KJ’s Basketball Newsletter December 15, 2000
IOWA BOYS REVIVE KU!
After hearing the score of KU’s 84-53 loss to Wake Forest last Thursday, I was glad that my duties as Kiwanis club President kept me away from the tube that evening. What a slaughter!
Then
after watching the Hawks schlep through the first half of Tuesday’s game with
DePaul, I’m sure everyone, players and Williams included, had some doubts
about the quality of this years team. Their
defense was porous and they didn’t have any scoring punch.
Gooden was Wooden!
However,
those Iowa boys, Kirk Hinrich supplying the defense and Nick Collison pouring in
the offense, brought the Jayhawks back from 9 down at the half to a 75-69 win.
They had some help, of course, but clearly they led the way with their
smart and gutty play. While Gooden
was almost totally ineffective offensively from the field, he made up for it by
playing tough defense and scoring 11 for 12 from the line, greatly bumping his
50% season free throw average.
There
is no question that KU has missed Kenny Gregory, this year’s go-to guy, who
was having an All-American year until missing the last two games with a foot
injury. With Luke Axtell also out
with a sprained ankle, the Hawks are a little shorthanded. Hopefully the second half of the DePaul game is evidence of
their learning to play without them.
The
game was every bit as good as billed. Close
all the way. The bottom line,
however, was that Dean Oliver outplayed All-American Jamaal Tinsley, leading the
Hawks to a win over the Clones. Luke
Recker and Reggie Evans continued having all-Big Ten years (Mr. Inside and Mr.
Outside). Nonetheless, both squads
are pretty good this year and fun to watch.
Baring major injuries, look for both teams to finish in the upper echelon
of their leagues and go at least a couple in the NCAAs.
Des
Moines Register columnist Mark Hansen stirred the pot with a game day article
about how much Alford and Eustachy disliked each other.
But, contrary to last year’s matchup, both coaches were on their best
behavior, before, during and after the game.
The
Hawks are King in Iowa this year, having beaten Drake, UNI and ISU.
JAYHAWKS IN THE PROS
What
a shame that all-time KU great Raef LaFrentz (KU ’98) has to be saddled with
the Denver Nuggets, a perennial loser with a poisonous team situation,
exacerbated by has- been coach Dan Issel. If
Raef’s ever going to become the star he can be, he needs to go to a winning
team that will utilize his capabilities as a forward and provide some positive
support. Hey Dan, he was great at
KU because he didn’t have to play center (and put up with your kind of crap)!
The whole team sided against Issel for the way he has treated LaFrentz,
skipping a practice en masse. The
next outing, LaFrentz scored 28 points and 13 rebounds.
What
about that Paul Pierce (KU ’98)? He’s
just going crazy this year, averaging 25 points and 9 rebounds.
Clearly having an all-NBA year with the last place Celtics.
The
Utah Jazz have to be every Jayhawks’ favorite NBA team this year, with former
Jacque Vaughn (KU ’97), Greg Ostertag (KU ’95), and Danny Manning (KU ’88)
all joined by almost-KU recruit DeShawn Stevenson.
Vaughn, by the way, is finally getting some good minutes, playing behind
aging all-star John Stockton. In
spite of those scarred knees, Manning is getting quite a bit of playing time,
providing some key scoring and leadership at important situations.
Have
you seen that Scot Pollard (KU ’97)? Always
a little strange, he’s now sporting a kind-of chinese style top knot.
Quite frankly, it’s a big improvement over the blue nail polish.
Nonetheless, he’s doing a very credible job as backup to Vlade Divac,
Sacramento’s starting center. I
love the way this team plays basketball, and I can’t help but believe that
Pollard’s a big contributor to their overall positive attitude.
Have
you heard about the new NBA franchise, the Kansas Phog?
Pierce at shooting guard and LaFrentz at power forward, with Ostertag and
Sacramento’s Scot Pollard double-teaming at center, Vaughn leading the way at
point, and Manning playing small forward. Sometime
Pacer Rex Walters (KU ’93) adds firepower from the perimeter.
If not necessarily a championship caliber team, it sure would be fun to
watch!
GO FIGURE
I
looked over the latest Sagarin Ratings, as of Dec. 14.
Not that I think they ought to be ranked higher, but I’m curious as to
why KU is ranked 8th, with a 6-1
record against the NCAA’s 17th toughest Div. 1 schedule, while
Charlotte is ranked 5th with also a 6-1 record, but against
the 101st toughest schedule. Also
how could Wake Forest (ranked 3rd) have played the 228th
toughest schedule, considering that KU was one of them?? Sagarin ranks Iowa 24th (with the nations 170th
toughest schedule). Big 10 rivals
ahead of them are Michigan St. at 4th, Illinois-11th, and
Wisconsin at 16th. ISU
is ranked 35th (against the 247th ranked schedule), with
KU and Oklahoma (32nd) ahead. Sagarin
certainly doesn’t like Drake, ranking the Bulldogs 196th.