One police officer will be stationed behind both the home and visiting teams’ benches for Kansas University men’s and women’s basketball games this season at Allen Fieldhouse.
The KU police department officers were on duty during Tuesday’s exhibition game against the EA Sports All-Stars.
“It’s just for security’s sake, to keep an eye on the crowd, to protect the players and coaches,” KU associate athletic director Jim Marchiony said.
“We are in a new age. All you have to say is, ‘Monica Seles,'” he added of the tennis player who once was stabbed at a tournament by a fan. “People understand that security in this day and age needs to be better than 10 years ago.”
The police officers stick with both coaches and escort them to their locker rooms and media sessions.
The new security measures were not requested by coaches Bill Self or Marian Washington.
“It was a group decision,” Marchiony said. “It’s certainly the way it’s been done in a lot of places and we think it makes sense here.”
The game will be televised live on Fox Sports Net (Sunflower Broadband Channel 51) and a replay will be available at 11 p.m. on Cable 6.
Earl Richardson/Journal-World PhotoAllen Fieldhouse was as loud as ever at times on Saturday afternoon.
However, late in the first half the building resembled a tomb as Texas took advantage of a 41/2-minute KU dry spell, cutting an 11-point deficit to two at the break.
“I looked up in the crowd. Everybody was looking bored. It looked like everybody was going to fall asleep. I was like, ‘Man, we’ve got to pick it up the second half,”’ KU point guard Kirk Hinrich said.
The Jayhawks particularly big men Drew Gooden, Nick Collison and Eric Chenowith woke up the second half in blowing out the Longhorns, 82-66.
The trio combined for 10 points on 3-of-17 shooting with 18 boards the first half, then exploded for 31 points on 11-of-16 shooting with 12 boards the second half.
“We were not making initial contact. We were letting them bump us and all of a sudden we were 11 feet from the basket instead of five feet,” Collison said. “We did a better job of making hard cuts, just trying to get lower.”
“It was a street fight at times as far as who was going to get the rebound,” said Chenowith, who had 14 rebounds to go with four blocks and eight points. “Their style is knock down, drag out. They ran a lot of sets where they really tried to pound the ball inside.”
Chenowith had 11 rebounds the first half.
“Coach Neil Dougherty always challenges our toughness. I wanted to be tough, particularly on the boards,” Chenowith said.
Gooden like Collison, he hit one of six shots the first half erupted for 14 points the second half on 6-of-8 shooting, finishing with 19 points.
“They were pushing us out of position the first half,” Gooden said. “The second half we hit some big shots down low. Jeff Boschee (16 points, four assists) had a couple of looks inside. Luke (Axtell, six points, one assist) had a couple of looks. Kirk (eight assists, three turnovers) had some looks. Everybody tried to get it inside the second half. We didn’t really think about outside shots.”
The Jayhawks hit one of five threes the second half in outscoring Texas, 48-34.
“Early on, we were a little soft,” said senior forward Kenny Gregory, who had 16 points and eight boards. He and Boschee were the entire offense the first half with 11 points apiece.
“As the game went on, we were more physical. It helps us as a team when we go out and bang with people like we did the second half. We showed some heart.”
KU’s inside play Saturday might stop folks from labeling the team as “soft.”
“I think people call us that because we are clean. Coach tells us to play hard without fouling,” Chenowith said. “We play by the rules and don’t play dirty. We get that rap because we’re not dirty. We know who we are.”
Gooden fell on his right wrist in the second half and iced it after the game. He’ll have X-rays taken today on what has been called a sprained wrist. “I fell back and landed on it. It’s going to be all right,” Gooden said.
Gregory bumped knees with a Longhorn in the second half and left the game for a couple of minutes.
KU coach Roy Williams was in Gooden’s face after the player picked up his fourth foul (on Chris Owens) with 6:08 left. Gooden’s lack of defense on the play enraged Williams enough to throw his coat in the stands and get called for a technical.
“It’s between me and coach,” Gooden said. “Coach was right in getting on me. I should have contained Chris Owens. Coach doing that shows how much he cares.”
KU signee Wayne Simien of Leavenworth High suffered a dislocated right shoulder in Friday’s game against SM East. He sat behind KU’s bench Saturday with his arm in a sling.
“I locked arms with a guy and it popped my shoulder,” Simien said. “I went one way with it. He went the other way and it dislocated.”
The officials, who are allowed to give rules interpretations to a pool reporter after games, told a Journal-World reporter Williams’ coat tossing was a violation of the bench decorum rule and such a throw results in an automatic technical if the officials see the coach throw the coat.
Williams grew incensed when told of the officials’ explanation.
“It’s not automatic. I think I should be over there and be able to strip if I wanted to,” Williams said.
Williams tried to find the officials for further discussion, but they already had left the building.
Williams scoured the rule book after the game. Did he find anything indicating the throwing of a coat resulted in an automatic ‘T?’
“No,” he said.
Rule 10, appendix 3, section 1d does state “excessively demonstrating by use of gestures or actions that indicate displeasure with officiating” results in a technical.
“Maybe not throwing a coat, but I’ve seen him get pretty upset,” Collison said. “He wears his emotion on his sleeve a lot.
“I am always a little glad it’s not me when coach is getting on somebody.”.
“Nick is like that. He’s always in the right place. He never gets coach mad,” Gooden said. “Eric and I get in the wrong place sometimes.”
