KSU’s Jacob Pullen torches Kansas
Kings for a day: Jayhawks rise to No. 1, fall — hard — to ‘Cats
Mario Little on the loss
“I was surprised at our turnovers (18). We never got in the flow of our offense. We started our offense at halfcourt. We couldn’t execute basically the whole game.”
Big 12 race
KU is two games behind Texas in the league race.
“I mean, our focus is to be Big 12 champs,” Little said. “Every day when we break (huddle) we say, ‘Big 12 champs.’ After the regular season we say, ‘National champs.’ We’ll put our heads down and keep working. We still have NCAA … that’s our main goal.”
Tyrel Reed on KU’s play
“Obviously we are upset with the way we played, but give K-State credit. They caused us to play bad. I don’t think we came in prepared and in the mind-set that we needed to have. We knew it’d be a tough game because this is always a tough place to play. But we are not going to panic. There are obviously things we need to do better. So we will go watch film and get ready for our next game.”
Marcus honored
Kansas University junior forward Marcus Morris on Monday was named Big 12 player of the week for the third time this season.
Morris averaged 19.0 points and 9.5 rebounds as Kansas recorded home victories against No. 19 Missouri (103-86) and Iowa State (89-66). He had 22 points off 7-of-9 shooting versus Missouri and 16 points off 7-of-12 shooting with 11 rebounds against the Cyclones. Morris also earned Big 12 Player of the Week honors Jan. 17 and Nov. 29.
Poll topper
KU on Monday moved to No. 1 in the AP and ESPN/USA Today polls. KU has been ranked No. 1 at some point in five of coach Bill Self’s eight seasons at KU.
Tidbits on being No. 1: This marks the 19th time in the Self era that KU is No. 1 in both polls. … This marks the 34th-straight week KU has been ranked No. 7 or higher in both polls. In that span, KU has been ranked in the top five 30 times. Under Self, KU has been ranked in the top 10 in 95 AP polls and 98 ESPN/USA Today polls.
Big 12 in the polls
With Baylor ranked No. 1 in the women’s poll, this gives the Big 12 the top team in both sports for the first time in conference history.
Texas is ranked second in the coaches’ poll and third in the AP. It’s the second straight season the Big 12 has had the top two teams in the rankings. The first time it happened was on Nov. 30, 2009, when the Jayhawks were first and UT was ranked second. … KU and Texas were ranked first and second, respectively, for six consecutive weeks during the 2009-10 campaign. … The Big 12 is the only conference in the country with every team ranked in the top 150 of the latest RPI. Seven squads are among the top 64.
Far from perfect: Jayhawks survive Wolverines in OT
Releford ailing
Kansas University sophomore Travis Releford sprained his left ankle with 4:56 left in the first half and did not return.
“He turned his ankle,” KU coach Bill Self said. “He said he couldn’t come back (in game). I certainly anticipate him playing on Wednesday (at Iowa State). It is not a high-ankle sprain. It’s one where he’ll be sore, but he should be able to bounce back and play pretty soon.”
Brady says …
Brady Morningstar (four points, 2-of-3 shooting) on the victory: “A win is a win. Sometimes they are good. Sometimes they are ugly. Sometimes you shouldn’t win and do win. We were up by 15. We should have cracked them when we had a chance. It didn’t happen. But it’s good we were able to come out with a win.”
Vitale picks Self
Dick Vitale on Twitter revealed his midseason coach of the year is Self. Player of the year is UConn’s Kemba Walker and “Diaper Dandy” is Ohio State’s Jared Sullinger.
Hardaway not Joshing
KU’s Josh Selby and Michigan’s Tim Hardaway Jr., played together at last year’s Nike Hoop Jamboree in St. Louis.
“He just has that killer instinct, I think,” Hardaway Jr. told annarbor.com. “I haven’t seen it from anyone else. He really demands the ball in crunch time, when I was playing with him. He really demanded the ball. He really wants to be the guy to take the last shot.”
Well adjusted: Taylor comfortable with Selby now
Keegan: Break makes KU better, but …
Technically speaking
Kansas junior Markieff Morris, who picked up a technical foul for jawing with a UMKC player with 16:02 left, did not play the rest of the game.
“You play each possession. You don’t play the score when you have a big lead. The message isn’t being heard because why would Markieff get a technical for running his mouth when/if he has heard the message and knew his value to the team,” coach Bill Self said. “He doesn’t get it. We have to keep stressing the message. Whatever we have to do physically or mentally, I’m prepared to do it. Unless those guys pull their heads out of their rear end, we’re going to have some problems.”
