No more messing around. No more games against hyphen and compass schools. It’s time for the dogs to eat the dogs. Big 12 Conference men’s basketball internecine warfare will begin on Saturday with these questions:
Will Kansas live up to its preseason hype, or tumble to fifth place like a year ago?
Can Iowa State, last year’s surprise team, make it two championships in a row without Marcus Fizer?
Will Texas reclaim the crown it lost to the upstart Cyclones in 1999-2000?
Will Missouri, bulked up inside, be this year’s surprise team?
Here’s a capsule look at each conference squad:
Baylor
Record: 11-0
Leading scorer: Terry Black 16.6.
Best newcomer: Chad Elsey, transfer from Southern Methodist, has averaged 15.3 points a game since becoming eligible in mid-December.
Most impressive win: 80-50 at Cal State Fullerton (The Bears’ only game outside of Texas).
Most embarrassing loss: None. But BU’s 54-51 home win over Arkansas-Little Rock wasn’t too spiffy.
Comment: Baylor’s strength of schedule ranks 316th out of 319 NCAA Division One schools. The number would have been lower, but coach Dave Bliss couldn’t work out a deal with Waco High.
Colorado
Record: 10-3
Leading scorer: D.J. Harrison 17.9.
Best newcomer: Harrison, a 6-foot-7 junior college transfer who red-shirted last season.
Most impressive win: 109-86 over Colorado State.
Most embarrassing loss: 91-86 to Austin Peay.
Comment: Colorado coach Ricardo Patton and his three assistant coaches wear matching black blazers, gray slacks, white oxford shirts and gold ties during games. Buffs will look pretty good in uniforms, too.
Iowa State
Record: 12-1
Leading scorer: Martin Rancik 14.1.
Best newcomer: None making an impact.
Most impressive win: 73-68 over Mississippi in Hawaii.
Most embarrassing loss: 80-68 at Iowa
Comment: Preseason conference player of the year Jamaal Tinsley averaging only about 12 points a game, but steal and assist totals are high.
Kansas
Record: 11-1
Leading scorer: Kenny Gregory 17.2.
Best newcomer: Freshman guard Mario Kinsey.
Most impressive win: 69-68 over Ohio State in Columbus.
Most embarrassing loss: 84-53 at Wake Forest.
Comment: Preseason title favorites haven’t done anything to diminish ranking, but Jayhawks still have tendency to rattle on the road. Currently ranked No.7 in AP poll and No. 8 in strength of schedule both league highs.
Kansas State
Record: 6-5
Leading scorer: Phineas Atchison 13.2
Best newcomer: Toss-up between juco transfers Atchison and Larry Reid who scored 31 points in win over Iowa.
Most impressive win: 86-78 over Iowa in Manhattan.
Most embarrassing loss: 76-66 at Wichita State.
Comment: First-year coach Jim Wooldridge has finger in the dike. If Wildcats escape cellar, Wooldridge should receive votes for coach of year.
Missouri
Record: 9-3
Leading scorer: Kareem Rush 21.6.
Best newcomer: Arthur Johnson, a 6-9 freshman who ranks among league’s leading shot-blockers.
Most impressive win: 68-63 at Indiana.
Most embarrassing loss: 99-94 at Iowa in double overtime.
Comment: Tigers don’t have much scoring punch after Kareem Rush and Clarence Gilbert, but second-year coach Quin Snyder has depth, experience and now size to contend for championship.
Nebraska
Record: 7-6
Leading scorer: Cookie Belcher 16.9.
Best newcomer: None.
Most impressive win: 72-70 over SMU in the championship game of the Puerto Rico Shootout.
Most embarrassing loss: Several, but the 82-71 home pratfall to Missouri-Kansas City stands out.
Comment: First-year coach Barry Collier has three or four guys who can play. That’s about it.
Oklahoma
Record: 11-1
Leading scorer: Aaron McGhee 15.3.
Best newcomer: McGhee, a 6-8 junior college transfer.
Most impressive win: 88-79 over Arkansas in overtime.
Most embarrassing loss: None, really. The Sooners’ lone defeat was a 60-55 decision at Mississippi.
Comment: Sooners have precious little size and not much bulk, but when Kelvin Sampson’s bevy of three-point shooters are hitting, woe be unto the foe.
Oklahoma State
Record: 8-2
Leading scorer: Maurice Baker 17.3.
Best newcomer: Baker, a 6-1 juco transfer.
Most impressive win: 74-73 over Arkansas.
Most embarrassing loss: 87-66 at San Diego State, but losing 61-59 at Wichita State won’t make the highlights film, either.
Comment: Nobody expected Cowboys to contend after losing six seniors and they probably won’t, but ‘Pokes will be murder in the newly expanded Gallagher-Iba snake pit. Good luck to Iowa State when the new arena is dedicated on Monday night.
Texas
Record: 10-2
Leading scorer: Maurice Evans 17.7.
Best newcomer: Evans, a 6-5 transfer from Wichita State.
Most impressive win: 72-64 over Illinois.
Most embarrassing loss: 81-69 at South Florida.
Comment: Evans, who spurned Kansas for WSU then transferred to Texas, is the real deal. So are seniors Chris Owens and Darren Kelly. Now if the Longhorns could just attract a crowd in Austin.
Record: 5-6
Leading scorer: Bernard King 17.9.
Best newcomer: Nick Anderson, a 6-6 freshman from Baton Rouge, La.
Most impressive win: 72-64 over Manhattan (That’s Manhattan U., not Manhattan High)
Most embarrassing loss: 74-54 to Birmingham Southern in College Station.
Comment: Birmingham Southern boosted its record to 7-6 the other night with an 87-39 romp over Sewanee.
Record: 6-5
Leading scorer: Andy Ellis 16.9.
Best newcomer: Jamal Brown, a 6-0 transfer from Fort Scott CC who leads the league in assists.
Most impressive win: 68-59 over Western Michigan.
Most embarrassing loss: 86-80 to Texas A&M-Corpus Christi in Lubbock.
Comment: Red Raiders rank 295th in strength of schedule and they’ve lost five games. Anything else you need to know?
