Columbia, Mo. ? Missouri’s Antlers have booed a countless number of Kansas University men’s basketball players.
But MU’s raucous student cheering section never has jeered a player more than former Jayhawk Ryan Robertson, KU’s 6-foot-5 guard from St. Charles, Mo., who chose KU over Missouri and others in recruiting.
He received an earful from the Antlers virtually every time he touched the basketball in four games at MU from 1995 to 1999.
“I never really had a problem with anything that the Antlers did,” Robertson said Saturday, speaking from the Netherlands, where he is averaging 19 points and 7.5 assists a game for Eiffel Towers Nijmegen. “Generally speaking, they were kind of funny and clever.”
Robertson was able to win one game in four tries at Hearnes Center — the site of today’s 1:05 p.m. battle between KU and MU. The Jayhawks prevailed, 73-61, during the 1998-99 season, Robertson’s final year at KU.
“I remember the year before I got to KU when Mizzou was playing the Arkansas Razorbacks, and the Antlers had a sacrifice outside the Hearnes Center and killed a pig,” Robertson said. “They then walked around inside the Hearnes Center with its head on a stick.
“My feelings are strong against combining dead animals and a basketball game,” he said.
You can bet Robertson will be checking the Internet for reports on today’s game, hoping the Jayhawks can wrap up an undisputed Big 12 Conference crown by beating MU.
“I honestly couldn’t be more proud of the team at Kansas right now,” Robertson said. “With the schedule they have played and with some of the key injuries they’ve endured, the only way you can be Big 12 champs is to play every game with heart and determination, and they’ve done that.
“When I watch them play, it really makes me proud that I played at KU and for coach (Roy) Williams, too.”
KU junior Jeff Graves also hails from Missouri (Lee’s Summit) and expects harsh treatment today.
“If they don’t say anything, I’ll have to ask ’em what’s wrong,” said the 6-9, 250-pound Graves, who chose KU over Mizzou, Illinois and Long Beach State in recruiting last year.
“There’s a lot of stuff they can use — all the criticism I got early in the year, personal stuff. I can’t lose my head over any of that.”
The Antlers might mock Graves’ weight — he reported to KU at 293 pounds last August — or his braided hair.
“They can try,” Graves said. “I’ll say, ‘Where’s Stokes at?'”
Wesley Stokes, known for his wild hairdo last year, has transferred to San Diego State.
Graves, who played at Iowa Western CC last year, has yet to play at Hearnes Center. Nick Collison, however, has played three games in MU’s building, winning one.
“They are insane,” Collison said of the Antlers. “Every year we go there we have a billboard and my phone number on it. My sophomore year they showed it on TV. They got it right. I came back (to apartment) and I had 30 or 40 calls on there.”
Collison said he’d miss rivalries like KU-MU next year when he’s in the NBA.
“Definitely,” he said. “One thing college basketball has over the NBA is the intensity and how much these games mean to people.”
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Clemons dandy: KU sophomore point guard Aaron Miles is impressed with MU point guard Ricky Clemons.
“He’s a good player. He makes tough shots,” Miles said of the Raleigh, N.C., native who scored 19 points off 5-of-15 three-point shooting in MU’s 76-70 loss Feb. 3 in Lawrence.
“It’s like guarding Clarence Gilbert (former Tiger). He comes down full speed and is able to stop and fire. He also can create for his teammates.”
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Losing in Ames: Missouri is coming off Wednesday’s 71-55 loss to Iowa State at Hilton Coliseum in Ames, Iowa.
“We can’t come out and play against Kansas the way we played,” said Arthur Johnson, who had two points and three rebounds against ISU. “We are going to have to turn it up.”
Added forward Rickey Paulding, “We definitely have to get up for a game like Kansas. We’re at home, especially with it being the last game of the season. I think guys will have a little more urgency because it’s Kansas.”
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MU’s Senior Day: Today is Senior Day at Mizzou. Three seniors — Rob Stewart, Ryan Kiernan and Jake Jackson — will be honored in pregame ceremonies. Jackson and Stewart are walk-ons, and Kiernan is a former walk-on who attended St. Charles (Mo.) West High and is a friend of Robertson’s, the all-time leading scorer at West High.
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More Ryan: In an interesting development, Robertson’s Dutch pro team recently lost to Lester Earl’s Ourense, Spain, squad, 104-87. Earl, a former teammate of Robertson’s, scored 12 points with eight boards. Robertson had 14 points and 10 assists.
“They pretty much beat us in every conceivable way from start to finish,” Robertson said. “It was great seeing Les, and I was happy to see him running up and down the court playing great.”
