**-Take away the thousands upon thousands of crazed**, black-clad fans in Bramlage Coliseum Monday night, and KU proved that it has what it takes to win NCAA Tournament games – a feat which the Jayhawks have not accomplished in nearly three full calendar years.Think about it:**_1)_** KU won a grinder of a game, which you’re almost always promised every time out come March Madness.**_2)_** The Jayhawks for the most part were without the offensive services of their top scorer, Brandon Rush, and their fourth-leading scorer, Julian Wright. Rush had probably his worst shooting night of the season, registering three of his five missed three-point attempts in the game’s first two minutes. Wright didn’t take a single shot in the first half, and finished with just four points. Rush finished with 11, including three at the end which Bill Self called mostly throwaways (though the Jayhawks did cover the spread with them, FYI).**_3)_** An atmosphere which was by far the most hostile they’ve faced this year didn’t faze the team as a whole one bit, no matter how hard K-Staters tried. Now, they probably won’t see anything that vicious the rest of the way, but it was a good barometer for measuring this team’s mental toughness, which right now can’t be questioned too much.-**-And how good was Sherron Collins (again)?** You know it’s a good thing when you’ve become desensitized at this point in the season to dropping your jaw every time he flies in and twirls midair before hitting an improbable layup. It’s lost its ‘I wish there was a real life rewind button’ effect…but that’s not such a bad thing.He’s been so swell lately that it got triggered some research – to find out who is the best freshman point guard in the nation by the numbers.Here’s the five-man sampler, entering Tuesday’s action:**_1) [D.J. Augustin][1], Texas (No. 19; 19-7 overall, 9-3 Big 12)_** Games played: 26 Minutes per game: 34.0 Field goal percentage: 48.3 3-point field goal percentage: 47.2 Assists: 174 Turnovers: 88 Steals: 41 Points per game: 14.3**_2) [Sherron Collins][2], Kansas (No. 6; 24-4 overall, 11-2 Big 12)_** Games played: 28 Minutes per game: 21.5 Field goal percentage: 52.6 3-point field goal percentage: 43.3 Assists: 77 Turnovers: 44 Steals: 17 Points per game: 10.0**_3) [Mike Conley Jr.][3], Ohio State (No. 2; 24-3 overall, 12-1 Big Ten)_** Games played: 27 Minutes per game: 30.1 Field goal percentage: 53.2 3-point field goal percentage: 32.6 Assists: 173 Turnovers: 56 Steals: 65 Points per game: 10.1**_4) [Ty Lawson][4], North Carolina (No. 5; 23-4 overall, 9-3 ACC)_** Games played: 27 Minutes per game: 24.4 Field goal percentage: 53.4 3-point field goal percentage: 38.3 Assists: 141 Turnovers: 64 Steals: 44 Points per game: 10.4**_5) [Scottie Reynolds][5], Villanova (18-9 overall, 6-7 Big East)_** Games played: 27 Minutes per game: 28.1 Field goal percentage: 38.8 3-point field goal percentage: 37.8 Assists: 112 Turnovers: 82 Steals: 35 Points per game: 12.5OK, taken all that in? Obviously, if you look at the numbers, it’s pretty obvious whose production is most important to his team, and that’s Augustin, hands down. He has the highest percentage from beyond the arc, has played the most minutes, has the most assists and scores the most points.Texas really has no one behind him, while Sherron Collins refers to both Mario Chalmers and Russell Robinson as big brothers to him. All three of the Jayhawk guards are capable of running the point, while in Austin, it’s a one-man show. Augustin’s numbers might be subject to some inflation in this comparison, as well, seeing as he’s played nearly twice as many minutes as Collins.As for the other three, it’s pretty simple. Lawson and Collins might as well be mentioned in the same breath, as they’re guiding young yet wildly-talented teams. The only difference is that Lawson starts and plays a few more minutes (and he plays in a better conference).Conley Jr.’s prowess will be determined in the NCAA Tournament. It’s nice to have Greg Oden as a safety valve, but Ohio State really hasn’t beat anybody. They’ve been womped by Florida, North Carolina and Wisconsin.And Reynolds, well, that shooting percentage might as well negate him from the converasation, along with his team’s 