Kansas guard J.R. Giddens doesn’t agree with the experts.
While some off them believe the Kansas Jayhawks have a smooth road to their third straight Final Four now that Kentucky has been eliminated from the St. Louis Regional, Giddens said UAB is better than the Wildcats.
“I say (good for) them because if UAB went through Kentucky, then they are better than Kentucky at this time of the year,” said Giddens.
The true freshman said UAB’s Fastest 40 Minutes of Basketball won’t intimidate the Jayhawks when the two teams tip off at 6:10 Friday night in St. Louis.
“I don’t think it will be hard,” said Giddens of facing UAB’s pressure. “How hard is it for them to match up with Wayne (Simien) inside?
With Jeff Graves and David Padgett inside we are a bigger team, he said. We can take advantage of that. As far as guards, we can match up with anybody in the country. The Jayhawks will feature the tallest front line UAB has faced all season. It begins with Simien at one forward, a 6-foot-9, 250-pound third-team All-America player who averages 17.6 points and 9.2 rebounds a game.
Joining him are freshman center David Padgett, a 6-11, 235-pound former McDonald’s All-American, and senior center Jeff Graves, who is 6-9, 275 pounds.
“With Jeff Graves and David Padgett inside we are a bigger team,” Giddens said. “We can take advantage of that. As far as guards, we can match up with anybody in the country.”
Reaching the Sweet 16 is as common as the sun rising for Kansas. The Jayhawks (23-8) are making their fourth straight appearance in the regional semifinals. The Jayhawks advanced to the national championship game last season, where they lost to Syracuse.
Kansas coach Bill Self said the Jayhawks haven’t faced a team quite like UAB (22-9) this season.
“I don’t think anyone in America plays faster than them at both ends,” said Self.
But Self doesn’t want anyone to assume the Jayhawks don’t run.
“People think we play slow, but we average over 75 points a game and college scoring is down across the country,” he said. “The thing we do best is run, so we are not going to take away from what they do.”
“We are different than UAB – like apples and oranges,” added Self.
Point guard Aaron Miles is the key for Kansas. The junior is averaging 8.9 points and 7.2 assists a contest. The 6-foot-1 Miles has played in two Final Fours and is as experienced as any player at his position in college basketball.
Miles’ backcourt mate, guard Keith Langford (15.7 ppg), is just as experienced. The two join Giddens, who averages 11 points a game, to give the Jayhawks a talented rotation at guard, although Miles is almost a one-man show at point guard.
The Jayhawks will feature the tallest front line UAB has faced all season. Junior forward Wayne Simien, a 6-foot-9, 250-pound third-team All-American, leads the way with an average of 17.6 points and 9.2 rebounds a game.
Joining Simien in the frontcourt are freshman center David Padgett, a 6-foot-11, 235-pound former McDonald’s All-American and senior center Jeff Graves, who checks in at 6-foot-9, 275 pounds.
The Jayhawks have struggled with turnovers so far in the NCAA Tournament. They had 25 against Illinois-Chicago and 13 against Pacific. Still, they won both games by an average of 20 points.
The Jayhawks average 14 turnovers a game. That number could go up dramatically against UAB’s pressing defense.
Guard Michael Lee said the key for Kansas against UAB is to remain composed.
“You have to stay under control,” said guard Michael Lee. “They will try and speed you up but you have to get to the right spots and break the trap or press by getting the ball to the middle. They are a fast and scrappy team – you have to be ready.”
