“I am here at Kansas representing a lot more than myself. I’m representing the university,” Robinson said.

He returns today to the scene of last year’s trash-talking episode with former Iowa State guard Curtis Stinson, who has moved on and won’t be playing (will he be watching in the stands?) when the Cyclones (11-5 overall, 2-0 Big 12 Conference) tangle with Robinson’s Jayhawks (14-2, 1-0) at 1 p.m. in Hilton Coliseum.

“That’s not the image you want to give out, to give to the young kids watching and stuff,” Robinson said of barking at opponents. “I’m the type of person who always lets the scoreboard do the talking.”

Admittedly, Robinson was a bit puzzled when fellow New Yorker Stinson glared at him and barked, ‘We’ll see you in Lawrence,'” after Robinson scored 18 points and dished four assists in KU’s 95-85 victory last Jan. 28 in Hilton Coliseum.

After the rematch in Lawrence – another KU victory (88-75) – Stinson, using an expletive, challenged Robinson to a summertime 1-on-1 game on the hardcourts of New York.

The two have yet to play that game.

Stinson, who left ISU after three seasons, signed to play professionally in Croatia after not being selected in the 2006 NBA Draft. He’s since returned to the U.S. and reportedly is back in New York considering his future options in basketball.

“Nah, I haven’t run into Stinson,” Robinson said. “I heard he was overseas playing. I think that was an inner-city feud. (Also) we had a young team last year. It’s the main thing that got to him … losing to a whole bunch of young guys.”

Robinson said he was never tempted to take a poke at Stinson.

“I’m just trying to be the bigger person. We had the game won. There’s no reason for me to do anything,” Robinson said. “I may have said my little thing back to him. The main thing I told him to do was look at the scoreboard. We were up by 20. I think that’s the main thing that made him mad. He’s a good kid, but you know …”

Stinson’s three-year backcourt partner, Will Blalock, also left ISU after three seasons. The last pick in the 2006 Draft, Blalock, who was never as chatty on the court as Stinson, is a contributing member of the Detroit Pistons.

“No Stinson. No Blalock, which means they will be a lot hungrier,” Robinson said of the current ISU team. “This is college basketball. A lot of guys are capable. You need to go out and do the things you need to do every night.”

First-year coach Greg McDermott’s Cyclones are led by two players he signed in April – junior college point guard Mike Taylor and small forward Wesley Johnson – who average 16.4 and 12.1 points per game, respectively.

Holdovers from last year’s team – forward Jiri Hubalek and guard Rahshon Clark – average 9.5 and 8.7 tallies per contest.

“Iowa State has been one of the more pleasant surprises in the league,” KU coach Bill Self said of a team that has opened Big 12 play with a win at Missouri and at home versus Nebraska.

“Greg is a terrific coach. He’s proven it at the other stops he’s been at (Northern Iowa, Wayne State, North Dakota State). They run a ton of stuff. Hilton Coliseum has been good to us at times and greeted Kansas very unfavorably at times. We know we’ll have our hands full.”

The Jayhawks, who are 17-18 all-time at Hilton, are 2-1 in Ames under Self, who this season brings a No. 6-rated squad to town to play an unranked foe.

“Kansas is playing extremely well right now,” McDermott said. “Oklahoma State is an excellent team. What Kansas was able to accomplish against a very good team (an 87-57 victory Wednesday) was very impressive . They are talented across the board. They get everybody’s best shot. That’s why the scores are closer than you might guess in some of their games.”

McDermott laughed when asked which co-Big 12 player of the year he feared most – Brandon Rush (13.6 ppg, 5.4 rpg) or Julian Wright (11.6, 7.9).

“You can flip a coin. They are both very talented,” McDermott said. “Julian Wright has been so impressive in what he does defensively, how many positions he can guard – whether power forward or switches to point guard, he can be effective.

“Both can slash, are athletic, can score in different ways. They have many pieces around them and have so many guys coming off the bench, it’s tough to provide help or you’ll get burned in a different way. Both are talented players who will be playing at the next level at some point in time.”

The Jayhawks will return home to meet rival Missouri at 8 p.m. Monday at Allen Fieldhouse. There’s no chance of overlooking the Cyclones before then, Robinson says.

“I will definitely be fired up just because it’s in Ames. We played well there last year. We’ll try to do that again,” Robinson said. “Everybody knows how important league play is. This league is a lot better than what we initially thought. Teams are good. We’ve got to go out and get better.”