SB Nation - Brady Morningstar

Statistical Rearview: Kansas vs. Michigan

Denverjhawk — Sun, 20 Dec 2009 14:31:28 -0000

Game flow...what more is there to say. I think Jay Bilas said it best. This team didn't play the best and they won easy. That's why right now many think they are the best team in the country. As a Kansas fan and someone who's looking at this from the perspective of wanting to win a National Title, I'm left wanting a little more. Scoring margin aside, a consistent overall intensity isn't always there and I can't really blame the team. When as a player you can show up, win on talent alone and win fairly easily on talent alone, I'm sure it can be tough to come out spittin fire. Maybe that's a good thing, maybe the high ceiling with this group is a positive. Let's just hope we started consistently playing at that level before it's all said and done.

NCAA Basketball

In the four factors of winning Kansas again dominated the eFG% category. Michigan lives and dies by the three, while Kansas attacks the basket. For that same reason Kansas doubled Michigan in trips to the line, dominating that aspect of the game. However, Michigan's 10 steals led to Kansas losing the turnover battle, an area Kansas had looked pretty good lately but took a step back in on Saturday. Also in terms of second chances Michigan won the battle of the offensive boards and really went toe to toe with Kansas in terms of rebounding all day. A lot of that has to do with Michigan's tendancy to shoot a lot of threes, long threes...long rebounds...more second chances. Those two areas kept it close as Michigan shot the ball 19 times more than the Jayhawks, but today was a day where effiiciency won out.

NCAA Basketball

Michigan attempted 67 FG's, Kansas only 48. However Kansas converted at a 52% clip while Michigan a mere 35%. That gives Kansas a +1 margin in FG's made while also doubling the Wolverines in trips to the free throw line. Sure the run and gun three point shooting style can be glamorous, but it's awful nice to have advantages like the two above.

Stat	Game
Stat
Points	64	75
FG Att	67	48
FG Made	24	25
FG Pct	35.8	52.1
FT Att	13	26
FT Made	11	19
FT Pct	84.6	73.1
3pt FG Att	28	19
3pt FG Made	5	6
3pt FG Pct	17.9	31.6
Rebounds	34	37
Off Rebs	14	7
Def Rebs	20	30
Team Rebs	5	0
Assists	15	16
Steals	10	6
Blocks	1	6
Turnovers	10	14
Fouls	20	16

I don't recall who said it, but in the OGT the statement was "who would have thought the Morri would be our most consistent players." Last year the Morri were the guys that every opposing school loved to hate, mocking the BB Gun incident and their seemingly sour attitudes on the court. This year, I have a feeling they are again going to be the guys our opponents fans are going to hate...but this time it isn't because they are the butt of a joke. This time it's going to be because they are producing at a level better than their players. Sherron, Xavier and McMorris ran the show on Saturday. Two of those names would have been expected at the beginning of the season. A double double and top scoring performance from McMorris...not a bad bonus.

College Basketball

Despite all the talk that Coach Self could go 12 or 13 deep if he wanted to, we got a little glimpse of reality. In a game that wasn't as crisp and had the potential to be close down the stretch the bench went about 9 deep. 9 deep is probably pretty much par for the course at this point in the year for Coach Self. Makes you wonder if the talk a week or so ago about changing his philosophy in that area was real or lip service. As a fan, I'm not partial to one way or the other, just an interesting observation.

	S	MIN	PTS	FGM	FGA	FG%	FTM	FTA	FT%	3PM	3PA	3P%	OR	DR	REB	AST	STL	BLK	TO	PF
M. Harris	*	37	16	6	15	40	2	2	100	2	7	28	0	4	4	4	2	1	4	1
S. Douglass	*	36	8	2	8	25	2	2	100	2	7	28	0	4	4	2	2	0	0	3
Z. Novak	*	35	8	4	10	40	0	0	0	0	4	0	5	2	7	2	2	0	2	4
D. Sims	*	29	19	7	16	43	5	6	83	0	2	0	3	4	7	0	2	0	1	4
L. Lucas-Perry	*	20	2	0	3	0	2	3	66	0	2	0	0	1	1	2	1	0	1	3
D. Morris		23	9	4	7	57	0	0	0	1	3	33	1	1	2	4	0	0	0	2
Z. Gibson		11	2	1	6	16	0	0	0	0	1	0	2	2	4	1	0	0	1	3
A. Wright		8	0	0	2	0	0	0	0	0	2	0	0	0	0	0	1	0	0	0
M. Vogrich		1	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	1	0
	S	MIN	PTS	FGM	FGA	FG%	FTM	FTA	FT%	3PM	3PA	3P%	OR	DR	REB	AST	STL	BLK	TO	PF
X. Henry	*	34	15	6	15	40	1	2	50	2	8	25	1	0	1	1	2	0	1	2
M. Morris	*	32	23	7	10	70	8	8	100	1	2	50	3	7	10	0	0	1	3	1
S. Collins	*	31	19	7	10	70	4	5	80	1	4	25	0	2	2	2	1	0	6	2
C. Aldrich	*	27	5	0	3	0	5	8	62	0	0	0	2	9	11	2	0	3	1	0
T. Taylor	*	23	2	1	3	33	0	0	0	0	1	0	0	5	5	5	1	0	1	3
B. Morningstar		22	2	1	2	50	0	0	0	0	1	0	1	1	2	3	1	0	0	2
T. Robinson		11	2	1	2	50	0	1	0	0	0	0	0	2	2	2	0	2	0	1
T. Reed		11	6	2	3	66	0	0	0	2	3	66	0	3	3	0	1	0	1	0
M. Morris		9	1	0	0	0	1	2	50	0	0	0	0	1	1	1	0	0	1	5

Kansas Hosts Michigan Saturday in an Early Tip

Denverjhawk — Fri, 18 Dec 2009 20:00:20 -0000

Kansas v Michigan

No. 1 Kansas (9-0) took a week off for exams but heads back to the hardwood hosting Big Ten Conference foe Michigan (5-4) Saturday at 11 a.m. Michigan as a team looked to be a potentially strong test for the Jayhawks before the year began. However, after losing four of their last six, the youthful Michigan squad doesn't appear to have a single victory against a qualify opponent through 9 games of the season. Oh, where have the days of the fab five gone.

	PPG	FG%	FT%	3P%	RPG	ORPG	DRPG	APG	TPG	SPG	BPG	FPG
MICH	71.1	42.2	70.5	29.7	33.6	11.1	22.4	15.3	10.0	8.2	2.9	14.1
KU	90.3	51.2	67.1	44.2	43.7	14.6	29.1	19.7	11.9	9.6	7.4	18.1
MICH Opponents	63.9	44.0	65.1	30.3	37.1	12.0	25.1	14.3	15.6	5.2	3.3	18.1
KU Opponents	57.7	34.3	65.9	28.7	33.7	13.7	20.0	11.1	16.7	5.8	3.2	20.0

Rank and Records	MICH	KU
RPI	#243	#21
Strength of Schedule	#255	#181
Overall	5-4	9-0
Conference	0-0	0-0
Home	4-1	6-0
Away	0-1	1-0
Top 25	0-0	0-0
RPI Top 50	0-1	0-0

About Kansas

Kansas posted a 90-65 win against La Salle in the M&I Bank Kansas City Shootout on Dec. 12 at the Sprint Center in Kansas City, Mo. Freshman Xavier Henry had a career-high 31 points in the game and was named the Phillips 66 Big 12 Rookie of the Week for the second-straight week for his efforts.