6-7 league record.Though it’s hard to argue that no player has meant more to his team in the past several weeks than Collins has to KU. The [71-62 win][6] wouldn’t have happened without him. No question.The 20 points he scored Monday were highlighted by him almost single-handedly applying a wedge between the Jayhawks and Wildcats on the scoreboard in the second half. Every time K-State hit a huge basket, Collins played the role of run-killer, doing so before a run could even get started. He’d slice down right through the lane and make the ‘Cats feel utterly helpless.That performance simply goes hand-in-hand with his 23 points in an [80-77 home win][7] over Missouri and [18 points against Texas A&M][8], which had it not been for a major meltdown of the unit as a whole, would have been the difference in the game.Collins is no longer that bumbling bundle of muscle which earlier in the season just recklessly crashed into the lane and usually ended the drive with a turnover. He’s not only lost weight and gained endurance by cutting back on the two all-beef patties, special sauce and cheese, but he’s smarter with the ball in his hand.Collins was asked when teammates began getting more trust in him with the ball in his hands after Monday’s game, and he said it came after a Jan. 20 loss at Texas Tech. In nine games since then, Collins has averaged 12.8 points per game, has 28 assists to 13 turnovers, is shooting a blistering 52.6 percent from the field, and hitting on 42 percent of his three-point shots.But enough with numbers. The ‘who is the better freshman point guard’ question will become a little clearer after Collins and Augustin hook up in Allen Fieldhouse on March 3.**-Before leaving the topic of the K-State game for good**, I’ve got to say that I’m a pretty firm believer in superstition. Call it stupid if you must, but to each his own.This was one area where the Wildcats shot themselves in the foot last night. And it wasn’t necessarily the players or coaches (despite Bob Huggins’ Late Night guarantee). It was the fans.Some credit has to go to the Bramlage crowd, because while I’ve only been to three men’s basketball games in my life at the arena, there’s probably little question that Monday night was the loudest it’s ever been. The fans were line up past Wagner Field when we arrived at around 5:45 p.m. I even heard a $100 offer thrown out from the middle of the pack in line for the pass around my neck.But those were the same students with a chant sheet floating around the crowd, and I happened to snatch up a copy while walking back from the bathroom. You know, it was mostly PG-rated stuff, with the obvious sophomoric entries on there. A couple of highlights included the names of eight mothers of KU players. And for the record, it wasn’t ‘over-rated’ the fans were chanting during layup lines – it was ‘on probation.’Anyways, the final entry on the sheet cracked me up. Here it is, word-for-word.”Final Minute – In the final minute of tonight’s victory, start chanting K-S-U, K-S-U, at an even pace, letting the fairies know that they’ve just been dominated by big brother.”Seriously? The first part wasn’t really head-scratching, because every person in that building with Wildcat loyalty truly believed they would win that game. But you don’t go as far as calling a team which has beaten you in your own house now 19 times straight ‘fairies’ and dub yourself ‘big brother.’There was a great line in the movie [Glory Road][9] from Texas Western coach Don Haskins: “Showboatin’s nothin’ but insecurity.”We can just leave that at that.-It’s almost not fair that Bonnie Henrickson’s crew gets buried kinda deep this week in [_The Greene Room_][10], but they definitely deserve recognition for ending a streak of their own Sunday with an [82-74 win][11] over Kansas State in double overtime on the home floor.The play of freshmen Danielle McCray (25 points, 6-of-7 from three) and Kelly Kohn (16 points, a trio of threes) not only proved yet again that Henrickson has a foundation to build on for the next few years, but it might have also ended the days of Wildcat fans dominating the stands in Allen Fieldhouse once a year.It wasn’t too long ago when the ‘Cats brought nearly 10,000 fans to the Fieldhouse for a women’s game, on hand to watch yet another beating in the streak. But Deb Patterson’s crew is down this year, and there’s not much question about that. There were still a couple thousand K-Staters there, but that number might slice in the future, as the rivalry might be evening out.