.

KU’s two senior guards have combined to average 26.7 points a game, more than 40 percent of the team’s total offense. It’s not common for teams to have two or three players that do most of the scoring, but these two never have racked up points the way they are now.

Scott, a 5-foot-5 point guard from Austin, Texas, has never made more than 46 baskets in a season at Kansas and already this year she’s seen 48 slip through the bottom of the net.

Last year, in Hilgenkamp’s first season at Kansas, she made 83 of 198 shots. Through just 10 games this year, she’s connected on 53 of 127, an average of 13.2 a game.

Hilgenkamp, a 5-10 shooting guard from Arlington, Neb., and Scott blended into the background of last year’s team, which featured three seniors who totaled 58.6 percent of the team’s offense.

This year, because they’re seniors, Hilgenkamp and Scott are the focal points whether they like it or not.

But circumstances don’t guarantee results and the increase in scoring is something that the two took upon themselves.

“After this summer, KC basically told me she would come back and be ready to put the ball up,” Washington said. “I think with Selena, with all the experience she’s had, I think she’s a lot more confident. She’s shooting a lot better, getting opportunities at the line and doing a lot better at the line.”

Hilgenkamp attempted more than 10 shots eight times last season. She’s done that eight times in 10 games this year and her shooting percentage is just .002 percent less than last season. Part of the reason she was hesitant to take shots last year was because shooting guard was a new position for her, said Hilgenkamp, who mainly played point guard at Hutchinson Community College.

That’s not a problem now.

“Coach knows I’m going to shoot,” said Hilgenkamp. “She told me she wants me to and she doesn’t have to tell me to do it anymore. I know that even if I’m having a bad night shooting the ball, she still wants me to put it up and I’m going to.”

Washington said that Hilgenkamp is finally showing what kind of player that she believed the Hutch transfer could be.

“Depending on how much she wants to play after this,” Washington said, “I think KC might be able to take the next step.”

The kind of shooting Hilgenkamp has done this year isn’t nearly as surprising as what Scott has done.

More than a few times in her three previous years as a Jayhawk, Scott would set up outside the three-point line and launch a ball that looked like it was headed for the moon. She’s still got some arc on her outside shots, but now, instead of hitting the backboard or rattling off the rim, they’re falling through.

For Scott, it’s just a matter of getting into a rhythm.

“If you take more shots, you’re going to make more shots,” Scott said. “When you don’t get a lot of opportunities and miss the ones you do get, it hurts you.”

Simple enough, it sure is working for her. Scott has made 48 of 101 attempts this season and is averaging a team-best 13.5 points per game. Last year she hit just 46 of 117 shots for 5.1 points an outing.

Scott gives points and individual statistics a passing glance, but they’re not what’s most important.

“It’s not about scoring points and shooting,” Scott said. “It’s about getting this program back to winning games like it was when I was recruited and a freshman.”

That attitude, more than anything, is what makes Hilgenkamp and Scott so valuable to this season’s team. Five of the 12 players on the team are new this year and Washington signed seven women to letters of intent this fall. Next year’s team won’t have any seniors and only three juniors.

“The younger players look to them for examples,” Washington said. “Sometimes it’s for them to take control and shoot and other times it’s for guidance. We need both of those right now and Selena and KC give us that.”

Senior center Kristin Geoffroy, who has started six games this season and leads the team with 5.7 rebounds per game, will not play today because she went home to California on Thursday because of a family emergency, Washington said.

Probable starters

Kansas (4-6)

C Nikki White, 6-3, Sr.

F Sharrone Spencer, 6-2, So.

F Blair Waltz, 6-0, Fr.

G KC Hilgenkamp, 5-10, Sr.

G Selena Scott, 5-5, Sr.

Saint Louis (5-4)

C Angie Lewis, 6-1, So.

F Shanda Greer, 6-1, Jr.

G Star Jackson, 5-5, Jr.

G Greta Bujaker, 5-7, Jr.

G Melissa Oliver, 5-10, Jr.

Note: The game will be broadcast live on the Internet at www.kuathletics.com.

Seniors Scott, Hilgenkamp carrying Kansas this year

By Joel Mathis     Dec 22, 2001

Just before Kansas University’s women’s basketball practice ended Thursday, as the Jayhawks hooted, hollered and gathered at half-court at Allen Fieldhouse, KC Hilgenkamp laughed, smiled and threw her arms around Selena Scott and jumped on her back.

Scott didn’t give Hilgenkamp a piggy-back ride for more than a few seconds, but that’s OK with Hilgenkamp. She knows better than anybody how much weight her backcourt teammate has carried for Kansas this year.

