College Hoops Championships and Stuff

So what were you expecting from a Butler-Connecticut title game?

Not what we got, especially in the second half, when a tiring Butler team could not hit from outside or in, overwhelmed by UConn's length and quickness inside. A scintillating defensive game by UConn but very bad basketball at bottom. (Bill Walton on radio was awesome on this--in fact, the radio side with Gus Johnson, Bill Raftery and John Thompson is a better team than the TV announcers at the final--just saying.)

Butler shot 19% for the game. The halftime score was 22-19 Butler. Final 53-41 Connecticut.

The ladies halftime score was 35-33 Notre Dame. The final score 70-76 Texas A & M.

Both games were exciting in their own way, but the ladies game had momentum flowing back and forth and more exciting plays. The men just were grinding it out. There are lots of critics of the lack of "athleticism" in the women's game but in this case, I would say the women were just as exciting to watch as the men. All that flying through the air isn't very effective if you can't put the ball through the hoop.

A & M's Kansas City connection served them well as Danielle Adams (Lee's Summit) led scoring with 30 points and Tyra White (Hickman Mills) made an important late hoop. Nice ESPN article by former Star newsie Mechelle Voepel here.

Oh, yes, the Mizzou coaching drama ended with the controversial hiring of one Frank Haith, a coach from a football school (Miami) with a losing record. Mr. Haith is going to have to win over skeptical fans in both Columbia and in the conference that he is a serious possibility to do well and stick around for a while. I think when he gets in a full Mizzou Arena and realizes that these fans do give a damn is when he realizes what a tough job he has.

Mike Anderson

It's been a gossip fest about Mike Anderson.

Yes, he is staying at Missouri, with a new contract. (Never mind he just renegotiated last year.)

No, he is definitely going to Arkansas for $2.2 million.

One thing I know for sure. He is not worth $2.2 million to Missouri. If that is the truth, that Arkansas offered him $2.2 million, then we should be sure to give him plenty of time to pack his stuff. His record is not that of a $2.2 million coach.

I think he's gone, from the print news, radio news and radio talk I've heard.

Kansas Through to Big 12 Finals

The efforts of Grandview native Alec Burks were not near enough to help Colorado, who came through by upsetting Kansas State, defeat mighty Kansas. The game was respectable at half time--the Buffs had even led during the first half. Kansas started the second half strong and took care of business. The game ended 90-83 for the Jayhawks.

Missouri lost big to Texas A & M--the Aggies are playing Texas for the right to face Kansas in the finals. Both teams have the potential to give the Jayhawks trouble. I have to commend KU--they have come into the tournament and taken care of business. As I listened to the game tonight, I noted that players like Josh Selby, who have struggled to find rhythm in the last games, got chances to play and took advantage of them. Kansas with better guard play is a much scarier team than the Kansas that throws the ball away.

College Hoops Round Up

The UVM men's basketball team will not be dancing in the big dance this year. They took a bad defeat from .500 NY-Stony Brook 69-47. They were undone by good defense by Stony Brook, injuries to important players and poor shooting.

The Vermont men are going to the NIT by virtue of their regular season championship. They will find out who they play Sunday night. Hopefully by then they will have their momentum back.

Their loss in the America East tourney illustrates how important it is to have some good flow going into the post season. Of our three local teams, two have good flow, Kansas and especially Kansas State, who has been playing very well. Missouri? Not so much. The loss to Kansas in Columbia was a tough one, the Tigers couldn't shoot a lick in that game. 28%? Two three point goals the whole game? Mizzou stayed close by dint of Kansas turnovers and making most of their foul shots. Still it had to be a bit of a demoralizing loss for the Tigers. That, coupled with the loss to Nebraska in Lincoln gives negative momentum for MU. Also they have no bye in the Big 12 Tournament.

Kansas State has been winning consistently for about a month now, and is playing its best basketball. Kansas is winning ugly, has point guard and chemistry problems, but as long as the Morris twins and Robinson keep up their strong inside work, Kansas will be tough to beat. The Jayhawks are likely a #1 seed in some region or another. Both KU and K State have byes in the Big 12 tourney so they will be less worn out if they go all the way to the finals.

