**11:45 p.m.**: Sorry for the delay. Was busy running down Cole Aldrich outside the locker room…The best one to sum this one up is probably ‘ho-hum,’ and that’s probably the way most of the rest of the home games are gonna go this year. By the way, can you believe there are only four homers left? Three of those four, with the exception of K-State, should be like that I’ll say, then.Bill Self wasn’t too happy with the overall defensive performance, but pointed out that Brandon Rush did an excellent job on Matt Lawrence, keeping him under wraps most of the night. Lawrence in two games against KU this year is 1-for-15 from three-point range, and Mizzou as a team is 5-of-38. That’s not good. If the Tigers had sniped from deep better tonight and hit, say, two or three in the first half, it might have stayed a game for a bit longer.Self agreed, though, with the opinions of several media members in saying that the rebounding was the difference tonight in Allen. KU outboarded MU 48-25. Of KU’s 35 missed shots, the Jayhawks grabbed 19 of those misses on the glass. That’s impressive. From an observer’s stanpoint, this was probably the hardest I’ve seen KU rebound in awhile. That’s a positive sign. Props there go in large part to huge minutes off the bench from Sasha Kaun and Cole Aldrich, especially in the first half. As for Arthur’s foul trouble, don’t expect it to be a huge thing.Also, one more note, Brandon Rush said he’ll try to play without the knee brace Saturday against Baylor. He’s gonna test it out in practice this week.Some final numbers to munch on…-Five KU players scored at least 12 points.-The Jayhawks were efficient yet again from the free throw line, going 21-of-24. As a team, KU is 59-of-70 from the line in three games.-Best line honors tonight go to Mario Chalmers…again. He had 15 points, six assists, four rebounds and – for the second straight game – two blocks.Talk to you later this week. Good stretch for KU over the last six days, in all. They got through a game-and-a-half swoon by playing, well, a solid game-and-a-half. The next four days without a game will do them well. Talk to you then, maybe sooner.**10:01 p.m.**: Well, that rebounding advantage for KU will be the ultimate indicator on how this one got to be so ugly. It was 43-22 KU going into the last break.The Jayhawks are running away, which means it’s bye-bye for a bit before news, notes and nuggets from postgame interviews. I feel like tonight’s blog was a bit bland…but then again, so was this game…**9:35 p.m.**: Where has KU’s interior defense gone? Missouri is attacking the rim at will and scoring plenty inside. That’s the only place MU is scoring, though, as the outside shot is just gone.That goes double for Matt Lawrence. He’s 0-for-4 from three-point range tonight. I thought before the game his contribution could keep MU close after scoring 19 points last year in the Fieldhouse.MU trailed by 14 in the second half Saturday before coming back to take out K-State. I don’t see that happening tonight. The Jayhawks are scoring inside at will. Sasha Kaun has 12 points and Darrell Arthur came back in off the bench to just score nine in about four minutes following a quiet first half where he played just two minutes.**9:05 p.m.**: After about the 857th honoring of the KU football team at a hoops halftime this year, here are some first half numbers of note…-KU outrebounded MU 22-13. This was the difference, honestly. Both teams are shooting pretty well, and KU has attacked the boards honestly harder than it has most of the calendar year. Cole Aldrich led the way with five – yes, Cole Aldrich – in seven minutes of play.-Aldrich and Sasha Kaun combined for 13 points and eight boards in 16 minutes total off the bench. Those numbers are bigger than normal since Darrell Arthur played just two minutes, picking up three fouls.-KU is again shooting well at the line. Five-of-six tonight.-KU didn’t have the same turnover woes in the first half it did Saturday. Just six tonight opposite of 11 assists.-MU, after going 5-of-28 from three-point range in the first meeting, was 0-for-6 before halftime.**8:45 p.m.