The Kansas guard corps returns two players with a combined experience of 186 collegiate games, plus three newcomers.  Senior Kevin Pritchard, who was a first team all-Big Eight defensive and academic team selection, is back to handle the point.  Jeff Gueldner, who was a starter along with Pritchard for the 1988 national championship team, missed seven games, four of which the Jayhawks list.  The three newcomers feature sharpshooting juco transfer Terry Brown.  Two freshman newcomers in the backcourt are Adonis Jordan and Todd Alexander.

Depth will also be a luxury at the forward position, but the lack of size concerns Williams.  With only Mark Randall and Pekka Markkanen at 6-9 or taller, positioning will be the key if Kansas is to compete on the boards.  Two lettermen are back in junior Mike Maddox and senior Freeman West. Maddox is a top candidate to pick up the offensive void left by the graduation of Newton.  West was impressive off the bench until a cracked thumb hampered him late in the season.  Among the newcomers is senior Rick Calloway.  At 6-6, he is suited for the small forward, but can also play the power forward.  This fall Alonzo Jamison will be ineligible for the fall semester.

Junior Mark Randall was the lone wolf in the pivot until the late summer addition of Pekka Markkanen.  A second team all-league choice a year ago, Randall was second on the team in scoring and first in rebounding. At 6'10, Markkanen will be used at center.

On the offensive end, Williams believes his squad has the potential to be a good shooting team.

Source:  KU Basketball Media Guide, 1989-90.

Roy Williams’ second season should be noted as one of the most successful in KU’s basketball history.  The Jayhawks were predicted to do no better than fifth in the Big Eight, and were not listed in any of the preseason polls. Inside Sports magazine even picked the Hawks last in the conference. One thing the prognosticators didn’t know was that KU had imported 6’10 center Pekka Markannen from Finland, a defensive stalwart who ended up contributing 234 points, 132 rebounds and 38 blocks. 

Markannen was joined on the front line by 6’6 senior Rick Calloway, a transfer from Indiana and 6’9 junior Mark Randall.  The backcourt was manned by seniors Kevin Pritchard, a 6’3 point guard, and 6’5 shooting guard Jeff Gueldner.  Strong contributions off the bench came from 6’1 junior guard Terry Brown, 6’7 junior forward Mike Maddox, and Freeman West, a 6’5 senior forward.  They were joined in the second semester by rugged 235-pounder Alonzo Jamison.

The Hawks went into the Preseason NIT without any fanfare, but after a win over Alabama-Birmingham 109-83 in Lawrence, KU went on an unbelievable roll, knocking off No. 2 LSU in Baton Rouge, a team that featured Shaquille O’Neal, Stanley Roberts and Chris Jackson.  Then, in Madison Square Garden, KU topped No. 1 Runnin’ Rebels of UNLV by 15 points, a team which featured Larry Johnson and Stacy Augmon.  In almost a anticlimax, KU captured the NIT trophy by upending home favorite St. John’s 66-57.  Randall was named the tourney’s Most Outstanding Player.  It was still November and the unranked Jayhawks had beaten three powerhouses away from home in front of nationally televised audiences.  The Jayhawks made one of the biggest poll leaps in history, going from no votes to second place in the next rankings.

From late November through mid-December, the Jayhawks set several school scoring records while rolling past a variety of non-conference foes.  In a 150-95 win over Rick Pitino’s first Kentucky team in Lawrence on Dec. 9, the Jayhawks broke or tied six school records, including most points, most points in one half (80), and most assists (36).  “Downtown” Terry Brown came off the bench to sink 7 of 10 three-point attempts and finished with a career-high 31 points.  Later in December, Kansas won the Holiday Classic at Kemper Arena in Kansas City, where Kevin Pritchard was named the tournament’s MVP.  In early January, they had a sparkling 19-0 record and were now ranked No. 1 in the nation.

About this point, the Jayhawks began to wear No. 22 marked on their shoes as a tribute to Chris Lindley, a highly touted recruit from Raytown South High School in Kansas City, who had lost his right foot in an accident.  Lindley later attended KU on scholarship.

But on January 20 in Columbia, Missouri handed KU it’s first loss 95-87, in a battle between the nation’s No. 1 and 2 ranked teams. Later in the season, KU was again ranked No. 1, but was knocked off once more by the Tigers, who ended the season in first place in the conference.  The Jayhawks tied with Oklahoma for second in the Big Eight and then split two games in the Conference tourney.  During the course of the season, all three Big 8 teams took their turn in the No. 1 slot in the national polls.