Kansas averages 90.3 points per game, is giving up 57.7 points and ranks in the top five nationally with a +32.7 scoring margin. KU is shooting 51.2 percent from the field, while its opponents are shooting 34.3 percent. Only one KU opponent, Radford, has shot above 40 percent against the Jayhawks this season.

Xavier Henry leads the team with an 18 point scoring average. He is making 53.3 percent of his shots from three-point range and leads KU with 24 threes and 16 steals.

Senior guard Sherron Collins scores 13.3 points per game and he has made 19 three pointers. Collins leads the team with 40 assists, which are five ahead of sophomore guard Tyshawn Taylor (7.3 ppg). Taylor has 14 steals, two ahead of Collins (12).

Junior center Cole Aldrich leads the team in rebounds with 9.6 per game. He also leads KU and the Big 12 in blocked shots with 3.6 per outing. Sophomore forward Marcus Morris is a starter who is scoring 9.8 points and pulling down 5.3 rebounds per game.

Sophomore forward Markieff Morris is coming off the bench to score 8.9 points per game. Markieff, who recorded his first career double-double with 12 points and 12 rebounds against La Salle on Dec. 12, is second on the team with his 6.2 rebound average and leads KU with a 69.8 percent field goal shooting.

Junior guard Tyrel Reed scores 4.8 points per outing and he has 10 three-pointers this season. Freshman guard Elijah Johnson (4.3 ppg) has started the last two games.

About Michigan

Located in Ann Arbor, Mich., and coached by John Beilein, Michigan has won two of its last three games and is 5-4 on the season following its 75-64 win against Detroit on Dec. 13 in Ann Arbor. The Wolverines average 71.1 points and give up 63.9 per game for a +7.2 scoring margin. U-M averages 8.2 steals per game and forces 15.6 turnovers per contest.

Michigan is one of the youngest teams in America with 12 players redshirt sophomores or younger. Junior guard Manny Harris leads the team with 22.2 points and 8.4 rebounds per game. Harris also has a team-high 18 steals and 45 assists. He is tied for the team lead with 13 three pointers along with sophomore guard Laval Lucas-Perry, who is scoring 7.4 points per game.

Senior forward DeShawn Sims is second on the team in scoring at 15.6 points per contest and he is just behind Harris in rebounds with a 7.4 average. Sophomore guard Zack Novak and freshman guard Darius Morris round out the starters. Novak scores 6.3 points per game, while Morris averages 4.8 ppg.

Senior forward Zack Gibson (6.0 ppg) and sophomore guard Stu Douglass (4.7 ppg) each average more than 24
minutes per game for the Wolverines.

Meet the Opposing Coach

Michigan coach Jim Beilein is 36-40 in his third season at Michigan and 587-358 in his 32nd season overall. Beilein's 587 career victories place him in the top 20 in victories among active Division I head coaches. He has compiled 27 winning seasons and put together 15 campaigns of 20-wins or more. Beilein is the only active coach in the collegiate ranks to record a 20-win season at four different levels -- junior college, NAIA, NCAA Division II and NCAA Division I. During the 2008-09 season, Beilein's second in Ann Arbor, Michigan posted a 21-14 record and advanced to the NCAA Tournament for the first time in 11 seasons, falling in the second round. Michigan's 21 victories during the 2008-09 campaign tied a school record for the largest single-season turnaround in program history.

John Beilein
Team	Years	Record
Michigan	2007-2010	36-39 (48.0%)
West Virginia	2002-2007	104-60 (63.4%)
Richmond	1997-2002	100-53 (65.4%)
Canisius	1992-1997	89-62 (58.9%)
Le Moyne	1983-1992	163-94 (63.4%)
Nazareth	1982-1983	20-6 (76.9%)

The Series

Michigan has won all five meetings with Kansas in men's basketball. This is a rarity for Kansas - the third winningest program in NCAA Division I. Of teams with multiple games played against Kansas, Bradley (2-0) and UTEP (3-0) are the only teams that have undefeated records versus KU, damn Bradley. The Kansas-Michigan series dates back to 1949 and runs through 1992. Two of the matchups have been on neutral floors with a 49-47 Michigan win in 1949 in Kansas City and the last meeting, an 86-74 Michigan victory on Dec. 30, 1992, at the Rainbow Classic in Honolulu. This will be the second meeting between the schools in Allen Fieldhouse as Michigan defeated Kansas 64-52 during the 1980-81 season.

KU-La Salle Leftovers

Kansas freshman guard Xavier Henry scored 31 points to set a career high. The last Jayhawk to score 30-plus points was Sherron Collins, who scored 32 against North Dakota State last season in the first round of the NCAA Tournament.
X. Henry also set career highs in field goals (10), free throws made (seven) and free throws attempted (nine). His totals were also the most by a Jayhawk this season.
Markieff Morris recorded his first career double-double with 12 points and 12 rebounds. Morris' 12 boards were his best output since his Jayhawk debut. Markieff Morris' four blocked shots were also a career high.
Junior center Cole Aldrich scored a season-high 19 points. He also set a season high in field goals (eight) and had five blocked shots to match a season high. Aldrich's five blocked shots gave him 160 for his career and moved him into sixth place all-time at KU, behind Danny Manning (200).
Kansas held La Salle to 36.1 percent shooting from the field, marking the 83rd-straight opponent the Jayhawks have held under 50 percent. KU has also held eight of its nine opponents this season under 40 percent.

What to Look For Against Michigan

Sherron Collins is 27 points from cracking the KU Top 20 career scoring list. Collins is 21st with 1,450 career points. Collins' former teammate Brandon Rush (2006-08) is at No. 20 with 1,477 points.
Collins is six assists from cracking the KU Top 10 all-time list. Collins is No. 11 with 431 career assists, while former KU great and current Texas A&M head coach Mark Turgeon is No. 10 with 437 assists from 1984-87.
Cole Aldrich is four rebounds from moving into 25th on the Kansas career rebound list. Aldrich has 592 all-time boards. David Magley (1979-82) is 25th at 596 and Kelly Knight (1980-84) is 24th at 601.
Through only nine games, Xavier Henry already ranks tied for 11th on the KU freshman list for three point field goals made with 24. Kirk Hinrich (2000) is 10th with 25, while Jacque Vaughn (1994) is ninth with 28.
Redshirt junior guard Brady Morningstar and redshirt freshman center Jeff Withey are both eligible to play against Michigan. Morningstar was suspended for the first semester for breaking team rules. He started 34 of 35 games last season and averaged 30.3 minutes per game with a 6.5 scoring average. Withey, who returned to practice full-time Dec. 7 from a knee injury, transferred to Kansas from Arizona in December 2008 and becomes academically eligible.