**: Well, it’s pretty obvious that MU beating K-State Saturday was no fluke. The Tigers are playing hard, and DeMarre Carroll is playing more like he’s supposed to be as opposed to how he looked in meeting No. 1 with KU.The difference so far without question has been how _hard_ KU has rebounded the ball. Bill Self said at the turn of the new year that’s what he wanted, and tonight the Jayhawks are showing it. Namely Brandon Rush, Cole Aldrich and Sasha Kaun. Darnell Jackson’s been solid there, too, but the way the Jayhawks will win this game is by out-hustling MU, because the Tigers are showing no shellshock here in Allen. They’ll score until this one’s over.One of the better atmospheres of the year, too. Again, though, I’m not a fan of this attempt at an ‘orange-out.’ I’m losing this fleece at halftime.**8:24 p.m.**: KU’s early front-runner for MVP in the month of February? Sasha Kaun. But don’t let this be a rally cry for him to regain his spot in the starting lineup. It’s not broke, and it needn’t any fixing.Kaun again continues to play tonight to his physical capabilities under the rim. He’s already got seven points and two offensive rebounds. Plus, he’s playing foul-free ball these days. Physically, he’s reminiscent of Ivan Drago – take away the Screech ‘do. If Darrell Arthur’s early foul woes keep up, he’s going to continue to shine in the spotlight early in games.As for Arthur’s two fouls tonight, it looked like be another version of the KU-MU game in Columbia, marred by 50-plus foul calls. The whistles have been pretty silent since then, however.**7:44 p.m.**: Good amount of orange in the stands tonight. That’s worth pointing out. I accidentally wore a rust-colored fleece. Wish I hadn’t because I’m not a fan of this whole ‘orange-out’ attempt. I think KU fans are a little quick to forget that MU _won_ the game at Arrowhead.**7:28 p.m.**: Pregame notes…or, at least a couple…-Ed Hightower is heading tonight’s officiating crew.-12 NBA scouts in the house.-Daryl Butterfield and Jason Horton are in uniform for Mizzou. No clue yet as to whether the suspensions have been lifted.**7:03 p.m.**: You know…I mean you _know_…that the KU athletics department waited until tonight for the Orange Bowl trophy presentation. This flyer was just handed out to ticket holders tonight at the gates…_Dear Ticket Holder,__Please be aware that we are having the Orange Bowl Trophy presentation at halftime of tonight’s game.__Because of this, the southeast entrance will be utilized as the staging area for improtant elements used for the presentation. We repsectfully ask that if you need to leave your seat for any purpose during halftime that you exit up the stairs into the second level concourse and around the FIeldhouse in that manner.__Your help in this regard is very much appreciated, and a vital part of making tonight’s game a great experinece for everybody.__Thanks for making Allen Fieldhouse the greatest venue in America to watch a basketball game. ROCK CHALK!!!__Sincerely,__Kansas Athletics_**4:51 p.m.**: Hi……….Sorry, no great Soutwest Airline flight attendant tales to share with you like with Saturday’s gameday blog. In fact, I’ve been racking my brain on something fun to start today’s blog with, but the only significant things I can think of from the past 48 hours are…-Lew Perkins getting more facetime from FOX during the Super Bowl telecast than that creepy doctor from House…-Trying the new queso crunchwrap at Taco Bell…-Did anyone else see the puking baby on the E*Trade commercial? (still not as good as [this one][1]…my favorite Super Bowl ad of all-time)**_And then it dawned on me!_**Why not just relive some of the greatest Super Bowl commercials of the modern era for a bit?**Here we go…**-[Here is one][2] that actually made me fall on the floor…and I hadn’t even tried Sango’s patented Jell-o shots yet…-This [right here][3] is still the greatest ad campaign to ever launch during the Super Bowl. Hands down. Type in ‘Terry Tate’ on YouTube and there’s a treasure chest full of this stuff.-[Before she was a bald nut][4]. Man. Don’t even have to say another word…-[Gotta love honesty][5]. And Paul Crewe…-When you’re making money while [making fun of yourself][6], you know you’re career is done. This should have been the first sign Britney wasn’t right in the head.