Earl Richardson/Journal-World PhotoKansas basketball coach Roy Williams takes losses hard.
So does his gritty point guard, Kirk Hinrich.
“It’s a tough loss. It really hurts,” Hinrich said dejectedly after the Jayhawks’ 75-66 loss to Missouri on Monday night at Hearnes Center in Columbia, Mo.
Hinrich, KU’s sophomore floor leader from Iowa City, Iowa, seemed a bit surprised when asked if it might actually be a “good loss” for the No. 3-ranked Jayhawks (17-2, 6-1), who had won 10 in a row, including seven double-digit victories.
“I am not one to think a loss is good,” Hinrich said. “It’s good to learn from a game you win.”
Hinrich was bothered by his own play Monday.
The steady soph, who has 140 assists against 61 turnovers, totaled nine assists against five bobbles. He missed nine of 12 shots, including three of four threes, in 32 minutes.
“I think it’s the worst game I played all year. Offensively I feel I let my teammates down,” Hinrich said.
He did play strong defense, clamping MU’s Clarence Gilbert, who hit one of five threes after canning seven threes against KU in Columbia a year ago.
“Defensively we did a pretty good job with a few exceptions in the second half,” Hinrich said. “The good thing is we played great for 10 minutes and we had a chance at the end.”
KU erased a 17-point deficit with an 18-0 run and actually took a one-point lead before a 16-6 Mizzou run put away the Jayhawks.
Guard Brian Grawer iced three three-pointers in that surge, the only three-pointers MU made in the second half against six misses.
“A backbreaker,” Hinrich said of Grawer threes at 5:46 and 5:12 that gave MU a 65-56 advantage.
KU remains in first place in the league entering Saturday’s noon battle against Texas at Allen Fieldhouse. Four teams had a pair of losses entering play Tuesday night.
“We’re still one ahead,” Hinrich said. “Hopefully we can stay that way.”
His mood will be brighter if the Jayhawks win out. KU coach Williams is amazed at the player’s will to win.
“He’s one of those guys you love to coach because he only cares about the ‘W’ at the end of the game,” Williams said. “I truly believe that if Kirk went a whole game and didn’t score a point and we won it wouldn’t bother him in the least. At the same time if he scored 25 points, made a crucial turnover and we lost, he would be devastated.
“As a coach that’s a comfortable feeling to know it means that much to your point guard. He is one tough competitive kid.”
Luke Axtell, who has been bothered by a bad back, did not attempt a shot in his 12-minute stint Monday. It marked the first time in his KU career he did not hoist a shot in a game in which he entered. That covers 45 games.
“I noticed as Luke was going down court he was really struggling,” Williams said of the Austin, Texas, senior who played just two minutes the second half. “His back was bothering him. He’s been laboring. The past 10 days have been a struggle for him.”
He’s had twice-a-day treatments five straight days.
“We are concerned about it a great deal. It’s bothered his play, his effectiveness. His shot has not gone in and it’s painful for him, too,” Williams said.
Kansas will be well-represented at memorial services at Oklahoma State today.
KU coach Williams will fly in one of KU’s two university jets to the midafternoon service with assistant Joe Holladay, athletics director Bob Frederick, associate athletics director Richard Konzem, assistant athletics director Doug Vance, head trainer Lynn Bott and Jim Barnes, a professor in KU’s Music and Dance department.
“There were several of us that wanted to be there for the service,” Vance said. “We felt based on the relationship we had with those people (who died in last Saturday’s plane crash) and Oklahoma State it was important for us to be there and be represented. The Big 12 Conference is a big family and these situations tend to pull us together,” Vance added.
Vance is amazed at the outpouring of emotion regarding two KU grads Will Hancock and Brian Luinstra who died in the crash.
“We’ve been getting calls and e-mails and voice mails from all over. This brings your extended family back together,” Vance said. “We’ve all shared in the grief.”
KU’s website http://www.kuathletics.com/ has a site in which fans can post their feelings about the tragedy. So far, individuals in Sweden, Turkey and Australia are among those who have posted comments.
The Antlers cheering section continued its tradition of printing phone numbers of KU athletes on posters. The Antlers posted the phone numbers of Nick Collison and Kenny Gregory and the e-mail address of Drew Gooden.
With travel on everybody’s minds since Saturday’s disaster … it might be interesting to note KU’s bus arrived safely at Allen Fieldhouse about 1:30 a.m. Tuesday. KU coach Williams canceled a recruiting trip Tuesday because of weather concerns.
The Jayhawks have six players who average in double figures. KU has never finished a season with as many as six double digit scorers. They are: Kenny Gregory (16.9 ppg), Drew Gooden (15.5), Nick Collison (13.4), Jeff Boschee (10.5), Kirk Hinrich (10.4), Eric Chenowith (10.2).