Team Notables

Kansas remains one of 11 undefeated teams in NCAA Division I (Dec. 13). Others include Georgetown, Kentucky, Missouri State, New Mexico, Purdue, Seton Hall, Syracuse, Texas, Texas Tech and West Virginia.
Seven of Kansas' nine victories this season have been by 25 or more points with six of those by 30 points or more.
Entering the week, Kansas led the nation in scoring margin at +32.7. The Jayhawks also ranked in the top 10 nationally in scoring offense (third at 90.3), field goal percentage (seventh at 51.2), field goal percentage defense (second at 34.3), three-point field goal percentage (fifth at 44.2), assists (fourth at 19.7), assist-to-turnover ratio (fourth at 1.65) and blocked shots (seventh at 7.4).
Kansas forces 16.7 turnovers per game and averages 21.3 points off turnovers per game.

		GP	GS	MPG	PPG	FG%	FT%	3P%	RPG	ORPG	DRPG	APG	TPG	SPG	BPG	FPG
#3	M. Harris	9	9	35.778	22.222	46.8	76.0	28.9	8.444	3.222	5.222	5.0	2.333	2.0	0.111	1.111
#34	D. Sims	9	9	30.667	15.556	47.0	75.0	37.5	7.444	3.0	4.444	1.0	1.0	1.222	0.889	1.889
#0	Z. Novak	8	8	31.0	6.25	40.0	55.6	28.1	4.375	0.875	3.5	1.5	0.5	1.5	0.5	2.25
#31	L. Lucas-Perry	9	9	24.667	7.444	38.9	57.1	36.1	2.111	0.667	1.444	1.667	1.556	0.889	0.111	2.444
#4	D. Morris	9	9	24.222	4.778	42.1	75.0	20.0	1.889	0.222	1.667	2.222	2.222	0.444	0.111	1.778
#1	S. Douglass	9	0	24.0	4.667	26.4	71.4	23.1	1.444	0.222	1.222	2.556	0.778	1.0	0.0	0.889
#32	Z. Gibson	9	1	12.333	6.0	56.8	62.5	22.2	2.667	1.444	1.222	0.222	0.444	0.444	0.889	1.667
#12	A. Wright	9	0	9.111	1.889	26.1	75.0	16.7	1.444	0.667	0.778	0.889	0.333	0.222	0.111	0.889
		GP	GS	MPG	PPG	FG%	FT%	3P%	RPG	ORPG	DRPG	APG	TPG	SPG	BPG	FPG
#4	S. Collins	9	9	29.667	13.333	43.8	77.3	43.2	2.0	0.222	1.778	4.444	1.556	1.333	0.0	1.333
#1	X. Henry	9	9	27.0	18.0	55.6	82.4	53.3	4.111	0.889	3.222	1.778	2.0	1.778	0.778	2.0
#45	C. Aldrich	9	9	25.889	12.0	56.3	70.0	0.0	9.556	3.333	6.222	1.222	1.444	0.667	3.556	2.111
	T. Taylor	9	7	23.556	7.333	40.0	68.4	31.2	2.778	0.667	2.111	3.889	2.0	1.556	0.222	1.778
#22	M. Morris	9	7	22.444	9.778	55.4	67.6	33.3	5.333	2.444	2.889	1.444	1.333	1.111	0.444	2.556
#21	M. Morris	9	2	16.778	8.889	69.8	66.7	66.7	6.222	2.111	4.111	1.222	0.889	0.778	1.0	1.889
#14	T. Reed	9	0	16.111	4.778	41.7	75.0	35.7	1.444	0.111	1.333	1.556	0.333	0.889	0.111	1.0
#15	E. Johnson	9	2	12.222	4.333	51.7	55.6	36.4	2.111	0.889	1.222	2.667	1.111	0.667	0.0	1.889

The Big Blue Daily Mail -- The Return

Truzenzuzex — Wed, 07 Oct 2009 03:10:29 -0000

More photos » by Ed Reinke - AP

This is not how you want to see your quarterback handling the football.

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Yes, I know the BBDM has been absent for a couple of days. Sorry. Sometimes, other priorities exert themselves, and although I have the best of intentions to make this a daily thing, occasionally I have to bite the bullet and choose between sleep and blogging. Sleep is winning more and more often.

But enough about that. Today's BBDM contains tons of basketball stuff, lots of football stuff, and some good, well-earned schadenfreude that we (well, at least, I) dearly love. What can I say? Hating back is a time-honored tradition among sports fans, and who am I to shun tradition? I mean, "Kentucky fan" and "Tradition" go together like peanut butter and jelly (mmmm...).

Okay, on to the news:

UK Basketball News

John Clay: Sustained success makes UK No. 1 - SPORTS UPDATE - Kentucky.com
For my money, Kentucky is the top program of all time. Yes, UCLA has more titles. Yes, North Carolina has great tradition and nearly as many wins. Yes, it could be argued that Kansas was the birthplace of modern college basketball.

But no program has sustained its success decade after decade — titles in 1948 and 1949, titles in 1951 and 1958, a runner-up finish in 1966, title in 1978, a Final Four in 1984, two more titles in 1996 and 1998 — like Kentucky.

John Clay and I are thinking exactly alike on this one.
UK Basketball: Orton misses his mother: AMNews.com
Daniel Orton is still not sure what he’ll do to honor his mother this season, but he knows the Kentucky freshman wants to find a way to keep her memory close to him at all times.

I know how it is to lose your mother, but not at such an early age. I'm sure Daniel will think of a way to honor her every game.
UK Basketball: Calipari has own expectations for Cats: AMNews.com
What expectations do you have for this team?

Calipari: "All I want is that every day we leave that we feel good about what we just did. My challenge is to keep these guys in the moment, not worrying about November and December. I must keep them in today. Then there is no anxiety, nothing crazy. It’s all feeling good about today and continue building that mental toughness and swagger. We do that by bunting about 100 straight bunts. It’s not hitting home runs, it’s bunts.

That sounds familiar, the "...keep[ing] thse guys in the moment..." thing.
UK Basketball: Orton will accept any role: AMNews.com
Harrellson comfortable looking ahead | KentuckySports.com
"A lot of people say they see something in me. A lot of times, I don't see it."New UK Coach John Calipari describes Harrellson as a "diamond in the rough." Last week, Calipari noted how his dribble-drive offense requires ball-handling skills and quick-fire decision making. The coach suggested Harrellson could contribute those qualities.