“I think it’s interesting that players will step up,” KU coach Marian Washington said. “In our situation, trying to find ways to score, those two have done a nice job.”

Hilgenkamp and Scott will have another opportunity to add to their growing number of attempts and points today when Kansas plays Saint Louis at 2 p.m. at the Bauman-Eberhardt Center in St. Louis, Mo.

KU’s two senior guards have combined to average 26.7 points a game, more than 40 percent of the team’s total offense. It’s not common for teams to have two or three players that do most of the scoring, but these two never have racked up points the way they are now.

Scott, a 5-foot-5 point guard from Austin, Texas, has never made more than 46 baskets in a season at Kansas and already this year she’s seen 48 slip through the bottom of the net.

Last year, in Hilgenkamp’s first season at Kansas, she made 83 of 198 shots. Through just 10 games this year, she’s connected on 53 of 127, an average of 13.2 a game.

Hilgenkamp, a 5-10 shooting guard from Arlington, Neb., and Scott blended into the background of last year’s team, which featured three seniors who totaled 58.6 percent of the team’s offense.

This year, because they’re seniors, Hilgenkamp and Scott are the focal points whether they like it or not.

But circumstances don’t guarantee results and the increase in scoring is something that the two took upon themselves.

“After this summer, KC basically told me she would come back and be ready to put the ball up,” Washington said. “I think with Selena, with all the experience she’s had, I think she’s a lot more confident. She’s shooting a lot better, getting opportunities at the line and doing a lot better at the line.”

Hilgenkamp attempted more than 10 shots eight times last season. She’s done that eight times in 10 games this year and her shooting percentage is just .002 percent less than last season. Part of the reason she was hesitant to take shots last year was because shooting guard was a new position for her, said Hilgenkamp, who mainly played point guard at Hutchinson Community College.

That’s not a problem now.

“Coach knows I’m going to shoot,” said Hilgenkamp. “She told me she wants me to and she doesn’t have to tell me to do it anymore. I know that even if I’m having a bad night shooting the ball, she still wants me to put it up and I’m going to.”

Washington said that Hilgenkamp is finally showing what kind of player that she believed the Hutch transfer could be.

“Depending on how much she wants to play after this,” Washington said, “I think KC might be able to take the next step.”

The kind of shooting Hilgenkamp has done this year isn’t nearly as surprising as what Scott has done.

More than a few times in her three previous years as a Jayhawk, Scott would set up outside the three-point line and launch a ball that looked like it was headed for the moon. She’s still got some arc on her outside shots, but now, instead of hitting the backboard or rattling off the rim, they’re falling through.

For Scott, it’s just a matter of getting into a rhythm.

“If you take more shots, you’re going to make more shots,” Scott said. “When you don’t get a lot of opportunities and miss the ones you do get, it hurts you.”

Simple enough, it sure is working for her. Scott has made 48 of 101 attempts this season and is averaging a team-best 13.5 points per game. Last year she hit just 46 of 117 shots for 5.1 points an outing.

Scott gives points and individual statistics a passing glance, but they’re not what’s most important.

“It’s not about scoring points and shooting,” Scott said. “It’s about getting this program back to winning games like it was when I was recruited and a freshman.”

That attitude, more than anything, is what makes Hilgenkamp and Scott so valuable to this season’s team. Five of the 12 players on the team are new this year and Washington signed seven women to letters of intent this fall. Next year’s team won’t have any seniors and only three juniors.

“The younger players look to them for examples,” Washington said. “Sometimes it’s for them to take control and shoot and other times it’s for guidance. We need both of those right now and Selena and KC give us that.”

Senior center Kristin Geoffroy, who has started six games this season and leads the team with 5.7 rebounds per game, will not play today because she went home to California on Thursday because of a family emergency, Washington said.

Probable starters

Kansas (4-6)

C Nikki White, 6-3, Sr.

F Sharrone Spencer, 6-2, So.

F Blair Waltz, 6-0, Fr.

G KC Hilgenkamp, 5-10, Sr.

G Selena Scott, 5-5, Sr.

Saint Louis (5-4)

C Angie Lewis, 6-1, So.

F Shanda Greer, 6-1, Jr.

G Star Jackson, 5-5, Jr.

G Greta Bujaker, 5-7, Jr.

G Melissa Oliver, 5-10, Jr.

Note: The game will be broadcast live on the Internet at www.kuathletics.com.

Seniors Scott, Hilgenkamp carrying Kansas this year

By Joel Mathis     Dec 22, 2001

Just before Kansas University’s women’s basketball practice ended Thursday, as the Jayhawks hooted, hollered and gathered at half-court at Allen Fieldhouse, KC Hilgenkamp laughed, smiled and threw her arms around Selena Scott and jumped on her back.

