2009 04 27 basketball rewind 09

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2008-2009 Kss Jyhks BsktbllSeaSon in Review


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2008-2009 kansas basketbaLL2

apriL 27, 2009

Kansas coach Bill Sel strolled into theNaismith Room on the second ooro Allen Fieldhouse last October and

plopped down in a seat at the podium. It wasMedia Day the rst opportunity or Sel todiscuss the 2008-2009 Jayhawks.

But beore Sel could even get situated andcomortable or the 30-minute brieng, heencountered his rst question.

Have you thought about last year at all,someone asked, reerring to the 2008 NationalChampionship team.

Five months later, Sel was walking away. Hehad spent 20 minutes talking with reportersafer Kansas 67-62 deeat to Michigan Statein the Sweet Sixteen at Lucas Oil Stadium inIndianapolis.

But beore Sel reached the doors to theKansas locker room, he encountered his lastquestion.

Could it be motivation knowing that i the

season ended here next year, it could be a hell

o a year, someone asked, reerring to the actthat the 2010 Final Four would also be playedat Lucas Oil Stadium.

It seems this is how the 2008-2009 Kansasbasketball season will be remembered. It willbe viewed as a bridge between one o theprograms nest years in 2008 and one withsimilar potential in 2010.

Tats a shame. Dont look at it that way. Te

2008-2009 season deserves better than that. Itwas special in its own way. Consider it the yearo surprises.

Because who knew the stubborn pointguard rom one o the worst areas o Chicagocould be what Sel calls one o the greatestindividual success stories?

Because who knew the wiry kid with a un-ny Minnesotan accent rom a year ago couldturn into one o the nations most imposingrontcourt orces?

Because who knew the ast-talking nal

piece o the 2008 recruiting class would scoremore points in a game and win more Big 12Rookie o the Week awards as a reshman thanBrandon Rush, Mario Chalmers, Julian Wrightand Darrell Arthur ever did?

Because who knew the unheralded 23-year-old local boy would become the Jayhawks beston-ball deender?

But the individual stories o those Jay-

hawks Sherron Collins, Cole Aldrich,yshawn aylor and Brady Morningstar iyou were lost were not as unlikely as theseason itsel.

Sure, a run to the Sweet Sixteen wasnttotally unpredictable. But having a better Big12 Conerence record (14-2) than last yearsnational championship team (13-3) certainlywas.

Obliterating a hated rival and eventual EliteEight team, Missouri, by 25 points three weeksafer losing to it certainly was.

Te lasting memory should always be thatthis team won another conerence champion-ship. Kansas fh straight. Its 52nd in schoolhistory.

Tis season doesnt need to be grouped withlast year or next year. Sel knows it. And heshowed it in his response to the last questiono the season.

It was a hell o a year this year, Sel said.

spring 2009 kansan staffEditor Brenna Hawley

Managing editors Tara Smith

Mary SorrickManaging editor, Kansan.com Kelsey Hayes

Sports editor Andrew Wiebe

Associate sports editor Taylor Bern

Designers Drew Bergman

Nick Gerik

Liz Schubauer

Mark Stevens

Kelly Stroda

Advertising director Laura Vest

Sales manager Dani Erker

General manager, news adviser Malcolm Gibson

Sales and marketing adviser Jon Schlitt

Kansan Newsroom111 Stauffer-Flint Hall

1435 Jayhawk Blvd.

Lawrence, KS 66045

(785) 864-4810

et ceteraThe University Daily Kansan is the student

newspaper of the University of Kansas. This

special section chronicles the 2008-2009 Kansas

mens basketball season.