Taking a 29-4 record into the NCAA’s, they survived a first round scare with a 77-71 win over upstart Robert Morris, and in the second round, UCLA freshman Tracy Murray sank two free throws in the final seconds to eliminate Kansas, 71-70.  Williams didn’t take the loss well, choking back tears as he said, “These guys played so well for so long that, at times, they made me feel inadequate as a coach.”

In Max and the Jayhawks, Falkenstein said that the ’90 team “was one of the most well-meshed gatherings of players I’ve ever watched on the court”.  Aside from the season-ending meltdown, Kansas had roared back into the national limelight.  In just his second season, Williams garnered National Coach of the Year honors while guiding the Jayhawkers to a 30-5 record. 

Pritchard was the team’s leading scorer with 506 (14.5 ppg), and led in assists and steals. He was named All-Big Eight and drafted in the second round by Golden State.  Randall was KU’s top rebounder with 216 (6.2 rpg).

HIGHLIGHTS:

Team Put KU Back On National Map
The unselfish 1990 Kansas team put the Jayhawks back in the national spotlight with its performance in the Preseason NIT.  Kansas went into the Preseason NIT without much fanfare, unranked in any of the preseason polls. But after a win over Alabama-Birmingham, Kansas went on an unbelievable roll.  KU knocked off Shaquille O'Neal and No. 2 LSU in Baton Rouge. Then it beat No. 1 UNLV. To cap it off, the Jayhawks captured the title against St. John's in Madison Square Garden.  Some time later, ESPN executive Loren Mathews told Williams that the NIT was going to more structured pairings. Mathews said in Max And The Jayhawks, "one year we sent some dog down to LSU... and beat them."   Williams responded: "You blankety-blank. That dog was Kansas."

On December 9, Kansas whipped Kentucky 150-95, setting an all-time school scoring record.  "Outside of the NCAA Tournament, that's probably the most fun I've had here," senior Kevin Pritchard said.

Source: A Century of Basketball

Coach Roy Williams was named Coach of the Year in just his second season as a college head coach. 

UA-Birmingham

W

109-83

Nov. 15

at Lawrence (NIT)

Louisiana State

W

89-83

Nov. 17

at Baton Rouge, La. (NIT)

Nevada-Las Vegas

W

91-77

Nov. 22

at New York, NY (NIT)

St. John’s

W

66-57

Nov. 24

at New York, NY (NIT)

Idaho

W

87-58

Nov. 30

at Lawrence

Md-Baltimore Co.

W

86-67

Dec. 2

at Lawrence

Tennessee-Martin

W

103-48

Dec. 4

at Lawrence

Southern Methodist

W

86-53

Dec. 6

at Dallas, Texas

Kentucky

W

150-95

Dec. 9

at Lawrence

Pepperdine

W

98-73

Dec. 16

at Lawrence

Arizona State

W

90-67

Dec. 22

at Lawrence

Texas-Pan American

W

103-83

Dec. 29

at Kansas City, Mo.

Stanford

W

83-61

Dec. 30

at Kansas City, Mo.

Wichita State

W

93-66

Jan. 4

at Wichita, Kan.

Winthrop

W

94-51

Jan. 6

at Lawrence

Nebraska

W

98-93

Jan. 8

at Lincoln, Neb.

Miami (Fla.)

W

100-73

Jan. 10

at Miami, Fla.

Oklahoma State

W

91-77

Jan. 13

at Lawrence

Elizabeth City State

W

132-65

Jan. 18

at Lawrence

Missouri

L

87-95

Jan. 20

at Columbia, Mo.

Kansas State

W

85-57

Jan. 27

at Manhattan, Kan.

Colorado

W

90-69

Jan. 31

at Lawrence

Oklahoma

W

85-74

Feb. 3

at Lawrence

Oklahoma State

W

83-76

Feb. 7

at Stillwater, Okla.

Iowa State

W

88-83

Feb. 10

at Ames, Iowa

Missouri

L

71-77

Feb. 13

at Lawrence

Nebraska

W

94-67

Feb. 17

at Lawrence

Colorado

W

103-71

Feb. 21

at Boulder, Colo.

Kansas State

W

70-58

Feb. 24

at Lawrence

Oklahoma

L

78-100

Feb. 27

at Norman, Okla.

Iowa State

W

96-63

Mar. 3

at Lawrence

Iowa State

W

118-75

Mar. 9

at Kansas City, Mo.

Oklahoma

L

77-95

Mar. 10

at Kansas City, Mo.

NCAA Tournament

Robert Morris

W

79-71

Mar. 16

at Atlanta, Ga.
(NCAA Sub-Regional)

UCLA

L

70-71

Mar. 18

at Atlanta, Ga.
(NCAA Sub-Regional)