Manhattan ? Wayne Simien considered making a mad dash for the visitor’s locker room with 14:13 left in Saturday’s Sunflower Showdown at Bramlage Coliseum.
That’s when Kansas University senior forward Nick Collison picked up his fourth foul with the Jayhawks trailing Kansas State, 47-45.
“I wanted to go get my jersey, put it on and get in the game,” Simien, KU’s injured sophomore power forward, said after the Jayhawks pulled out an 82-64 victory. “One of our key guys was out of the game. Of course, being from Kansas, I don’t want to see us lose to Kansas State.”
Simien’s heart told him to play Saturday, but common sense made him miss his 10th straight game as he rehabilitates his right shoulder, which he dislocated on Jan. 4.
Simien said there was a chance he could return a week from today against Iowa State.
“That’s what I’m gunning for — the next home game,” Simien said. “I practiced three times this week and practiced hard. I banged it and did a couple of things where I feel more and more comfortable with it.
“Maybe the next home game. That’s how I’m feeling. Coach (Roy) Williams may feel something else. We’ll have to wait and see how it goes the rest of next week and see what he says.”
Simien said a New York specialist examined a magnetic resonance imaging test result of his shoulder and said, “Just go with it,” of continuing to rehab and practice.
Fragile thumb: KU junior Bryant Nash has suffered a slight fracture in his right thumb for the second time this season.
“It’s broken lower (in thumb) than before. There’s a little chip in there,” said Nash, who might need surgery after the season but won’t miss any time this season. “It affects my shot a little bit when we tape it up.”
Nash, who scored two points and grabbed six boards in 24 minutes with the thumb wrapped on Saturday, suffered a slight fracture guarding Kirk Hinrich at a recent practice.
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Miles answers critics: Aaron Miles, who scored two points and was benched much of the second half of KU’s 76-70 victory over Missouri on Feb. 3, bounced back with 13 points, six assists, four steals and four turnovers in 35 minutes against the ‘Cats.
“Nobody I’ve ever coached has gotten more criticism than Aaron Miles. That’s just silly,” Williams said. “Aaron really did some nice things out there today. When a game is contested like that game was contested, some guys will give in. Aaron did not give in.”
Miles hit six of 11 shots, including one of three three-pointers.
“Everybody tries to build you up and praise you when you are doing good and tear you down when you are not doing good. It doesn’t even matter,” Miles said.
“Does it hurt my feelings? I don’t even worry about it,” Miles said. “It’s been an up-and-down season for me. I feel comfortable in my offense. I’ve not been thinking about it too much, just coming out to play every day.”
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Streak lives: Williams on KU’s 20-game win streak in Manhattan: “To me it’s the most amazing thing I’ve been involved in. I can’t explain it. We just tell the guys every year to try to put it off one more year.”
KU has won 26 overall versus the Wildcats.
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Stats, facts: KU leads the series against KSU, 165-88. … Williams is 35-4 versus the ‘Cats; Jim Wooldridge is 0-7 against the Jayhawks. … Jeff Graves, who Williams said might have “had his best game of the year,” had 10 boards and eight points.
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Padgett injured: Kansas basketball signee David Padgett, a 7-foot center from Reno, Nev., suffered a knee injury in a game Saturday night against Carson, Nev. Padgett was unable to support his own weight, was helped off the court and went to a nearby hospital for tests. A team trainer told the Reno Gazette-Journal the injury appeared more serious than last year’s season-ending knee sprain, but he refused to speculate on the seriousness of the injury.