By Case [email protected]

Commentary

This team wasnt just bridge between titles

3. Duo returning4. UMKC

Florida Gul CoastWashington

5. SyracuseCoppin State

Kent State6. New Mexico State

Jackson State7. Massachusetts

Templeat Arizona

8. AlbanyTennesseeSiena

9. at Michigan StateKansas State

10. at ColoradoTexas A&M

11. at Iowa Stateat NebraskaColorado

12. Sherron Collins14. at Baylor

Oklahoma State

15. at Missouriat Kansas State

16. Iowa StateNebraska

17. at OklahomaMissouri

19. at Texas TechTexas

20. Baylor21. North Dakota State

Dayton22. Michigan State23. No Regrets

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Weston White/KANSAN

The Jayhawks holdup the Big 12 regular season championship trophy ater clinching its fth-straight title against Texas

on March 7. Kansas went on to fnish the season by losing to Michigan State in the Sweet Sixteen, fnishing with 27 victories.


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2008-2009 kansas basketball 3

april 27, 2009

BY TAYLOR BERN

[email protected]

By the time Cole Aldrich and SherronCollins took the stage at Monday nightsawards banquet, the only question left waswho would go first.

It was the perfect setting. In front of a

packed house, Aldrich and Collins steppedbehind the lectern as co-Danny Manning Mr.Jayhawk Award winners.

It would have been cruel to end the ceremo-nies any other way, so Aldrich stepped to themic and took his cue.

The past two years has been absolutely ablast, and I cant wait till next year when we tryto go for one more, Aldrich said.

Collins words were a foregone conclusion,but they still triggered a standing ovation.

It was a great year, and like Cole said, Imgoing to be back next year, Collins said.

It turns out the decision wasnt too difficultfor Kansas top two players.

Coach Bill Self told both men he wouldgather information to help them decidewhether to test the NBA draft, but neither ofthem waited for it.

Cole said, Why would I test if I know Imcoming back? Self said.

Collins informed Self of his decision whilethe two were in Detroit accepting awardsfrom the National Association of BasketballCoaches. Self recalled the encounter and saidhe was expecting bad news.

When I told coach, the first thing hetold me was, Are you serious? Collinssaid. Then he asked me if I was okay seventimes and then he told me he had the goose-bumps.

Aldrich said he knew what his decisionwould be as soon as the season was over,but opted to take a little time to relax before

meeting with Self.We talked a little bit after the season and Isaid, Im having way too much fun, Aldrichsaid. I really want to do a lot of things thatvery few people have done.

Collins and Aldrich spoke to each otheroften after the season, but the conversationwas about doing whats best for each person.Collins said neither of them knew what theother was going to say in their meeting.

Self estimated that he sewed up 12-15 winswith their return.

Were always actively recruiting, but asyou guys know we just signed our two most

important recruits right now, Self said.The decision for both Collins and Aldrich

came down to a lot of things. Family, degreesand the college experience were popularanswers.

But most importantly, the two men stand-ing in front of that crowd want to win a secondnational championship.

Sherron and I talked about this, Aldrichsaid. We could be those special names inKansas history that all the little kids lookup to.

back for more

Duo decides not to test NBA

Chance Dibben/KANSAN

After sharing the Danny Manning Mr. Jayhawk Award, both Sherron Collins, Chicago, Ill., junior gaurd, and Cole

Aldrich, Bloomington, Minn., sophomore announced they would return for another year at Kansas during the mens

basketball banquet. Collins and Aldrich said they were returning to try to win another national championship.


4/24


apriL 27, 2009

kansas umkC

november 16, 2008

71 56 kansas FLorida GC

november 18, 2008

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BY CASE KEEFER

[email protected]

Sherron Collins missed more than ivethree-pointers in a row in the shoot-around beore the game against FloridaGul Coast.

He rarely missed one again or the resto the night. Collins shot 4-or-6 romthree-point range and scored a career-high 25 points in the 85-45 Jayhawk vic-tory against the Eagles.

I just knew I was hot, Collins said.Mostly everything I was putting up wasgoing in. I elt pretty good shooting it.

Florida Gul Coast reserved or them-selves all the missed shots once the gamebegan.

The Eagles converted on only 13 otheir 55 shots rom the ield.

