**9:59 p.m.**: Well Bill Self put it best in that there’s no use in apologizing for beating Arizona, who is sure to be an NCAA Tournament team come the spring.But there were still issues.Brandon Rush played 36 minutes for KU, and Self said before the game that he’d only planned to play his All-American 20 minutes, but foul trouble by Russell Robinson and Rodrick Stewart, coupled with Tyrel Reed twisting his ankle slightly at the end of the first half forced Rush to play more. But Self said Rush was completely capable of doing so. I’m standing by my prediction that Rush will be in the starting lineup Sunday at Southern Cal.KU was outrebounded, and Self called out his big men for simply not going after the ball. But the guards were also at fault on the offensive end, as Self talked about the guards not getting the ball into open bigs in the paint on several occasions in half-court sets.The Jayhawks also only hit two threes on the night, with Brandon Rush accounting for both. The rest of the team was 0-for-8 from deep (and speaking of Rush from deep, he claims he did not call glass on his near-miss from half-court to end regulation).One last thing…Russell Robinson, who has been KU’s glue in offensive showcases so far this season, was completely off in every way possible Sunday night. Aside from strange, out-of-character fouls, he was 0-for-3 from the field (all from deep), had four fouls, three assists and three turnovers. Until he does that again, we can consider it just a minor blip on the radar. Expect him to bounce back against Florida Atlantic Wednesday night. Anything else would be completely odd.**9:09 p.m.**: Official word: Brandon didn’t call glass there, in case you were wondering.**9:06 p.m.**: Wow, got ahead of myself a bit. If Rush’s prayer would have been answered, it would have undoubtedly been one of the best college basketball finishes ever.We get overtime instead, and this game’s been pretty sloppy. Not sure how to feel about that option.**9:01 p.m.**: Wild finish. Gotta love games like these in November, even though most KU fans were probably hoping for a big win following Saturday’s gridiron letdown.On the final stat sheet, KU missed a bunch of bunnies from the charity stripe and was owned on the glass. Both areas will need correcting before next Sunday’s nationally-televised road opener at Southern Cal.I’ll be back with postgame notes momentarily.**8:41 p.m.**: No matter the outcome tonight, KU is going to have to work on its long rebounding. Arizona has chased down countless offensive boards thanks to the big guys poking rebounds out to Nic Wise, Chase Budinger and Jerryd Bayless.**8:35 p.m.**: I spoke too soon. Rodrick Stewart just threw home his second-nastiest dunk of the 2007-08 season, this time doing so in Jerryd Bayless’ face. It could be the catalyst KU has waited for.**8:32 p.m.**: Well, KU is just sloppy as hell here in the second half.The Wildcats, however, haven’t done too much in terms of pulling away on the scoreboard. But don’t forget, Chase Budinger is still down there and, start until now, has been the game’s hottest offensive player.Brandon Rush has spent a good part of the second half now on the bench, and bless Rod Stewart, but his offensive creation abilities aren’t up to par with No. 25’s. Someone’s gonna have to step up. Anyone can see that.**8:05 p.m.**: A few first half numbers…-KU again left some points on the table from the free throw line, going 6-of-10. In a game this tight, that’s gotta shore up, especially since Jerry Bayless proved that he can not only get to the line, but be very effective there, going 6-of-6 late in the first half.-Brandon Rush played 15 minutes in the first half. You’ve got to imagine how much he can realistically play in the second stanza without getting overworked. He’s starting the second half on the floor, though.-Chase Budinger has two fouls and Bayles s has one. If neither gets in foul trouble, don’t expect them to leave the floor in the second half.**7:35 p.m.**: Last night James McClinton was quick to call Chase Daniel a baller. I’m going to give the same title to Chase Budinger, who is single-handedly keeping Arizona in this one. His second three of the game was literally with a Brandon Rush mit in his face, and he looks completely in the zone.Sidenote: Why did Arizona change its uniforms to these new Nike Dri-Fit getups? The tighter tops with the baggy shorts look horrendous. [This look][1] was much better than the new one (sorry, no pic). But that’s just me being a uniform nerd. Apologies…somewhat. The adidas switch probably wasn’t a bad thing, considering KU would have probably been wearing these uncomfortable-looking things, too, had they stuck with Nike.**7:31 p.m.