It easily was Emporia State’s brightest firework Sunday at Allen Fieldhouse. But, like everything else, it came with a hefty price tag.
Midway through the first half of Kansas University’s 115-70 men’s basketball victory over ESU, Hornet senior Deshawn Anderson put back a missed three-pointer by Jay Miller with a filthy, one-handed dunk. It charged the ESU senior, and he let out a lengthy scream to lose the emotion while heading back up court.
Whoops.
Anderson was given a technical foul for the holler, and KU’s J.R. Giddens converted one of the two ensuing free throws.
“I was surprised,” Anderson said of the whistle. “When I played the shot, it came off, and I was like, ‘I’m going to get it.’ I couldn’t believe I was so open, and all I did was yell.”
If the Jayhawks needed any help — not likely — they got it when Anderson’s super dunk turned into a super break for KU. Giddens’ free throw put Kansas up 26-19, and the game spun out of control for the Hornets soon after.
“It took any momentum we may have gotten from that play away, and we don’t have that much margin of error against a team like that,” ESU coach David Moe said. “Actually, we have no margin of error.”
Moe would know. The Hornets, an NCAA Division Two team, are in the midst of a grueling exhibition slate. Before its first three regular-season games with Friends University, Vennard (Iowa) and Ottawa, the Hornets have had road exhibition matchups at Gonzaga (a 114-86 loss) and Kansas and will have another one Wednesday at Wichita State.
Besides a little money in the pocket — ESU received $20,000 for coming to Lawrence — matchups with Gonzaga and KU makes every team’s weaknesses stick out, and Moe certainly will work on them before the Hornets’ MIAA Conference slate begins Dec. 30 against Missouri-Rolla.
Sunday, the problem might have been playing team ball. Shawn Herrman had 17 points to lead the Hornets, and Miller and Anderson also reached double figures, but the shots often were pull-up jumpers because KU didn’t allow much more.
“We got forced into doing a lot of things one-on-one,” Moe said. “Not for selfish reasons, but for defensive reasons.”
That’s more work for the practice floor, but that’s what is good about playing top teams like the Jayhawks.
“It’s going to pump us up,” said Anderson, who finished with 11 points. “Even though we got blown out, we did compete and play hard, so that’s going to give us the edge. When we go out against Division Two teams, we’re going to be better. We just got to play as a team.”