Woodling: Christmas tidbits plentiful

By Gary Bedore Dec 25, 2002

Stocking stuffers about Kansas University’s men’s basketball team …

Nick Collison has more turnovers than fouls, but that’s good.

Last year it was the other way around. Now the 6-foot-10 senior has cut his fouls-per-game average from 2.9 to 2.2. Consequently, Collison is logging more minutes and is averaging a team-leading 19.1 points per game. Don’t worry about the turnovers. Drew Gooden had more turnovers than fouls last season and he was the fourth player taken in the NBA Draft. Oh, and don’t forget Collison is shooting 78 percent from the foul line after making only 57.5 percent of his charities last season.

Kirk Hinrich may have been off to a slow start, but he’s clearly back in form.

Actually, Hinrich’s back is back in form. Hinrich went down hard under the basket in Madison Square Garden, injuring his back so severely that the 6-3 senior guard had to sit out a game because of an injury for the first time in his career. But that was vintage Hinrich last Saturday against UCLA.

Aaron Miles may have struggled in Portland, but it appears he bottomed out in his hometown.

Since his inexplicably dreadful game against Oregon earlier this month (1-for-11 from the field with seven turnovers), Miles has been quietly efficient with a 2-to-1 assist-to-turnover ratio and a team-leading .893 free-throw percentage (25 of 28).

Wayne Simien may have a bad ankle, but you wouldn’t know it.

Everyone thought Simien would have little difficulty making the transition from a productive bench player to a starter, and they were right. Simien is averaging 16.8 points and a team-leading 9.2 rebounds per game. The Leavenworth native is unquestionably the best Sunflower State prep to play for the Jayhawks since Wichita standout Steve Woodberry.

Keith Langford may be a streaky shooter, but what the heck?

Langford’s shooting has leveled off since his blazing start (he made 16 of his first 19 shots), but the sophomore southpaw still owns a glossy .556 shooting percentage and a 16.9 scoring average. Langford, in fact, might be the Jayhawks’ leading scorer if it weren’t for his mysterious free-throw shooting woes. Langford has made only 52 percent of his charities so far. Last year he shot 70 percent from the foul line.

Michael Lee and Jeff Graves may not be the equal of Langford and Simien as sixth and seventh men, but lately the two reserves are at least treading water instead of sinking. Together, Lee and Graves are producing 5.8 points and 5.3 rebounds a game.

And now for some unanswered questions …

Can the Jayhawks and Chiefs both win in the same place on the same day? About a half an hour before the KU-Cal game will conclude on Saturday at the Oakland Arena, the Chiefs-Raiders football game will begin next door at the Network Associates Coliseum. One thing is certain. It’ll be a parking nightmare. Officials are urging fans to take the BART (Bay Area Rapid Transit) to both venues.
Will the Jayhawks have enough stamina to win three games in five days? The toughest stretch of the schedule will start a week from Thursday. KU will play host to UNC-Asheville that night, meet UMKC in Kemper Arena the following Saturday afternoon at Kansas City, Mo., then travel to Iowa State for the Big 12 Conference opener on Monday night. All that after playing three games in 18 days.
Who will be the first walk-on to make a field goal? KU’s three non-scholarship players — Stephen Vinson, Christian Moody and Brett Olson — are a combined 0-for-14 from the field.
When will Bryant Nash make a three-pointer? Nash is 0-for-10 this season from beyond the arc. If you’re wondering, the school record for three-point futility belongs to Lincoln Minor who missed all 17 of his three-point attempts during the 1987-88 NCAA championship season.