**: Arizona’s Jerryd Bayless spent a loooooong stretch of time on the bench here in the first half due to a couple of foul calls, and still Arizona has been able to pull close. The Jayhawks need badly to build a small pad in anticipation of him playing quite a bit in the second half.As for Budinger, he’s got the ultimate green light it seems, and his first three-pointer of the night was huge in helping UA keep itself within range.**7:22 p.m.**: I wasn’t here for the NAU game on Wednesday, but for the second straight game I’ve been in attendance for, Brandon Rush is again the spark off the bench.With KU’s offense looking sluggish early, he came in off the bench for a huge three and was an immediate defensive stopgap against Chase Budinger, who hasn’t done squat since his two early buckets.Also, plenty of fantastic seats still available in the student section at Allen Fieldhouse. Come on down.**6:55 p.m.**: Five minutes until scheduled tip, and the entire upper northwest corner of Allen Fieldhouse is bare. Football hangover can officially be diagnosed.**6:12 p.m.**: I’m not one to question the crowds too much, but man, we’re 48 minutes from tip-time here in Allen Fieldhouse, and the student turnout so far is somewhat bleak. The lower section is filled, and above the railings in the student sections, kids are simply peppered in there right now…My prediction of a bit of a football hangover looks like it might not be too far off.But the Jayhawks can’t afford to let that play any role in the game tonight, and I’m sure there won’t. There’s no reason to believe they will.Caught a couple of glimpses of Bayless and Budinger in the ‘Cats’ first round of warmups, and both look impressive as expected. But KU has quantity and quality, while UA just has quality in its corner, lacking depth.But man, just watching Budinger move around a bit, kid looks like he can ball. The stats don’t lie, of course, and many thought he could have jumped to the league last year after his freshman season. There’s plenty of pro scouts in the house tonight to watch, too. Twelve of them, in fact. Yes, 12 NBA teams have scouts in the house.If you want some entertaining YouTube stuff before this one, lets stay on the topic of Budinger. Watch [this][2], [this][3] and [this][4].For an early frame of reference, [NBADraft.net][5] projects him as the fifth overall selection in next June’s NBA Draft. Bayless is projected 10th.**4:12 p.m.**: Well, I’m not gonna drop the whole ‘now it’s basketball season’ line…wait, I just did…but…you know what I mean……OK, fresh start.In most seasons, KU-Arizona would be a matchup carrying plenty of clout in terms of getting a national audience jacked. Tonight’s game – televised nationally – has name-power. In truth, through the season’s first few weeks, KU’s legit and Arizona’s stumbling a bit.Without Lute Olsen on the sidelines so far this year – and no, there’s no signs pointing to him being there tonight in Allen Fieldhouse – the ‘Cats took a couple of outings to get going, while the Jayhawks have sliced through a series of non-con pushovers with ease.Arizona has a loss on its resume already to Virginia, but has looked pretty good in back-to-back wins over UMKC and Adams State since then (obviously, this is a bit tougher of a test than those two…combined).UA has star power. That’s for sure. The two names you’ll hear the most tonight, be it on ESPN or in the Fieldhouse stands, are those of freshman point guard Jerryd Bayless and sophomore forward Chase Budinger.Bayless, a 6-foot-3 locally-grown product from Chandler, Ariz., is averaging 18.2 points, six assists and 4.8 rebounds a game so far. Budinger, who you [probably already read about in today’s Journal-World][6], is a sure-fire lottery pick – probably next year. The 6-foot-7 springbox is registering 16.5 points, 4.8 boards and 4.8 dimes a game.Arizona’s problem tonight, though, is depth. While KU has proven already that even with Brandon Rush still at 70 percent and Sherron Collins in street clothes, KU goes almost 10-deep.I’m predicting an 18-point KU win, but it’s kind of a shot in the dark. There’s the great unknown of how Budinger and Bayless will respond in what is sure to be the best atmosphere yet this year in Allen (but who knows, it could be wine-and-cheese again tonight like it’s been the rest of the year due to football hangover).If each of them scores 25, they have _enough_ depth to keep it close.I’ll talk to you once I’m seated at the Fieldhouse. Talk to you all then… [1]: http://i.a.cnn.net/si/2007/writers/chris_ekstrand/05/03/early.entries/p1.budinger.jpg [2]: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G8zJhXEPz5k&feature=related [3]: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=edqiFn34pTs&feature=related [4]: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xo5SKupu9Mg [5]: http://www.nbadraft.net [6]: http://www2.kusports.com/news/2007/nov/25/arizona_forward_humble_star/?mens_basketball