KU has had three players called for technical fouls, with one player ejection this season.
“It’s childish, immaturity,” Self said. “There will obviously be a pretty strong message moving forward in this particular situation. It needs to be strong. I love our guys, but I’m not happy with the immaturity level of a few of them. I think it reflects negatively on everyone else out there trying hard.”
Cryptic ‘good news’
Elijah Johnson said Self gave the team “some good news before the game and it just riled us up right before it was time to play.”
When pressed, Johnson wouldn’t reveal the good news, saying it was meant for the locker room only.
Recruiting
DeAndre Daniels, a 6-foot-8 senior forward from IMG Academies in Bradenton, Fla., is expected to choose between KU, Kentucky and Texas today. Most recruiting analysts believe KU is the favorite. Daniels’ plan is to enroll in college and practice second semester, but not play in games until the 2011-12 season. He’s Rivals.com’s No. 9-rated player nationally.
Robinson returns home
KU sophomore Thomas Robinson did not attend the game. He was in Washington, D.C., for his grandmother’s funeral.
Robinson powers Jayhawks past UTA
Keegan: Releford carves his niche
Self miffed
Displeased with his team’s play overall, Kansas University coach Bill Self was especially bothered by the last play of Wednesday’s game against Texas Arlington.
The Mavericks’ Bo Ingram knocked in a three with three seconds left in the Jayhawks’ 82-57 victory.
“The last possession summed up our team,” Self said. “We just let them shoot an uncontested basket and score points on us because the game is over in our mind. That’s not the right mind-set. We’ve been talking about this, but it’s going to hurt us in a big, big way as soon as competition gets stiffer.
“They think, ‘It’s no big deal.’ It’s a big deal to me.”
As to why KU would let UTA score, Self said it could be a matter of “toughness, pride.”
Michigan time TBA
Game time for the KU-Michigan game on Jan. 9 in Ann Arbor, Mich., likely will be announced Monday, KU officials said.
The game is slated to start at 12:30 p.m. or 3:30 p.m. and be televised on CBS. The network won’t set the game time until CBS’ NFL playoff schedule is finalized Sunday.
Big crowd
Prior to Wednesday, UT Arlington had played in front of a combined 19,768 fans in 10 games this season. Wednesday’s attendance was listed at capacity: 16,300.
This ‘n’ that
KU is 12-0 for the second-straight season and fourth time in the Self era. The Jayhawks are 7-0 this season in Allen Fieldhouse and have won 66 straight home games. … KU is 1-0 all-time vs. UT Arlington. KU is 4-0 against current membership of the Southland Conference.. … KU is 120-6 at home in the Self era.
Kansas enters a short holiday break 11-0 for the second-straight season and fourth time in Bill Self’s eight seasons at KU. … KU is 5-0 in games away from Allen Fieldhouse — 1-0 in true road games … KU has won 10 in a row over Cal and improved its all-time mark vs. the Bears to 16-3. … KU is 4-0 versus the Pac-10 and 11-4 against the conference in the Bill Self era … Self won his 420th game against 148 losses.
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Bayhawk talk: Former Lawrence High football player Kris Weidling, who played for the Lions’ 1986 state championship team, was one of a large contingent of KU Bay Area alumni to attend the KU-Cal game in Berkeley’s Haas Pavilion.
The 4,000 alumni in the Bay Area call themselves the “Bayhawks.”
“This is a once-in-a-lifetime thing. I bought a block of 20 tickets,” said Weidling, senior human resources business partner for Bayer Health Care in Berkeley. “Some in our block are Cal fans. I told them they have to be KU fans for a day,” added Weidling, who attended a pre-game party for Jayhawk fans at Meridian International Sports Cafe in Berkeley.
“It’s the biggest nonconference game Cal has ever had in Berkeley.”
Weidling has become a big University of San Francisco basketball fan. The Dons are coached by former KU guard Rex Walters and assisted by former KU guard Michael Lee and former KU manager Justin Bauman.
The Dons are in a tournament in Las Vegas this week.
“We had a KU Alumni Night for the San Francisco-Colorado game. It was Rex versus Tad Boyle,” Weidling said of the game pitting teams coached by former KU guards. San Francisco beat Boyle’s Buffs, 82-80, in overtime on Nov. 20.
“We had 36 Jayhawks there. I think the fans were really impressed with the coaching. Rex is very fan-friendly. If you pay $100 you are a member of Rex’s Sixth-Man club. He talks to the fans before the game. It’s a great deal. He’ll discuss his game plan and everything.”