They missed shots, Sel said. But anytime a team shoots that percentage, youmust have done some things deensively.

kansas washinGton

november 24, 2008

73 54

BY CASE KEEFER

[email protected]

Markie Morris was so nervous beore hisrst game as a Jayhawk on Sunday that he senta text message to Kansas coach Bill Sel askingor help.

At least, Morris, reshman orward, thoughthe did. Sel wasnt so sure.

He probably got me conused with some-

body else, Sel said. Probably some younglady on campus he texted her and thought itwas me probably. I dont remember getting anytexts about that.

Whoever received Morris text message musthave responded with something inspirational.Morris overcame his reshman anxiety in Kan-sas 71-56 victory against UMKC and recorded15 rebounds and seven points o the bench.

Morris said he didnt expect his case othe jitters to fare up as bad in tonights gameagainst Florida Gul Coast. But i they do, hecould always send a text message to somebody.

Markief starts season right

Weston White/KANSAN

Freshman Tyshawn Taylor drives the lane or a two-point

basket. Taylor scored seven points and had our rebounds.

Collins, deense dominate

Jon Goering/KANSAN

Junior guard Sherron Collins worksto get a shot around

Florida Gul Coast deender Derrick ONeil during the frst hal.

Collins drew a oul on the play, sank both ree throws and

scored a career-high 25 points in the victory.

Hawks slam sluggish HuskiesBY CASE KEEFER

[email protected]

KANSAS CITY, Mo. Kansas guard TyshawnTaylor and Washington guard Isaiah Thomas usedto be riends.

Taylor, a reshman, played against Thomas acouple times over the years in AAU tournaments.But in the Jayhawks 73-54 victory against theHuskies, Taylor may have severed their relationshippermanently.

With our minutes to go in the irst hal, Thomasstole a Taylor pass and sprinted down the court allalone to attempt a layup. Only Taylor caught him

and swatted the shot attempt toward the Jayhawkband behind the basket.

I thought he was going to dunk it, so I kind oslowed down, Taylor said. But when I saw that hewas jumping up slow I said, I have to go get that.

Sprint Center erupted in cheers and high ives.And the game was never the same.

Cole Aldrich set o the irst ew explosions inthe irst hal. He elevated over Washington seniororward Jon Brockman to throw down an easydunk midway and held Brockman to seven points.

Jon Goering/KANSAN

Sophomore center Cole Aldrich throws down a dunk

during the second hal against Washington.

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april 27, 2009

BY CASE KEEFER

[email protected]

KANSAS CITY, Mo. Consider the CBEClassic Championship Game a role reversalof the 2008 NCAA Championship Game forKansas.

In the 89-81 Syracuse overtime victory,Kansas led for more than 35 minutes of regula-tion. But the Jayhawks failed to put the Orange

away by missing key free throws late in thegame.

This time, Syracuse sophomore guard JonnyFlynn made the game-tying three-pointer astime expired in the second half. This time, itwas the Jayhawks who couldnt overcome theshot in overtime.

Similar to last years national champion-ship, the game had practically ended when itreached overtime. But this time Kansas was onthe losing end.

Everybody just lost their poise at thatpoint, freshman guard Tyshawn Taylor said.

Everybody the whole team.

kansas syracuse

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Kansas falls in overtime Threes bury Coppin State

kansas kent state

december 1, 2008

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BY CASE KEEFER

[email protected]

Brady Morningstar is all business all the time.Morningstar, a sophomore guard, keeps a

straight ace when he runs through the tunnelaer he hears his name called in the Kansasstarting lineup. He takes pre-game warm-upsseriously and never jokes around with team-mates while stretching or shooting. When hehits a big shot, Morningstars rst thought isto get back on deense.

But even Morningstar couldnt help butshow a slight smile aer his 21-point, seven-rebound perormance in Kansas 85-53 vic-tory against Coppin State.

It was good, Morningstar said. Im justglad my teammates were able to get me openshots and I knocked them down.

He knocked down a career-high o them.Morningstar shot seven-o-nine rom theeld and made six three-pointers. Morning-star wasnt sure i he had ever made that manythree-pointers in a game, even in high school

or during a scrimmage.He certainly never compiled a game like

this one at Kansas. His previous career-highswere one three-pointer, six points and ourrebounds.