Boschee hit three-pointer No. 201 and moved past Terry Brown into second on the all-time school three-point list. Williams’ technical was his first at home since Jan. 2, 1992, vs. Pepperdine.
Earl RIchardson/Journal-World PhotoColumbia, Mo. ? The first half of Monday’s Kansas-Missouri game is one the Jayhawks would like to forget.
“We were sluggish. We didn’t box out. We didn’t hit shots. We didn’t hit free throws. In all aspects we struggled,” senior swingman Kenny Gregory said after the Jayhawks’ 75-66 loss to Missouri at Hearnes Center.
“I don’t know what it was exactly. We missed shots we normally make. By missing layups, we missed out on 10 to 12 points we’d normally have.”
The Jayhawks hit 11 of 31 shots (35.5 percent) and one of five free throws the first half in falling behind, 37-23.
“We had some unforced turnovers. We were not playing very smart, not running our stuff we’ve been practicing,” center Eric Chenowith said after scoring four points with five rebounds.
“They were doubling Kirk (Hinrich) in the backcourt. They were playing well,” he added.
The Jayhawks started slowly, but did rally.
An 18-0 second half run erased a 17-point deficit and gave KU a 44-43 advantage that made the Jayhawks’ long bus ride home somewhat bearable.
“We showed character to tie it up and take the lead,” said Gregory, who scored 16 points, 10 the final half.
He also hit some big shots from the outside, including a three while making seven of 12 shots overall.
“It showed character to fight back,” Gregory added. “We just didn’t play well the last six or seven minutes of the game.”
Brian Grawer hit three threes in a 16-6 run that won it for MU down the stretch.
“At least we competed this game,” Chenowith said, noting KU’s second loss of the season was less agonizing than a 31-point loss earlier at Wake Forest.
“We were in the game the whole time. The Wake game was over after eight minutes. This game we were there.”
Not Overconfident
| Kansas | 23 | 43 | 66 |
| Missouri | 37 | 38 | 75 |
Attendance: 13,545
KU coach Roy Williams bristled when asked if the Jayhawks might have been “fat and happy” coming into the contest. KU entered 17-1 and 6-0 in the Big 12. MU was 14-6, 4-1.
“It was not ‘big man on the block coming in here,'” KU’s coach said. “We just missed a lot of shots, layups, missed catching the ball.”
Stats, facts
The Jayhawks fell to 10-19 all time at Hearnes Center. KU has lost five of its last six games at Hearnes, including the last two. KU failed to hit a three-pointer in the first half, marking the first game since the North Dakota game KU failed to hit at least one in a half. KU’s 23 points in the first half were the team’s lowest output in a half this year, and fewest since 21 versus Texas on Feb. 28, 2000. KU’s 14-point halftime deficit was the biggest it has faced this year and biggest at half since trailing by 17 versus Texas last year. KU hit seven of 18 free throws for a season-low 38.9 percent. Nick Collison’s five offensive rebounds were a season and career high. Hinrich’s 12 shot attempts (he made three) tied a season high with 12 attempts versus DePaul. With 19 points, three boards, Drew Gooden had a double-double streak snapped at three games. Boschee became the 50th player in KU history to pass the 900 mark in scoring.
Tragedy discussed
Williams has addressed the Oklahoma State tragedy with his team. Two OSU players and eight others were killed Saturday in a crash of a university-owned plane in Colorado.
“I talked to them (the Jayhawks) last night,” Williams said Monday. “We had a prayer for Oklahoma State. We’ll do some more of that before we get on a plane again.
“I’ll make sure the kids are extremely comfortable (getting on plane for trip to Waco, Texas, on Feb. 12). A few years back we flew in smaller planes. The kids didn’t feel comfortable. I didn’t feel comfortable so now we’ve gone to 30 passenger planes (owned by United).
“I can assure you if the weather is bad we’re not going to take chances. We never have in 13 years and never will. I’m supposed to get on a plane and go recruiting Tuesday night. If there are any weather-related problems whatsoever, I’m not going to get on it. You don’t over-react. You have to react (to what happened at OSU). You are the guy sitting on the airplane. You are the one who knows how comfortable you feel.
“Every time we get on one of those airplanes if the weather is the least bit iffy it should show us nothing is as important as taking care of ourselves and of our young people.”
Williams has said the Oklahoma State tragedy has hit him hard.
“It makes everything else not important at all,” he said. “It doesn’t lessen the importance it makes everything else totally unimportant. It’s a true tragedy.”
Three-point goals: 5-15 (Boschee 3-8, Gregory 1-3, Hinrich 1-4). Assists: 20 (Hinrich 9, Boschee 6, Gregory 3, Collison, Chenowith). Turnovers: 13 (Hinrich 5, Collison 2, Boschee 2, Gooden 2, Gregory, Chenowith). Blocked shots: 3 (Hinrich 2, Collison). Steals: 7 (Gregory 3, Chenowith 2, Hinrich, Axtell). |
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Three-point goals: 8-19 (Grawer 4-7, Stokes 1-1, Paulding 1-2, Rush 1-4, Gilbert 1-5). Assists: 10 (Gilbert 3, Stokes 2, Grawer 2, Rush, Parker, Johnson). Turnovers: 16 (Gilbert 4, Rush 4, Johnson 2, Stokes, Bryant, Grawer, Parker, Soyoye, team). Blocked shots: 3 (Johnson 2, Soyoye). Steals: 7 (Rush 2, Soyoye 2, Johnson 2, Grawer). |
