Miles struggles, but relishes win

By Gary Bedore Feb 10, 2005

Kansas point guard Aaron Miles (11) dishes on the baseline. Miles finished with an uncharacteristic eight turnovers and six assists against KSU.

Manhattan ? A peek at the stat sheet didn’t make Aaron Miles nauseous on Wednesday night at Bramlage Coliseum.

Not at all.

“Obviously, you see the stat line. I had eight turnovers. The key thing is I had eight turnovers, and we still won. That’s all that matters,” Miles, Kansas University’s senior point guard, said without a trace of disappointment after dishing six assists in the Jayhawks’ 74-65 victory over Kansas State. “We’re 9-0 in the conference now.”

Miles took just one shot from the floor. It missed. He made one of two free throws with 33 seconds left, accounting for his one point.

He had been shut out just twice in his career, his freshman and sophomore seasons in games against Oklahoma.

“We had some guys play out of character,” KU coach Bill Self said. “Aaron has been so good. To have a game with that many unforced errors is not indicative (of Miles’ ability).”

Asked what was the problem with his senior point guard, Self said: “I don’t know. He was as much out of character tonight as I’ve seen him. I’m sure he’ll say the balls are bad,” Self added, laughing. “No, he’s a stand-up guy. He’s relieved we won. He’s been due a game like this. He’s been really good all year.”

Miles at one point slammed the ball on the court, appearing to be miffed at his own play the second half.

“There was no frustration,” Miles said. “Probably just a little angry at myself, turning it over, mishandling the ball. I had eight turnovers that helped lead to their run.”

KSU used a 17-4 run to turn a 17-point deficit into a four-point game down the stretch.

“You’ve got to expect teams to make runs,” Miles said. “Some were keyed off turnovers, lackadaisical play by myself, but we got the win, and that’s what’s important.”

“They have one of the best three-point shooting teams in the nation,” KU’s J.R. Giddens said after hitting four threes on a night KU made eight of 13 to KSU’s nine of 20. “They shot it very well. Peete (Fred, six threes) was hitting everything. We knew a team like that could come back at any time. We kept our poise and were still able to win the game.”