-Even though it’s completely lame to pull this with your friends at a bar nowadays, [this commercial][7] is straight legendary.-[This one][8] almost made me cry when I saw it…still the most inspirational Super Bowl ad ever made.-[This one][9] came on while my heart rate was still at a cool 327 after watching Devin Hester create my fondest football memory EVER.**OK, I could go on all night, but we probably should talk hoops a little bit, at least.**Saturday’s second half of the second half was something to watch. As far as the first 30 minutes? Colorado believed it could win and played like it. I think that’s what K-State beating KU last Wednesday is going to do for the rest of the league – make them believe it can be done…kinda like the first time a missle did damage on the freakish UFO in Independence Day.KU woke up late, and I’m a believer that they’ll carry the energy flow from the end of Saturday’s 72-59 win onto the home floor against Missouri roughly 48 hours later. In particular, I’m convinced that Mario Chalmers’ dunk on the backdoor feed from Darrell Arthur could be the specific play that ended whatever swoon KU had been in for a game-and-a-half.I mentioned it in the [Spodcasters Postgame][10] Saturday evening – Mario Chalmers is officially KU’s go-to-guy. No more of that ‘they don’t have one’ stuff. He’s the most confident guy on this team, borderline cocky at times. But that’s OK. Every team needs one. That said, the emotions will be high tonight in Allen Fieldhouse as KU plays its third game in six days – the first of those to be played at home. And Chalmers, who after taking a charge from Richard Roby Saturday stood for nearly 10 seconds in front of the KU faithful in the South endzone waved his arms and brought every crimson and blue-clad fan behind the bucket to their feet, will lead the onslaught.I’m not sold on Missouri just yet, even though the Tigers knocked off K-State while shorthanded. I still think KU’s guard set is better than KSU’s despite the one head-to-head showing so far. Without Stefhon Hannah, I think the Jayhawks can overwhelm Mizzou back there, and DeMarre Carroll could struggle again offensively inside. Having Leo Lyons back is a big help for the Tigers. MU’s best help is Matt Lawrence, I think. He went just 1-of-9 from three-point range in the [first meeting][11], but the Tigers were just 5-of-28 as a team. Last year he hit four big ones in Allen, scored 19 points and it came down to the last possession. As is any big-time outside gunner against KU, he’ll be the key tonight.Even though 24 hours ago I told Tully Corcoran of the Capital Journal I thought the Patriots would stomp the Giants until they couldn’t take it anymore, I’m gonna say I’m fully confident KU covers an 18-point spread……maybe.**I’ll go KU 82, MU 61**. Chalmers has 19.On a sidenote, though? MU could _still_ be an NCAA Tournament team, I think. They’re 13-9 right now and 3-4 in the Big 12. Four very winnable games remain against Iowa State, Colorado, Nebraska and Okie State. If they could win those four and steal one more from Oklahoma, KU, K-State, Texas A&M or Baylor, that’d make the Tigers 8-8 in league play, with 18 wins at least overall, and quality wins over Texas and Kansas State. If the committee takes into consideration the bulk of it will be done without Hannah, they’d be deserving of a bid. Anyways…Talk to you from the Fieldhouse. [1]: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BnQMq5wtZcg [2]: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G4O4f6FKYyc [3]: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MRkiouh5NEI&feature=related [4]: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7EEZLYKN8Fo [5]: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NMvB7jTG6oQ [6]: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W4lY5rQCYh0 [7]: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pVcbasIb8lQ&feature=related [8]: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OFYSUPlZmcg [9]: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JUUIBJme-bg [10]: http://www2.kusports.com/podcasts/spodcasters/2008/feb/03/flatiron_hangover_and_cure/ [11]: http://www2.kusports.com/news/2008/jan/20/ku_twists_tigers_tail/?mens_basketball