Scott didn’t give Hilgenkamp a piggy-back ride for more than a few seconds, but that’s OK with Hilgenkamp. She knows better than anybody how much weight her backcourt teammate has carried for Kansas this year.

“I think it’s interesting that players will step up,” KU coach Marian Washington said. “In our situation, trying to find ways to score, those two have done a nice job.”

Hilgenkamp and Scott will have another opportunity to add to their growing number of attempts and points today when Kansas plays Saint Louis at 2 p.m. at the Bauman-Eberhardt Center in St. Louis, Mo.

KU’s two senior guards have combined to average 26.7 points a game, more than 40 percent of the team’s total offense. It’s not common for teams to have two or three players that do most of the scoring, but these two never have racked up points the way they are now.

Scott, a 5-foot-5 point guard from Austin, Texas, has never made more than 46 baskets in a season at Kansas and already this year she’s seen 48 slip through the bottom of the net.

Last year, in Hilgenkamp’s first season at Kansas, she made 83 of 198 shots. Through just 10 games this year, she’s connected on 53 of 127, an average of 13.2 a game.

Hilgenkamp, a 5-10 shooting guard from Arlington, Neb., and Scott blended into the background of last year’s team, which featured three seniors who totaled 58.6 percent of the team’s offense.

This year, because they’re seniors, Hilgenkamp and Scott are the focal points whether they like it or not.

But circumstances don’t guarantee results and the increase in scoring is something that the two took upon themselves.

“After this summer, KC basically told me she would come back and be ready to put the ball up,” Washington said. “I think with Selena, with all the experience she’s had, I think she’s a lot more confident. She’s shooting a lot better, getting opportunities at the line and doing a lot better at the line.”

Hilgenkamp attempted more than 10 shots eight times last season. She’s done that eight times in 10 games this year and her shooting percentage is just .002 percent less than last season. Part of the reason she was hesitant to take shots last year was because shooting guard was a new position for her, said Hilgenkamp, who mainly played point guard at Hutchinson Community College.

That’s not a problem now.

“Coach knows I’m going to shoot,” said Hilgenkamp. “She told me she wants me to and she doesn’t have to tell me to do it anymore. I know that even if I’m having a bad night shooting the ball, she still wants me to put it up and I’m going to.”

Washington said that Hilgenkamp is finally showing what kind of player that she believed the Hutch transfer could be.

“Depending on how much she wants to play after this,” Washington said, “I think KC might be able to take the next step.”

The kind of shooting Hilgenkamp has done this year isn’t nearly as surprising as what Scott has done.

More than a few times in her three previous years as a Jayhawk, Scott would set up outside the three-point line and launch a ball that looked like it was headed for the moon. She’s still got some arc on her outside shots, but now, instead of hitting the backboard or rattling off the rim, they’re falling through.

For Scott, it’s just a matter of getting into a rhythm.

“If you take more shots, you’re going to make more shots,” Scott said. “When you don’t get a lot of opportunities and miss the ones you do get, it hurts you.”

Simple enough, it sure is working for her. Scott has made 48 of 101 attempts this season and is averaging a team-best 13.5 points per game. Last year she hit just 46 of 117 shots for 5.1 points an outing.

Scott gives points and individual statistics a passing glance, but they’re not what’s most important.

“It’s not about scoring points and shooting,” Scott said. “It’s about getting this program back to winning games like it was when I was recruited and a freshman.”

That attitude, more than anything, is what makes Hilgenkamp and Scott so valuable to this season’s team. Five of the 12 players on the team are new this year and Washington signed seven women to letters of intent this fall. Next year’s team won’t have any seniors and only three juniors.

“The younger players look to them for examples,” Washington said. “Sometimes it’s for them to take control and shoot and other times it’s for guidance. We need both of those right now and Selena and KC give us that.”

Senior center Kristin Geoffroy, who has started six games this season and leads the team with 5.7 rebounds per game, will not play today because she went home to California on Thursday because of a family emergency, Washington said.

Probable starters

Kansas (4-6)

C Nikki White, 6-3, Sr.

F Sharrone Spencer, 6-2, So.

F Blair Waltz, 6-0, Fr.

G KC Hilgenkamp, 5-10, Sr.

G Selena Scott, 5-5, Sr.

Saint Louis (5-4)

C Angie Lewis, 6-1, So.

F Shanda Greer, 6-1, Jr.

G Star Jackson, 5-5, Jr.

G Greta Bujaker, 5-7, Jr.

G Melissa Oliver, 5-10, Jr.

Note: The game will be broadcast live on the Internet at www.kuathletics.com.

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