I think this might be the most fascinating storyline of the upcoming season. How many of us would have bet that Harrellson would have been a transfer this year?
Calipari just keeps getting it right | Vaught's Views

UK Football News

Tom Leach Productions
As of Tuesday night, our poll results show 40% of fans want to see Rich Brooks give freshman Morgan Newton a chance at quarterback with 31% wanting to stick with Mike Hartline. Veteran coach Terry Donahue knows all about these kinds of quarterback debates and he says some interesting comments on why it's risky to throw a true freshman into the kind of schedule Kentucky is facing right now.

Great stuff from Tom Leach as always.
UK blowing its margin for errors | KentuckySports.com
The 2009 Wildcats have had extremely slippery fingers, which has Brooks concerned heading into Saturday's game at No. 25 South Carolina.

That's what troubles me also.

Other UK Sports News

Wildcat's Tournament Run Cut Short - KENTUCKY OFFICIAL ATHLETIC SITE

NCAA Sports News

Duke-UNC rivalry must apply to everything - Beyond the Arc - msnbc.com
Harrison Barnes, the No. 1 recruit in the class of 2010, had a home visit Monday night from Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski, which was supposed to be the final in-home visit of the contact period allowed by the NCAA.

Except UNC coach Roy Williams showed up a couple hours later.

Heh.
SEC Leads the Way In Unbeatens - Team Speed Kills
The SEC has the most undefeated teams of any conference. Despite perceptions, it's not because of easy schedules.

Heh. Hear that, Pac 10, Big Televen?
Nutt shuts down Ole Miss' practice - SEC - ESPN
I’ve always been part of the crowd that thinks whether a team’s practice is open or closed is vastly overrated.

Me too.
Intentional Foul " Sam Bradford Ready To Return?
That could make a difference in the Red River Shootout, if so.

Other News of Interest

February Trial Set in Gillispie DUI Case
A judge has set a February trial date in the drunken-driving case against former Kentucky basketball coach Billy Gillispie.

The Daily Schadenfreude

Rush The Court " Blog Archive " Knight Needles NCAA
Bobby Knight takes a shot at the NCAA, and scores!
Opinion: Suspension will benefit Kansas in long run - College basketball- nbcsports.msnbc.com
1. Another Kansas player makes headlines for the wrong reasons—Brady Morningstar's DWI arrest. How much will this tumultuous offseason affect the Jayhawks?

DeCourcy: Morningstar's arrest became the defining moment in a sloppy period for KU basketball, but it did allow Self the opportunity to put his foot down without it landing on a star.

Well, we might as well enjoy the schadenfreude while it lasts. Kansas fans have been particularly disrespectful of UK lately, so reveling in their difficulties seems like the least we can do.
All-Time Sagarin Ratings: Duke Isn’t Going to Be Happy About This
Hehe. Fit for some schadenfreude.

It's getting worse in Lawrence, Kansas

SFBE.NF — Sun, 04 Oct 2009 17:06:17 -0000

This morning you're either lamenting your school's loss last night, or hastily adjusting your fantasy football team's starting line-up. Basically you're not paying attention to the news that Kansas guard Brady Morningstar was arrested on suspicion of DWI early yesterday morning, and has been suspended by Bill Self for the rest of the first semester.

On the heels of that football team/basketball team drama, this has just added to the adversity that Self will carry on his shoulders for the pre-season number one team in the country, and provide more juicy story lines CBS can jam down our throats come March.

From the Kansas City Star...

"We are aware of the situation," Self said. "We are also still fact finding. Regardless of the details that concern the reason for him being stopped, he broke team rules that have been much more stringent since last week. Brady was in serious violation of curfew. Because of that and his extremely poor judgment last night, I have decided to suspend him for the first semester from all competition and travel."

We like Morningstar's game, as he embodies those "glue" intangibles based on last year's stats...30 minutes-per-game (reliability), 2.0 assist-to-turnover ratio (smart with the ball), only 1.7 fouls-per-game (has a brain) last season. If he can integrate himself appropriately come January, Morningstar is still going to be looked upon as a key bench player.

Breaking: Bill Self Suspends Brady Morningstar for First Semester

big12hoops — Sat, 03 Oct 2009 19:19:07 -0000

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This just in from the KU Sports Information Department:

LAWRENCE, Kan. - Kansas men's basketball head coach Bill Self announced Saturday he has suspended junior guard Brady Morningstar for the first semester.

Self said Morningstar, a returning starter from last season's 27-8 team, was arrested for suspicion of driving while intoxicated early Saturday morning.

"We are aware of the situation," Self said. "We are also still fact finding. Regardless of the details that concern the reason for him being stopped, he broke team rules that have been much more stringent since last week. Brady was in serious violation of curfew. Because of that and his extremely poor judgment last night, I have decided to suspend him for the first semester from all competition and travel. Brady will remain a member of our team and will participate in all other team functions. We will support him through this, but needless to say I am very disappointed in the sequence of events that took place last night."

More to come as further news breaks.

Links and a Topic // 6-11-09

rockchalk — Thu, 11 Jun 2009 19:42:27 -0000

More photos » AP

Xavier Henry (AP Photo)

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So, I'm terrible at coming up with names. Particularly catchy, creative ones. If I ever do get married, and am tasked with naming a child, I have absolutely no clue how that will go down. I'm just terrible at it. The point being, if you can think of a creative name for this setup, which will hopefully become a daily thing, then drop it in the comments or email it to me (rockchalktalk _at_ gmail _dot_ com), because most of these things have cute names. For example, Double-T Nation's Daily Diatribe (today's edition), which is kind of what this is based off of.

Essentially, this will be plenty of links I can find that have something to do with something, most likely the Kansas Jayhawks. Then, I'll chat away on some topic. It's designed to generate some discussion, hopefully about something interesting, without me putting in hours of work everyday.

So, hopefully I'll keep up with this. And it really bothers me to start such a series so randomly, on a Thursday in the middle of June, I'm over it. I figured I might as well start now, as opposed to merely waiting for Monday to come around and make it tidier, or whatever.

Kansas Football

Jackets to meet Jayhawks | ajc.com

It's all about the Yellow Jackets, and them making the trip up to Lawerence in 2010.

For KU football, summer grueling / LJWorld.com

Dugan A., man's take on Chris Dawson and summer conditioning, with plenty of interviews from ex-Jayhawks.

Glossy pages and fearless forecasts : Kansan.com

A rundown of the preseason predictions that all seem to come out at the same time. Included: the absolutely necessary outrage over Phil Steele placing us 4th in the North. It's informative and interesting, but I don't think the author understands the necessity of putting a space between paragraphs.

Kansas Baseball

KU's Thompson an All-American | CJOnline.com

Awesome stuff. Third-team All-American according to the BBWAA, second-team according to Ping! Baseball. Not bad, not bad. Pretty sure, though, that we'll only get one more year of Tony.

Kansas Basketball

KUsports.com | Leaving the nest

Thomas Robinson, rebounder extraordinaire, talking about leaving home for the first time.

