It didn’t take Jim Wooldridge long to hear about the Kansas-Kansas State men’s basketball rivalry.
“The first day we were down on the floor down here and Max was introducing me as head coach, somebody then mentioned the KU game,” said Wooldridge, hired by AD Max Urick as replacement for Tom Asbury last March.
The “KU game” is one of the main reasons Asbury was canned after six seasons. He had an 0-17 record versus the Jayhawks, angering K-State fans who have grown tired of losing to their rivals.
“This has been a great rivalry over the years. I am well aware of it,” said the 45-year-old Wooldridge. The former head coach at Central Missouri State, SW Texas and Louisiana Tech came to KSU from the Chicago Bulls, where he worked as an assistant two years under Tim Floyd.
“These kinds of games over the years have been highlight games for not only the two schools, but the league,” Wooldridge added. “Basketball fans around the country watch these games. I know I did growing up OU-OSU, KU-KSU, UCLA-USC, so on. These are the kinds of games that sure do make a difference in college basketball, and they’ve always made a difference in the state of Kansas.”
It’s a given Wooldridge would like to beat KU early in his tenure.
“We all have a sense of urgency to get this thing turned around,” said Wooldridge. His Wildcats take an 8-8 record, 2-3 in the Big 12, into Saturday’s 3:05 p.m. contest at Allen Fieldhouse. KU is 16-1, 5-0.
“Everybody that supports Kansas State and our basketball program would love to see us beat Kansas as soon as possible. That’s the goal of our team and our program every time we play them.
“I know the significance of the rivalry and the consequences in our state. It’s a bragging-rights game and that puts a little more of an impression on the game.”
It doesn’t help Wooldridge that his first KU-KSU game will be played in Lawrence.
“I have asked the players on our team that have been to Allen Fieldhouse to help us handle what they know is a great environment and help us learn what to expect when we get over there,” Wooldridge said. “Until we get there, until the game starts, until the action is taking place it’s hard to say how our players will react to it.”
Wooldridge he’s down to nine healthy players at KSU was asked if he agrees with a controversial quote attributed to Asbury last year: “We don’t have anybody KU would want and KU doesn’t have anybody we’ve been able to get.”
“I won’t say that,” said Wooldridge, whose first KSU team has defeated ranked teams in Iowa and Missouri. “I really like my nine guys. They have fought really hard for their season, for themselves, their team, school and program. I like my guys. We’re going to go over there and compete.”
Overall, the Jayhawks have won 19 straight over KSU, the Wildcats’ last victory a 68-64 victory in 1994 in Lawrence.
“The rivalry between K-State and Kansas has been around a long, long time,” Wooldridge said. “Our program has taken a little bit of a dip, but we’re not second-class citizens. We don’t perceive ourselves that way. We will have winning teams here again. This could be a great rivalry again.
“There is a lot on the line, just as it should be. I think we have a lot of great things here, we really do and I think the game will be a great college game.”
Kansas State has added freshman football player Rashad Washington to the depleted hoops roster. Washington, 6-4, 210 out of Wichita Southeast, will not play Saturday.
“Rashad at this point is a player we’ll strictly use in practice. There was never any promise made to Rashad he was going to play in games,” Wooldridge said. “There are a lot of things we do both offensively and defensively he’d have to learn prior to ever having the opportunity to step on the floor.”
KU plays K-State on Saturday and Missouri on Monday in Columbia, Mo. KU sophomore Nick Collison received his first piece of mail from the Antlers cheering section on Wednesday.
The Antlers are known for sending KU players letters, phoning their residences and yelling insults at the players before the KU-MU game.
“Some fan sent me a stupid dirty joke,” Collison said. “I think Drew got one too because it said something about Gooden in there.”
What was the joke?
“I can’t really say because it’s so dirty. It looked like kindergartner’s writing. It was so stupid,” Collison said with a laugh.