March Madness (copyright NCAA) is here!

Anticipating Lots of Basketballs!

It's all drawing down to a close. High schools will be in Districts shortly, with Ruskin looking good for their first season in the higher class.

Missouri, Kansas and Kansas State disposed of their opponents today. K State is now .500 in the conference, warming at the right time. Think if they had made a few more free throws at Colorado...

Oh, and TEXAS lost to Nebraska in Lincoln. How sad for the Longhorns! ::grin::

Observer pic of Ruskin High action against Truman High.

Glad to Be Wrong

Earlier this year I was ready to consign the New York football Giants to the dumpster because they were losing and looking ugly doing it. No defense, no running game and Eli Manning with happy feet and an erratic arm. I am happy to report that the Giants have won three in a row, including a drubbing of those Cowboys in Dallas and are in a position to be in control of the NFC East. Yup, happy to be wrong here.

Also, I wrote that the University of Missouri's football team was "average," beating the bad teams of the Big 12 but having no signature wins against powers. Well, last Saturday the Tigers beat Oklahoma. I am happy about that win, secured with fine defense and timely offense. If the Tigers can beat Nebraska up in Lincoln--well, now, wouldn't that be something? And I am completely happy to admit that I was wrong to call them average.

You don't always have to be right, you know.

Local Colleges: Kansas is Really Bad at Football

Jayhawk Nation is already asking two questions:

1. When's basketball?

2. Can we fire Turner Gill?

Because the Jayhawks are really bad at football this year. Kansas State skunked them on Thursday past.

Kansas State and Missouri are average Big 12 football teams this year. This basically means that they will beat the teams they are supposed to beat, they will lose to the teams they are supposed to lose to and they will beat on each other.

Meantime, Kansas State has been picked to win the Big 12 Men's Basketball Championship this year.

Who Pitched?

North Dakota State collects a KU fumble. (Kansas City Star photo)

This must have been absolutely no fun to watch, this KU-NDSU game, ending in a baseball like score of 6-3. For Kansas it was a cascade of fumbles, bumbles, offensive ineptness, and special teams misses. A bad bad debut for Turner Gill. If this was a movie, it would have gone straight to DVD. Universally panned by the critics, this Jayhawks team has a lot of work to do.

Meantime, both Kansas State and Missouri win their openers with strong second halves, especially from the Wildcat running game and the Missouri defense.

Big XII Minus II Still Standing

As we predicted, the Big XII's fate revolved around the decisions that the folks at the University of Texas would make. They jumped their Tuesday regents meeting by a day and began declaring on Monday that they would stay in the conference. Apparently, they are being fed mo'money.

It's nice that your schools are in a conference that gives them lots of exposure and helps with money for the athletic program as a whole and helps with recruiting students and such. I'm happy that the exposure will continue for the worthy state institutions of Kansas, Kansas State and Missouri. But my biggest concern is not as a sports fan but as a resident of a medium sized city in the plains of America. College athletics are a big part of our identity in Kansas City, a big part of our investments, and a big donor to our economy. I still feel pretty vunerable that this could come apart at any minute. Remember, this all started with rumors of Missouri leaving the conference.

We are secure for now. What can we do to insure college sports continuing presence in our city? What can we do to insure that our really cool rivals still play each other--or are economics going to undo 100 years of athletic history? We can't bask long in this victory. We must shore up our proverbial levies. I'm pretty sure there will be another hurricane.

Well, It Looks Like the Big 12 Is Kaput

With the reports that the University of Nebraska is joining the Big 10 conference, I do believe that we can see the end of the Big 12 conference. I don't see how Nebraska can be replaced, and if Mizzou goes also, the Big 12 is definitely history. There are three effects from this, none of which I have a crystal ball for.