KUsports.com | Taylor gives digits to KU basketball freshman

Tyshawn Taylor is giving up his #15, handing it to Elijah Johnson. Obsessions over numbers seem silly, but whatever. And T2 does end up getting #10, now that stinkin' Brennan Bechard was gone (T2's AAU number was #10, but it was already taken at St. Patrick's so he went to #15).

KUsports.com | Morningstar out 4-6 weeks with stress fracture

Old news, really. They talked about the injury in vague tones during the actual season, and it's been known as a stress fracture for a little while. He recently had the actual surgery, though, so yay! Newsworthy. It's fun to read the comments on this one, though, just to get a helping of some ridiculous Kansas fans. Ugh.

KUsports.com | Former Jayhawk Langford to Russia?

I thought about not including this, but I figured it'd be fun. Langford going to Russia, to a team other than Sasha's team (although his is in Moscow as well), for what is rumored to be $2.6 million over 2 years. Not bad, not bad. Good for Keith.

KUsports.com | Xavier Henry to skip summer school, will report to KU's campus in August

Xavier Henry is not interested in your summer school. Seriously though, it's something about some teeth problems. Whatever the case, it's much ado about nothing, really. Sure, it'd be nice for him to meet-and-greet the team before Fall practice, but it's OK. It's his choice.

KUsports.com | Old school

Billy Thomas' 33 points leads the Alumni to a 15-point victory over the Jayhawks' current outfit. 67-52, in a game where Sasha Kaun completely destroyed Cole Aldrich. At least, that is how it would appear, given Cole's game-ending tally of 2 points. Marcus Morris did go 3-4 from three-point range, though, so that's nice. And both he and Markieff have added plenty of weight, so that's good.

Arena Wars: Allen Fieldhouse vs. Gallagher-Iba Arena - NCAA Division I Mens Basketball - CBSSports.com News, Fantasy, Video

9 times out of 10, these things are stupid. Everyone, everywhere, people has these bogus mythical battles of homecourt advantages or just the building themselves or whatever. This one, though, has a nice little writeup, which makes it somewhat interesting. It's still kind of pointless, and if you're worried about the Phog winning such a mythical event, don't because Allen is up 84% to 16%, but you're in charge of your own life. Make a decision.

Topic of discussion after jump...

Xavier Henry: Starter Out of the Gate?

I've seen it written a lot of places that Xavier will pretty much start from day one. Not in so few words, but it seems to be a given. And there are certainly reasons for people to think that. Last year, Brady Morningstar was the starter at the 3, Xavier's most likely collegiate position. Brady Morningstar is no Xavier Henry. But think back to Bill Self, and his policy on such things.

He values defense above all else. Always. Well, almost always. For the majority of the season, Tyrel Reed was a superior offensive player to Brady. But Brady never lost his starting spot, and you could simply point to his defense as the reason why. Plus, Bill certainly isn't the type of coach to simply hand over starting spots. You have to earn it, no matter how much "better" you figure to be. I mean, the man started Christian Moody. When Darrell Arthur showed up on campus, he continued to ride the bench. Same situation with Sherron Collins.

If Xavier was going to start any time before conference play, he was going to have to show up to summer school and impress. Not just impress on offense; we're all excited to see that part. But he would have to limit the mistakes, limit the stupid plays, and show up in a big way on the defensive side of the ball. Now that he's not even showing up to Lawrence until August, I'm willing to bet that he starts out off the bench. Maybe even behind Tyrel Reed, way deep in the rotation. He'll get his minutes, certainly. But he'll have to earn them, or Bill will keep him on the bench.

Just because Brady Morningstar isn't as talented or athletic as Xavier, doesn't mean we aren't necessarily a worse team overall. And it isn't as if we are in dire need of a ridiculous talent just to make us competitivie; we did make it to the Sweet 16 last season, minutes away from advancing to the Elite Eight and beating the future runner-up.

I promise I'm not biased or anything. I just always seem to side with the status quo, instead of bowing over for an incoming recruit and hoping on hope that he will make us better. No thanks. And I'm probably even in the majority, here, and aren't even breaking ground.

But I will go in the minority on something: we'll be a better team with Brady on the floor than Xavier for the first, oh, 3 months of the season. By February, X should get it; before then, give me the better overall package of Brady.

Of course, it wouldn't be terribly difficult to prove me wrong and make me look like an idiot.

2009 Season in Review: Awards - Defensive Player of the Year

rockchalk — Fri, 10 Apr 2009 18:25:42 -0000

More photos » by Michael Conroy - AP

See that hand, right in the middle of the photo? Yeah, that's Brady, defending up Raymar Morgan. (AP Photo/Michael Conroy)

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Awards time, folks. You know, that one awkward Banquet, or whatever, at the end of the year for the big-money boosters. Yeah, it's kinda like that, but way better in every way, because no Banquet is involved. Only the internet.

Of course, Sherron won't be coming on to accept his award(s), so I suppose that kind of makes it worse. You can just get over it, though, yes?

In this edition, we'll be awarding the Defender of the Year Award. It shouldn't be too much of a surprise.

Defensive Player of the Year -- G Brady Morningstar

More than anything, Bill Self values defense. And so, to start out the year, with 2 perimeter starting spots entirely up for grabs, he selected the two best defenders of the bunch. This allowed Brady Morningstar, the hometown-boy-made-good, a spot in Kansas' starting lineup. The kid called a legacy player, who only earned his scholarship because of his dad's exploits in a Kansas uniform a generation ago, was starting. Just for a bit, though, until everyone elses defense caught up. Then, Brady would go back to the bench, maybe even fall out of the rotation, resort back to his expected role in the first place.

It never happened. He started 34 of the season's 35 games, only coming off of the bench on Senior Day, allowing Brennan Bechard to start in his place. He averaged 30.4 minutes a game, or 3rd most on the team. Think about that.

And it was all just for one reason: defense. While he learned a 3-point shot and slowly became more comfortable working the ball around and actually putting the ball on the floor, he was still a liability of sorts on the offensive end throughout the season. Yet there he was, always out there. Always. He played 40 minutes in Waco. Thank his shutdown D.

He was always, always matched up with the team's best perimeter player. Always. Sometimes, he had to slide up the height ladder and match up with the opposition's 4, like Raymar Morgan and Chris Wright.

And nearly every single time, that player was held under their average. Sometimes, a lot under the average. Nearly every time, Brady was overmatched physically, whether it be quicks-wise or height-wise or weight-wise or all three of 'em. Still, he nearly always bested his opponent.

He did it all using, more than anything, some of the quickest feet I've ever seen. Every coach I've ever had has always pounded into my mind: "you play defense with your feet, not your hands". I've never seen anyone, though, subscribe to this philosophy more than Brady. It was nearly impossible to drive on him. And yet, he was most often matched up against spot-up three-point shooters. Why? Because no one else could follow around Paul Velander or Matt Lawrence or Lucca Staiger so efficiently, running through screens and double-screens and elevator-screens and illegal, moving-screens. Nearly every three-point shooter he was matched up with had an uncharacteristically bad day. And again, quick feet. He would get there in time to throw up a hand in the face, throwing off their rhythm. Really, it was incredible to watch.