-And if you’re wanting to see what a great women’s college player looks like live, head out to the Fieldhouse Wednesday for the 7 p.m. tip-off between KU and [No. 13 Oklahoma][12]. Sophomore [Courtney Paris][13] is beyond the real deal. She’s a frontrunner for National Player of the Year honors, and KU might be in some trouble in the paint. The 6-foot-4 center, through 60 career games, has averages of 22.4 points and 15.3 rebounds per game. Talk about a late-season test.-Finally, if you were driving by Hoglund Ballpark Tuesday morning and did a double-take, you were not dreaming. There was really a [helicopter][14] – yes, a helicopter – hovering above the field to attempt drying it for the day’s scheduled double-dip between 7-1 KU and North Dakota State.It didn’t work, as the games were canceled, and they tried to play the originally-scheduled third game of the series Wednesday at 3 p.m. Didn’t happen, and the Bison were sent back up north having used their stay in Lawrence as nothing more than a vacation.I really would have loved to have been a fly on the wall when they discussed bringing a helicopter. Again…yes, a helicopter.**-Yes, it will now be tradition that [_The Greene Room_][10] every week ends with delightful YouTube clips.**Here’s some entertaining ones for this episode:-J.R. Giddens got suspended indefinitely this week by New Mexico head hoops coach Ritchie McKay. Sure, he can do [this][15], but it won’t keep you in a coach’s good graces. McKay kicked Giddens out of a practice last week, and said the suspension wasn’t caused by anything illegal. Although it’s a safe bet that most KU fans let out an audible ‘sounds about right’ after hearing the news.-How about a classic movie scene thrown in the mix? [This][16] should be on every guy’s list of favorites.-Finally, remember [DeShawn Stevenson][17]? He was at one time a KU commit, but jumped straight to the NBA instead, leaving Bryant Nash to carry the weight of a once-stellar-looking freshman class…oh yeah, and Mario Kinsey, too.Anyways, Stevenson recently lost a [$20,000 post-practice bet][18] with teammate [Gilbert Arenas][19]. The two each shot 100 three-pointers – 20 from five different spots around the arc. Arenas shot his one-handed from college length, while Stevenson hoisted regular NBA treys with both hands. The video’s kind of long, but the end is pretty entertaining.Amazing how little $20,000 is to some. Crazy.Until next week, take care.**_KUSports.com editor Ryan Greene can be reached at rgreene@ljworld.com, or by phone at (785) 832-6357._** [1]: http://sports.espn.go.com/ncb/player/profile?playerId=31578 [2]: http://sports.espn.go.com/ncb/player/profile?playerId=31788 [3]: http://sports.espn.go.com/ncb/player/profile?playerId=31544 [4]: http://sports.espn.go.com/ncb/player/profile?playerId=31608 [5]: http://sports.espn.go.com/ncb/player/profile?playerId=31880 [6]: http://www2.kusports.com/news/2007/feb/20/keep_streakin/?mens_basketball [7]: http://www2.kusports.com/news/2007/jan/16/collins_goes_ballin/?mens_basketball [8]: http://www2.kusports.com/news/2007/feb/04/oh_agony/?mens_basketball [9]: http://imdb.com/title/tt0385726/ [10]: http://www2.kusports.com/blogs/greene_room/ [11]: http://www2.kusports.com/news/2007/feb/19/streak_busters/?womens_basketball [12]: http://www.soonersports.com/SportSelect.dbml?DB_OEM_ID=300&KEY=&SPID=193&SPSID=2534 [13]: http://www.soonersports.com/ViewArticle.dbml?DB_LANG=C&SPID=193&SPORT_TAB_SEL=01&DB_OEM_ID=300&SPSID=2537&ATCLID=167690&Q_SEASON=2006 [14]: http://www2.kusports.com/news/2007/feb/21/athletic_department_charters_helicopter_dry_muddy_/?baseball [15]: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=huVvyyq3L0A [16]: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QWJLWERyvkk [17]: http://www.nba.com/playerfile/deshawn_stevenson/index.html [18]: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bn6O42a5vl8 [19]: http://www.nba.com/playerfile/gilbert_arenas/index.html