1. Football. The BCS will get stronger, and we may see another breakout of the colleges that play football. The big boy schools will join together in 3 or 4 superconferences and then play each other to determine a champion. The not-so-big boys, which includes Missouri, Kansas and Kansas State and a whole bunch of other schools will not be able to participate in any sort of national championship. I think you could still have these programs going on, but any hopes of a Boise State, or a Kansas or a Cincinnati playing for the national championship or in a BCS type setting are pretty much done. And smaller schools, playing on the D I level might drop a level for their football programs or create a new slightly lower level.

2. Basketball. More schools are better at basketball, and the list of "majors" is longer and I also think, easier to crack (see Butler), and the tournament in its present format allows for participation by midmajor programs, so I think the changes will be less seismic. You'll probably see more changes in the regular season.

3. Kansas City. Kansas City has long been a centering point for Big 6/8/12 hoops, both because of location and enthusiasm. Plus if KU and MU and K State all end up in different places, rivalry games might be lost or lessened, which would be a pity. So Kansas City will lose the opportunity to host championship and rivalry games, and will be a lesser participate in the national college sports scene. This will mean a loss of prestige and money. A tough pill to swallow.

Remember as you consider this: While the colleges actually do educate a few people along the way, and money is made through these big sports so that other varsity sports can go on, the primary point of big time college athletics has become MONEY. Whatever makes the most money, that is the resolution you'll see. Players and boosters may find themselves in new and uncomfortable positions.

So, buckle up, folks, cause change is coming, whether you are ready or not.

Kansas-Missouri Baseball at the K

Kansas played Missouri in baseball at Kauffman Stadium tonight. I must say, the uniform geek in me is checking it out!

Is it my imagination or are both teams wearing white pants? I like #37's look with more socks and less pants. And is the KU infielder wearing white spikes?

I dig the Montreal Expo-ish hats for Kansas--very very neat. I wonder if you can get these retail someplace?

As for the score, Kansas scored one run in the top of the 2nd inning and that was it, winning 1-0.

Fizz-zou

Head palms all around...the Tiger bench near the end of this afternoon's game (Kansas City Star)

The University of Missouri men's basketball team put out a real clunker this afternoon at the Sprint Center. The Tigers (declawed, perhaps?) lost to #12 seed Nebraska 75-60. They never led this game, shot less than 40% from the field, were beaten to almost all loose balls and just generally stunk up the place.

Missouri looked great during the first part of the season, but seems to have worn down, plus an injury to Justin Safford seemed to really affect the team--they lost more then they won after he went down with a knee injury. At this point, I don't know if Mizzou is ready for the NCAAs. It would not surprise me if they don't make the field of 65. They do have some good wins, done early in the season, so that might get them in.

Mike Anderson needs to find some height to go with the quick hands and feet that this team features, and he will have three seniors to replace.

Kind of a pppffft ending, though...

Ouch!

Cole Aldrich continues his good play with seven blocked shots to go along with 12 points, 16 rebounds and 2 assists for the game. (Kansas City Star photo)

Missouri just got pounded by Kansas 84-65 at Allen Field House last night. Could not shoot, rushing and taking fast shots, KU was just too big and too good for the Tigers. Best to just forget this one, Missouri fans and look forward to the rest of the conference season and KU's visit to Columbia in March.

Hoops, Hoops, Hoops

All my body English at home could not send this shot in the hoop. (KC Star)

Just a quick update on the hoop action of the day this Saturday night. Missouri and Kansas were easy winners over Iowa State and Nebraska today. Kansas tried to look distracted, but eventually just put their foot on the Cyclones' neck. Big men Cole Aldrich and Jeff Withey were the center of KU action. Missouri was only ahead of Nebraska 28-26 at half, and it was the usual Nebraska slog, until Miguel Paul caught fire and pulled Mizzou ahead to coast to a 70-53 win. Kansas State was the lone loser. Unable to shake Oklahoma State, the game, in the 30s at half, was a back and forth defense affair. It came down to one last shot. Jacob Pullen was able to drive down the court and put up a lay up attempt, but it just slithered off the rim. Oklahoma State made two last foul shots and the game was out of reach. K State could not shoot over the Cowboy's zone D. James Anderson, the Okie State point guard, scored 30 against the Wildcats. Everyone was very disappointed by the loss at home.