Now, what should be interesting is how he's used next year. With more athleticism and ability coming in, his minutes will assuredly go down. And yet, I still get this feeling that he will consistently play. Bill Self loves his defense, and that was never more evident than in Brady's playing time this season.

When you play D like Brady does, you'll always get on the floor. Always, always, always.

Honorable Mention -- C Cole Aldrich

Yes, I know that Cole was the co-Big 12 Defensive Player of the Year. Since he didn't share the award with Brady, it would be natural to assume that he should get this RCT award. And yes, Cole might be the best shot blocker I've ever seen in college. But what Brady gave us was more important, I think. And, in lots of ways, more representative of just how this team managed to win the Big 12 and make the Sweet 16. So, some congrats still do go out to Cole. He deserves it, just as much. But I just had to give it to Brady.

Next Up: Sixth Man of the Year, Friday PM

Where Will Xavier and CJ (or Lance?) Fit: A Look at the Scholarship Situation

rockchalk — Mon, 06 Apr 2009 02:34:43 -0000

More photos » by Darron Cummings - AP

Bill Self isn't laughing about the scholarship situation. I promise you, he's not. (AP Photo/Darron Cummings)

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13 scholarships.

That's the limit. This past season, we had 12 scholarship players, including transfer Jeff Withey. Add in incoming recruits Thomas Robinson and Elijah Johnson, and that's 14. Or, one over the limit.

Obviously, that's a problem, although one that occurs countless times over the landscape of college basketball. However, from all indications, Xavier is going to be a Jayhawk. Hopefully, at least. If that does happen, as expected, that's 15 scholarships. Or, 2 over the limit.

Naturally, this is a problem that needs fixing. Not the worst problem in the world, having too much talent as opposed to not enough, but one that needs solving.There are a couple of potential, um, ways this could be resolved. I don't want to use the word 'solution', because it isn't ilke there is some strategy involved of this. This ain't the NBA: there are no cuts. However, as has been repeated over-and-over here at RCT over the last week-or-so, I highly doubt that Self would continue recruiting without an inkling of some changes forthcoming. As they say, these things have a way of working themselves out.

So, with that said, here are the potential events that could transpire to open up the available scholarships for Robinson, Johnson and, hopefully, Henry.

Note: I know that it is dangerous to count your chickens before they hatch, and I'm certainly not fully "expecting" a Xavier Henry commit. Although, it certainly appears as if he is Lawrence-bound, so all of these, um, ways to resolve the situation will be assuming that two scholarships need to be opened up. Two.

Cole and Sherron Go Pro

Really, no matter what their friend says on Twins blogs or what comes out mere hours after a heart-breaking loss, it means very little. Similar reports have come out through the years, with the player sitll ending up sticking in the Draft. No matter what, I would bet that both declare. Now, personally, I would prefer Cole and Sherron to return than any potential recruit to come in. But, it isn't like we have the choice between the two. If both declare for the Draft, as has been expected for awhile, and actually stick it out and get drafted, poof goes our scholarship issue. Still, not a desireable result.

We'll get into whether they should go pro or not later on in the month, but both have interesting pro/con things going on. Both do have some reasons to make the jump now, and it certainly is a possibility we never see either in a Kansas uniform again. I sure hope not, though.

Odds of Occurring: 10%

Other scenarios after the jump...

2 Transfers

I really don't want this to happen. I hate transfers, unless kids just get homesick and it's entirely their decision (Alex Galindo) or they are just too soft and unwilling to get down and play tough defense consistently (Micah Downs). Or, if they just refuse to play child support, or whatever (C.J. Giles). But, for the most part, I just don't like transfers. Two names are being mentioned far more often than any others as far as potential transfers go. Quintrell Thomas and Travis Releford.

Both, in terms of playing time, make some sense. Particularly Quintrell, who figures to be behind approximately 18 people on the depth chart next year, assuming Cole comes back. Honestly, just 5 (Cole, Withey, Robinson, Morris twins). But still, that's a helluva lot. As far as Releford goes, he probably will see a decrease in his PT next season. Most likely even the year after that, unless X is just a one-and-done. But, he figures to be a starter in 2011-2012, if he makes the necessary improvements and all. Redshirt next year, and he still has two years of being a starter to look forward to.

But, just like pro prospects, we'll get into specific transfer situations later. For now, regrettably, this seems to be the end result most are expecting. I hope it doesn't happen, because I think both (especially Releford) can be really good players in Lawrence. But if it's their decision, then it's their decision. Nothing you can do about it.

Odds of Occurring: 20%

Cole or Sherron Go Pro + 1 Transfer

Really, I think this is the most likely scenario. In terms of playing time, I wouldn't be surprised to see Quintrell transfer. Now, from everything I've read, he seems to be happy and cool with the situation and all of that. Still, I just have a feeling that he's gone. I hope not, but just a feeling. And, the more I look at the situation, I really think that at least one of Cole or Sherron will go pro. Again, I really hope not. And, I honestly couldn't tell you which one it will be. But either Sherron will take the money, now, or Cole will realize that he will almost certainly go Top 10 and jump a year too early.

I would like nothing more, though, than to be wrong on that.

Odds of Occurring: 30%

Cole or Sherron Go Pro/1 Transfer + Brady/Whoever Gives Up Scholarship

This is really two scenarios combined, but I found it silly to break it up. Because, if Brady, or whoever, really, would be willing to give up a scholarship, I'd feel infinitely better about the whole situation. And, as of January, he said he would be willing. So, fingers crossed. While it would suck for anyone else to leave, it's pretty much impossible to bring in Xavier and the other recruits without someone living. Well, I suppose two players could giveup schollies, but that'd just feel weird. And be practically impossible, particularly in this economy. So, no.

The real question is, which player would you be most willing to leave. Obviously, it feels silly to pick-and-choose who you wouldn't mind leaving. But, for me, it would have to be Quintrell. I love him, as I love everyone, but he really is way, way deep down on the bigs depth chart. And, he needs so much work, it's quite crazy.

Odds of Occuring: 40%

Concluding Thoughts

What do I think will happen? Well, really, it's pretty much impossible to tell. While FHOFNCOYDNCHCBS surely has leads as to potential openings, otherwise he wouldn't still be recruiting, I doubt even he knows exactly what should transpire. But, being my ever-optimistic self, I'll go on the record as Quintrell transfers and Brady gives up his schollie. Please, let this happen. Of all of the potential resolutions, that would be the most tolerable.

"Awesome Season, Terrible Finish" -- Kansas 62 Michigan State 67

rockchalk — Sun, 29 Mar 2009 05:17:42 -0000

This isn't about the season. If it was, it wouldn't do the game justice. The season, while naturally up-and-down given the extreme youth, was my favorite season of all time. It was so much fun to watch this team grow, from a team that looked UMKC's equal in its first half to Big 12 Champions. But this isn't about that. Last night in Indianapolis wasn't about that. This game recap is just that: a recap of last night's game, a game we should have won, no questions asked.