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Daniels update: DeAndre Daniels, a 6-8 senior forward from IMG Academy in Bradenton, Fla., will visit the University of Texas on Monday, Rivals.com reports. Daniels has visited KU, Kentucky and Oregon. He told Rivals he likely will take a fifth and final visit. Candidates for that visit: Florida, Alabama, Arizona State, Baylor and North Carolina State. Daniels has said he’d like to attend college second semester of this school year, but just practice and not play in games until the 2011-12 season. He is the No. 9-ranked player in the recruiting class of 2011.
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Self attends game of Ashley: Self has been not only coaching his team, but recruiting on this trip to California.
Self on Tuesday attended a game of Brandon Ashley, a 6-8 junior power forward from Bishop O’Dowd High in Oakland. Ashley, the No. 6-prospect in the Class of 2012, had 14 points, five rebounds and three blocks in a win over previously unbeaten Berkeley High. The Contra Costa Times reported that Cal coach Mike Montgomery and Washington’s Lorenzo Romar also attended.
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McLemore MOP: Ben McLemore, a 6-5 senior forward from Oak Hill Academy in Mouth of Wilson, Va., was named most outstanding player of this week’s Iolani Classic in Hawaii. McLemore, who is Rivals.com’s No. 17-rated player, has said he hopes to orally commit to KU or Missouri over his Christmas break. Recruiting analysts say McLemore wants to attend KU, but his mom has not yet OK’ed the decision.
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One big family: KU assistant coach Kurtis Townsend, who grew up in the Bay Area and served as an assistant coach at Cal, had several family members and friends in the stands.
“I asked Kurtis, ‘How many tickets do you need?’ He said, ‘I don’t know. Twenty-eight?”‘ Bill Self said in his pre-game radio interview with the Jayhawk Network. “I said 28?’ He has a big family.
“I’m sure it’s been good for him to come out here and spend a couple days with his family before the holidays.”
Remembering Yow
Kansas University coach Bill Self was saddened to learn of the death of North Carolina State women’s coach Kay Yow, who had battled cancer for many years.
Hall of Famer Yow, who won over 737 games in 38 years, was first diagnosed with cancer in 1987. She died Saturday.
“She was unbelievable, incredible, an inspiration to a lot of people,” Self said.
He met Yow at the 2000 Wooden Awards ceremony in Salt Lake City, and they remained friends ever since.
“She asked me to come to her golf tournament last summer. It was like, ‘Of course I’ll be there,”‘ Self said of the tourney for cancer research. “She was a great person, a great coach. She will be greatly missed by so many.”
Good stats
KU’s Cole Aldrich scored 16 points off 7-of-12 shooting with 12 rebounds.
“I was on Cole. I thought it was one of his least effective games of late,” Self said. “The kid still gets 16 and 12. I didn’t think he played near as smart in certain situations. He was still effective.”
Aldrich speaks
Aldrich on ISU’s Craig Brackins: “He showed again he’s one of the best in the Big 12. I guarded him a little bit. He’s so tough as an outside-inside guy.”
Aldrich on Sherron Collins: “Amazing, amazing. He was the only one who kept us in the game the first half. He had 18 the first half, making shots, moving the ball.”
Keating at reunion
KU senior associate athletic director Larry Keating and players, coaches and managers from the 1989 Seton Hall basketball team will be honored at halftime of the Seton Hall-Georgetown game today in Newark, N.J.
The ’89 Pirates advanced to the Final Four 20 years ago, losing to Michigan in the national championship game.
Keating served as Seton Hall AD for 12 years.
Stats, facts
KU has won five in a row at Hilton Coliseum and seven of eight. KU is 20-18 all-time at Hilton. … KU has won seven in a row overall versus the Cyclones. … Collins became the 51st player in KU history to score 1,000 points. He has 1,025. … Collins, who hit three of four threes, has made at least 50 percent of his treys in four straight games. … KU made 50.8 percent of its shots (31-61). It’s the first Cyclone opponent to shoot 50 percent this year. … Collins was perfect from the free-throw line for the third straight game. He has made 23 straight free throws. … Aldrich, who had two blocks, has had two or more blocks in eight straight games. … Mario Little has made 11 straight shots dating to the Kansas State game. The KU record for shots made in a single game is nine, set by both C.J. Giles (2005 vs. Chaminade) and Mark Randall (1990 vs. Rider). There are no records available for consecutive shots made in multiple games. … Tyshawn Taylor had a career-high six boards to go with his 10 points.