Texas got blown out by UConn. Poor guard play. Not no. 1 any more.

College Basketball: KU Loses, Catfight in Columbia Starts Conference Sked

Bill Self after the 76-68 loss to Tennessee at Knoxville: "Winning camouflages your weaknesses. A loss exposes you. Now maybe we can get better, because we've been exposed." Kansas needs to rediscover that big guy in the middle...some guy named Cole. I hear he is pretty good.

56 fouls were called during the MU-KSU game on Saturday. The homestanding Mizzou Tigers upset the then 11th ranked K-State Wildcats 74-68 with a great comeback in the second half after being down most of the first half. Here is a link to Jason Whitlock's take on the game. I have thought all season that Missouri was the most battle tested of all the local teams, and a win in a knock-down drag-out like this game is the proof of that testing.

As a result of the losses, Kansas fell to no. 3, and Kansas State to no. 12. Missouri did not quite crack the top 25 yet. Texas was voted no. 1 with Kentucky no. 2. Baylor moved into the top 25 at no. 22. To me, the polls are not that important, other then a very fuzzy way of comparing the teams.

Now, on to the heart of the conference schedule. What will make a difference, both in the conference and come NCAA seeding time: Who can win a conference road game against a tough opponent? (Pics from the Kansas City Star)

Area College Hoops: Preparing for Conference Play

A good time was had by all! (Kansas City Star)

Kansas, Missouri and Kansas State were all in hoops actions today. Kansas beat Michigan at Allen Field House 75-64. That 11 point margin was about as close as the Wolverines got after a big KU run in the first half. Missouri took care of Arkansas-Pine Bluff 88-70 in Columbia. The score was as bad as 33-7 after 15 minutes of play. Hopefully, that's the end of the cupcakes for a little while. Currently Kansas State has a 13 point lead over Alabama, with about 8:00 left in the game. This game is being played in Alabama.

When these teams start playing each other, and teams like Texas, who beat North Carolina 103-90 earlier today, it is gonna be a lot of fun!

Meanwhile, Missouri Plays an SEC Team on the Road!

Not swatting his shot away...Jeffrey Taylor one of Vandy's studs goes to the basket. (Kansas City Star photo)

Meanwhile, Missouri takes it on the road, against Vanderbilt, a Southeastern Conference team with some good players and tradition. Alas, Missouri plays sluggishly until the last 10 minutes, and it's furious rally falls short. MU loses to Vandy 89-83. However, I would bet that Mizzou's young players found the tough road game a terrific learning experience and the team is closer now.

Lessons and work that will pay off in March.

Post Border War: What a Game!

Wow, what a game! Back and forth, back and forth with changes in momentum, great plays, bad plays. This game had everything, except very good defense. The scoring summary helps sum up the day:

FIRST QUARTER
KU TD @ 06:40
Dezmon Briscoe 7 Yd Pass From Todd Reesing (Jacob Branstetter Kick)
0
7
MU FG @ 03:52
Grant Ressel 43 Yd
3
7
KU TD @01:04
Todd Reesing 1 Yd Run (Jacob Branstetter Kick)
3
14
SECOND QUARTER
MU TD @ 05:49
Derrick Washington 1 Yd Run (Grant Ressel Kick)
10
14
KU TD @ 03:03
Kerry Meier 8 Yd Pass From Todd Reesing (Jacob Branstetter Kick)
10
21
MU FG@01:01
Grant Ressel 28 Yd
13
21
THIRD QUARTER
MU TD @ 13:16
Derrick Washington 14 Yd Run (Two-Point Run Conversion Failed)
19
21
KU TD @ 07:30
Kerry Meier 2 Yd Pass From Todd Reesing (Jacob Branstetter Kick)
19
28
MU TD @ 05:45
Jerrell Jackson 37 Yd Run (Grant Ressel Kick)
26
28
MU TD @ 04:03
Danario Alexander 68 Yd Pass From Blaine Gabbert (Grant Ressel Kick)
33
28
FOURTH QUARTER
MU FG @ 13:29
Grant Ressel 37 Yd
36
28
KU TD @ 12:01
Dezmon Briscoe 74 Yd Pass From Todd Reesing (Todd Reesing Pass To Kerry Meier For Two-Point Conversion)
36
36
KU FG @ 05:10
Jacob Branstetter 39 Yd
36
39
MU causes a Safety @ 02:45
38
39
MU FG @ 00:00
Grant Ressel 27 Yd
41
39