It's about blown chances. Blown opportunities. Lack of execution. Mental errors. All of those nasty bugs that come out and bite you in March, costing you months upon months of hard work. It sucks. But, to every team but one, it happens. We weren't going to be that one, special team at the end of it all. We all knew that, at some point, it was going to end.

But why did it have to end like that? With a late 5-point lead quickly turned into a 3-point deficit. I recorded the game, with the mindset to rewatch the game win-or-lose. If we won, it'd get me super-duper pumped for the Louisville game. If we lost, it would give me some closure to my favorite season of all time. As soon as the final buzzer sounded, I immediately deleted it. It was hard enough to take once.

***

When Tyrel Reed nailed that three from the corner, I thought we had won. I was never really nervous, before that, sticking true to my "anything extra is gravy" mantra. But as soon as he hit that three, I believed we were going to win. We had been searching for what had seemed like decades for someone, anyone, to make a big, clutch shot to give us the advantage. When it happened, I thought we were money. But after that, we regressed. We scored 6 points those final 4:58; four by Sherron and those two, late free throws by Tyshawn.

And that was what cost us the game. When it mattered most, the experienced Michigan State team knew what to do late in the game against the 10th youngest team in the country. That's what makes it all so difficult. We had this game won, and we just let it slip away.

That's what makes it frustrating. Not the fact that it ended, but the way it ended.

Player recaps after the jump...

MVP? Fittingly, it was easily our season's MVP: Sherron Collins. And, in an intriguing case of irony, he didn't take over enough. All season long, the hot topic of Kansas basketball was Sherron Collins and his shot selection. And, for much of the season, the media and the fans thought he just shot way too much. I'll be honest, I did too. It's tough to blame him for any single loss, but that UMass game...damn. We started to win when Sherron began to develop a trust with the other 4 players on the floor at any given time, lowering his shot tally into the teens. But in the end, when we needed it most, Sherron was 'on'. 9-13 is ridiculously efficient, particularly when the entire D is keying on you as the key. His first shot of the game went in-and-out three times, before finally rolling out. He continued to dish off to his teammates, though, continued to find the open guy and give them their chance to shine. If his teammates make those shots, we're playing Louisville tomorrow and Sherron is the ultimate hero. Stories are written about Sherron's unselfishness, to pass off the moment to his teammates. For much of the game, Sherron was damn near perfect. Sure, the free throw miss hurts. But our chances to win the game were highly unlikely, at that point. No need to focus on that one little blip. Sherron has carried us all season long. Carried us. He is a true champion. Please, Sherron, please come back. Enter into another realm of Kansas Basketball history.
If there was ever a game that NBA scouts need to watch on Cole Aldrich, Friday night was it. At least, if you want Cole to come back for another year. Cole was severely outplayed by Goran Suton. And yes, I realize that Suton is a senior. But from all indications, he doesn't have nearly the potential of Aldrich, and figures to be sent over to Europe for his pro prospects. Really, it was one of those games where Aldrich should have been able to use his superior athleticism to score some points. It got to the point, though, where I was screaming at the TV to not give it to him on the low post. Every time it was, it ended in a turnover. He scored 17 points, sure, but I would bet that every single point was either scored at the free throw line or on putbacks and offensive rebounds. And don't get me wrong, he's an incredible rebounder. One of the best in the country. He is also quite amazing on D, particularly at blocking shots without committing fouls. But he has a ridiculous amount of work to do with the ball in his hands. Ridiculous. And while he'll get drafted based of of potential, he isn't likely to develop enough to garner a huge second contract, where you make the real money. Wait a year, learn how to pass out of a double-team and add on 1, 2 or 18 post moves to the repetoire and be a Top 5 pick next year.
Besides those two, only one real player played well: Brady Morningstar. His jump shot was off, way off, and he even airballed the first one. It wasn't pretty. But besides that, he was excellent. Awesome. Fantastic. Nearly perfect D on Raymar Morgan. Even had a pair of freakin' dunks, man. Did a fine job of moving the ball late. We could have really used a timely three from him at one point, but he still has time to become a better shooter. That's what he needs to work on this offseason. If he would have nailed just a three or two, we win and he could have been co-MVP with Sherron.
After that, it was all blech. I'll go Tyrel Reed as the next-best, simply because his D was nearly as outstanding as Brady's. He was on the floor diving after loose ball after loose ball, clearly giving it his all. And like I said, I thought Relly Ice had showed up when we needed it the most and drilled a three to send us to victory. Oh, that's what hurts the most. The moment that shot went through, I thought we won. Oh, I thought we won. Still, though, that shot was huge. He wasn't great, and he needs to keep on getting better on D. I bet he sees some minutes next year. He's getting better and better.
Tyshawn Taylor had an extremely freshman-ish performance. Tough to be too hard on the guy, and he did show up when it mattered most and drilled two free throws. He's still too much of a turnover machine, though, and his shot needs to get way better. Still, dude has so much potential it's scary. Positives outweigh the negatives, for sure.
Oh, and I forgot. Markieff Morris? Excellent. Took two of the worst shots of the season, with his two threes, but still. Everything else was awesome. The only player not named Cole Aldrich who showed up on the glass. Played outstanding defense, for the most part. He doesn't have nearly the offensive repertoire of his brother, and that needs to change for him to see major minutes. Plus, when he gets open looks, he misses nearly all of them. That needs to change. But he has turned into an awesome defender and rebounder. Against the best rebounding team in the entire freakin' country, he showed up and picked up 7 boards. That's impressive. He'll keep on gettin' better.
The other two forwards, though, yikes. I still love Marcus Morris to death, but he had a pretty awful NCAA Tournament. He's quite good with the moves, but he couldn't quite get any of them to fall. And he's not as impressive as his twin on D or on the glass. Just like his brother, plenty of room to improve. I'm giddy to see just how much they can improve.
And, finally, Mario Little. Hopefully he's a better wing than low-post player, because he's resorted to just flashes shown. A solid defender, but not as good as he probably needs to be. I still love him, and I bet he could see some plenty of playing time next year at the 3 (maybe?), but he will never be more than a role player. And he will need to be more consistent with his shot to see too many minutes.

OK. That pretty much does it for Michigan State-specific recapping.

We're not done talking about the game, or anything, because we'll have plenty of season recap stuff and stuff coming out over the next week-or-so. And that will involve plenty of talk about this game just the same as others.

But that's it. No more disappointment over this loss, and how it happened, and all of that stuff. No more bitterness. The season was a success.

Let's just focus on that, now, huh?

Kansas Sweet 16 Press Conference Recap

Denverjhawk — Wed, 25 Mar 2009 03:35:51 -0000

On Tuesday Coach Self sat down for the media along with Cole Aldrich, Sherron Collins, Tyshawn Taylor and Brady Morningstar to discuss the upcoming Sweet 16 matchup with Michigan State.