Caught your breath yet?

Blaine Gabbert was 23/41 for 303 yards and one TD. Todd Reesing was 37/55 (55!?!) for 498 yards, four TDs and one INT. Mizzou had the rushing star, Derrick Washington who ran for 111 yards and two TDs. The star receivers were, for KU, Kerry Meier 10 catches for 54 yards and two TDs, and Dezmon Briscoe, 14 catches for 242 yards and two TDs. Danario Alexander had 15 catches for 233 yards and one TD for MU.

Kansas could have easily won this game. They had two more turnovers than Missouri, including two fumbles by the otherwise all world Briscoe, and for the life of me, I can't figure out why they did all that passing when they were pressed back against their own goal line. I was listening to post game on the KU Radio network, and the commentators were hard pressed to come up with a reasonable explanation for the play calling in that situation. The best anyone could do was to say that that's what KU is, pass, pass, go, go. Seeing now that they threw the ball 55 times, I could go with that explanation.

Now, these programs are going to have very different futures. Mizzou with 8 wins is headed to a pretty decent bowl game, and all the young players, including Blaine Gabbert are a year older and wiser. Kansas is not going bowling, and has persistent questions about the future of its coach. There will be significant rebuilding needed as KU will lose seniors in critical positions including QB and receiver.

Uh-oh, there he goes. Danario Alexander runs from the KU secondary. (Kansas City Star)

Dez Briscoe eludes capture. (Kansas City Star)

Kerry Meier makes a TD catch. Check out the crowd reaction. (Kansas City Star)

I love this shot. Not only does it show an important play, but note all the black and gold referees in the stands. (Kansas City Star)

Pre Border War Thoughts

Fans at the 2007 Missouri-Kansas football game at Arrowhead Stadium. (Kansas City Star)

I did not go to MU or KU. I live in Missouri, where I have lived for 20 years. My tax dollars go to Mizzou. I like to root for the underdog. Therefore, I am not quite sure what to do about tomorrow's MU-KU game. MU is favored by 3.5 (last I looked) and could put itself with a win in a position to go to a pretty good bowl game. Kansas is that underdog. Also, I have some sympathy for Mark Mangino and what has gone on with him, and a win would be nice for him and also make KU bowl eligible. I do not think that a win will save Mangino's job, but weirder things have happened.

OK, here we go. Go Missouri! Win in a couple of OTs!

WTF?!?

There was lots of this for both teams today. (AP photo)

I listened to KU-K State while raking nature's bounty of leaves off my lawn early this afternoon. Then I went to run errands and spend my birthday money. I only heard snatches of the Missouri-Baylor game. So I sit down to blog tonight, needing to look up the score of the game. While waiting for my computer to get hooked into the WiFi system, I pulled out my Blackberry and went to ESPN. There, waiting for me was the surprise of the day--out loud in public I uttered in surprise, "What?!?" Because the final score was 40-32--Baylor.

It looks like a defense optional pass fest, with footballs flying all over the field in Columbia. Blaine Gabbart passed for 468 yards and 2 touchdowns. Baylor's QB, Nick Florence, a freshman, passed for 433 yards and 3 touchdowns. Neither QB had a pick. Neither team could run. Even after pulling out the minus yards for quarterback sacks, each team had less than 50 yards rushing. All this in Columbia, which is especially galling for Tiger fans. Upsets like this just don't happen at your own house.

Missouri now is in last place in the Big 12 North. Go figure.