Coach talks a lot about the last matchup and how that might help prepare this team for it's upcoming chance at upsetting the Spartans.

As far as the players they touch on a variety of subject including expectation levels for the tourney, improvements from last year and the early season loss to Michigan State.

Transcript of the interviews after the jump...

Kansas Head Coach Bill Self

On how the team has changed since the game against Michigan State in January:
"I think we are older and I think not playing in the Breslin Center will be somewhat beneficial. When we played them the first time we stunk offensively, we were a really bad offensive team. I think they had us down 37-to-18 in the first half and that's after we got off to a good start. They just dominated us in the first half; we played hard in the second half but didn't have enough gas in the tank. I believe we are a little bit tougher and our supporting cast has been more consistent, although it didn't really show in Minneapolis. Overall I feel like we are a better team."

On how having played Michigan State already will benefit the team:
"I think it will help us a little bit, going back and watching clips of the game before will give us a better understanding of how they like to play. I think our kids will be able to pick it up quicker as well, so it will help, but it will help Michigan State also. Tom Izzo historically has done as good of a job with the scouting report as any coach I've ever coached against. They were really prepared for us the first time and took away a lot of our strengths and I'm sure they will do a good job of trying to do that again. We have to figure out a way to counter that and we need to do a much better job of guarding them."

On making the Sweet 16 for the third straight year:
"It's different, but it's not an overwhelming feeling. I felt that with last year's team and I feel it again this year. I was telling Cindy (wife) that it was a little bit different making the Sweet 16 here than with Tulsa. At Tulsa there were parades and everything else going on and now it feels like that's what we are supposed to do. I do think that our guys, in their minds, will be freed up because we have done as well as we have done. I will be the first to tell you and they will tell you as well that the North Dakota State game was a setup game. It was a game that we could have very easily not played well in and not pulled off. Sherron did everything in the first half; he carried us. Against Dayton, even with as good of a game that Cole had, Sherron carried us in that game as well and as soon as we established a lead it allowed the other players to settle down. Our kids expected to be in this position and I'm proud of that, if they expected less I would be very disappointed."

On how Kalin Lucas stacks up against other guards they have faced:
"He's the Big 10 Player of the Year. I would say, next to (Ben) Woodside, that we haven't had a guy out play us more than Kalin Lucas did in the Breslin Center. He totally dominated the game. From our perspective when the game was in the balance he just took the game over. I know positively that he has all of our guys' respect."

What impresses you about Tom Izzo's program:
"I think that programs that are successful all have similarities, they way they go about getting there might be different, but they all have similarities. They are going to defend, rebound, take care of the basketball, be tougher than the opponent and play harder. He really has a group that appears to like playing with each other. We don't run a lot of things that he runs, but we have used his program as a model when it comes to rebounding. That was all we talked about when I was at Illinois, when you play Michigan State if you don't bring it, you are going to get embarrassed and I do believe that is still true. You have to play like men when you are going after the ball."

On if anything has changed with Sherron Collins' play from the Big 12 to the NCAAs:
"No, he has made shots. In the Baylor game our team collectively didn't play with any energy. I think the NCAA tournament is the time for the best players to shine. People talk about them all year long and finally get to see them on the brightest stage. That's not just for our players, but for players from every program. The best way to really show what you are capable of is for your team to advance."

Kansas sophomore center Cole Aldrich

On going back to the Sweet Sixteen:
"It is great, kind of a dream come true. It is a dream that we all had at the beginning of the season. We all had so much fun last season and wanted to do it again. My teammates have really been great over the last year; we have really worked hard and developed into a team."

On the point that he knew KU could make a run in the tournament:
"It definitely was not in Canada. We were definitely rough around the edges before we went to Canada, but that trip really helped us. After going to Canada, making it through boot camp, and learning each others style of play and character we figured out that we could do something special."

On improving since the last time they faced Michigan State:
"We are going to need to take better care of the ball and rebound. They are going to be a real physical team that rebounds the ball and is really good in transition. We just need to play really good defense."

On the loss to Michigan State earlier in the season:
"It was definitely a learning experience, we try to take as much out of every loss that we have had during the course of the season and it was one of those points that we really matured afterwards."

Kansas junior guard Sherron Collins:

On being compared to Isaiah Thomas:
"It is a compliment being compared to him. He is someone that I have always looked up to growing up in the Chicago area."

On whether or not the making it this far is more satisfying that last year:
"I am still not satisfied; I think that we can do more. I just think that it gives us a sense of urgency knowing that we can play with these teams that nobody thought we could play with. I think that it is good that we have responded like we have."

On his elevated play in the tournament:
"I think that I have been very productive all season, I just think that right now it is lose and go home. I just have the mindset right now that I do not want to go home."

Kansas sophomore guard Brady Morningstar

On Head Coach Bill Self:
"I feel like we're always going into games prepared. If we don't play well it's always on the players' shoulders. He prepares us as well as he can. The rest is left up to us. He always does his job. He's passionate about what he does."

On his current shooting slump:
"I just have to keep shooting the ball. Shooters don't hit every shot. Sometimes you people go into slumps. I just need to keep shooting the ball. My shot feels the same it's just not going in right now."

Kansas freshman guard Tyshawn Taylor

On putting pressure on himself:
"I know it's the NCAA Tournament so I put more pressure on myself that was needed. No one else really put pressure on me. I just wanted to perform well. I knew it was a big stage and everyone wants to perform well on a big stage. I was thinking a little bit too much instead of playing."

On playing Michigan State earlier this season:
"It was a different experience. It was our second away game of the season when we were a lot more immature than we are now. It was a tough game. We didn't really know what to expect from them and this time we do."

SB Nation - Brady Morningstar

Statistical Rearview: Kansas vs. Michigan

Kansas Hosts Michigan Saturday in an Early Tip

The Big Blue Daily Mail -- The Return

Top Stories

UK Basketball News

UK Football News

Other UK Sports News

NCAA Sports News

Other News of Interest

The Daily Schadenfreude

It's getting worse in Lawrence, Kansas

Breaking: Bill Self Suspends Brady Morningstar for First Semester

Links and a Topic // 6-11-09

Kansas Football

Kansas Baseball

Kansas Basketball

Xavier Henry: Starter Out of the Gate?

2009 Season in Review: Awards - Defensive Player of the Year

Defensive Player of the Year -- G Brady Morningstar

Where Will Xavier and CJ (or Lance?) Fit: A Look at the Scholarship Situation

Cole and Sherron Go Pro

2 Transfers

Cole or Sherron Go Pro + 1 Transfer

Cole or Sherron Go Pro/1 Transfer + Brady/Whoever Gives Up Scholarship

Concluding Thoughts

"Awesome Season, Terrible Finish" -- Kansas 62 Michigan State 67

Kansas Sweet 16 Press Conference Recap