Kansas coach Bill Sel knew Morningstarsbreakout would come during this game.Heck, Sel ordered it.

Aer watching the lm o Tuesdays 89-83deeat to Syracuse, Sel decided Morningstar

needed to be more involved in the ofense.He gave the normally deensive-mindedMorningstar a new assignment or the gameagainst Coppin State.

I told Brady I wanted him to shoot everytime he was open, Sel said. And he did.

Morningstar connected on his rst ourthree-point attempts in the rst hal. His e-ciency helped the Jayhawks cruise to a 34-5lead with six minutes le in the rst hal.

Its time to go out there and play and tohit shots and to help my team win, Morning-star said. And tonight, I elt like I took a step

orward.

Jon Goering/KANSAN

Tyshawn Taylor scores two o his 17 points while drawing a

oul. Kansas surrendered its lead in the fnal fve minutes and

ell to Syracuse in overtime.

BY CASE KEEFER

[email protected]

Freshman forward Marcus Morris tried toexplain Kansas 87-60 victory against KentState.

Marcus Morris, who finished with 14 pointsand 10 rebounds, attempted to make a sense ofa game where 46 fouls were called on the twoteams combined. The words werent comingto him.

He wanted to tell everyone exactly whathappened in the scrum under the basket fourminutes into the second half that resulted in a

flagrant foul and ejection of his twin brother,Markieff. But he didnt have a clear view of thealtercation while it happened.

On this night, the scratch above Marcusright eye told the story of the game better thanhe or anyone else could.

I got scratched, Marcus said. They wereplaying very physical, and I think we wereplaying very physical, too.

It turned into a game devoid of any pace onthe floor in the second half.

It was ugly.

Jon Goering/KANSAN

Freshman guard Tyshawn Taylor attacks the basket

against Kent State. In a physical game, Kansas hit 32-o-36

attempts at the ree-throw line.

Jayhawks claw way to victory


6/24


apriL 27, 2009

BY CASE KEEFER

[email protected]

Tyshawn Taylor turned and looked straightat the end of the Kansas bench after he threwdown a one-handed dunk with four minutesleft in Kansas 100-79 victory against NewMexico State.

Taylor, a freshman guard, wanted to makesure Mario Little saw the play.

Little, an injured junior guard, teased Taylorrepeatedly in practice Tuesday.

Little told Taylor he didnt think he couldactually dunk. Taylor promised to prove himwrong.

I told him I was going to show it, Taylorsaid. I did.

Twice. Three minutes before, Taylor drovethe lane for a two-handed jam. The two dunkswere merely the exclamation points to add tothe end of Taylors career-night.

He scored a career-high 23 points with threeassists and a steal.

BY CASE KEEFER

[email protected]

Call Tyrel Reed a bondsman, because hesbecoming accustomed to bailing Kansas outof close games.

Three days after helping Kansas escapefrom New Mexico State, Reed did it again inan 86-62 victory against Jackson State.

The Tigers stuck with the Jayhawks formost of the game and trailed only 48-42 with15 minutes remaining. Reed, a sophomoreguard, proceeded to score eight points off oftwo three-pointers and two free throws inthe next minute and a half to put the game outof the Tigers reach.

Still, there was plenty of frustration. Aldrich,a sophomore center, played only 10 ineffectiveminutes because he got into foul trouble.Collins, a junior guard, missed his first sevenshots.

It was a pretty stale performance, coachBill Self said.

kansas new mexico state

december 3, 2008

100 79 kansas jackson state

december 6, 2008

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Reed helps bail out Hawks

Jon Goering/KANSAN

Sophomore guard Tyrel Reed tries to come up with a

loose ball that got stuck under him during the frst hal o

the game.

Dunks punctuate career game

Jon Goering/KANSAN

Freshman orward Quintrell Thomas and reshman

orward Markeif Morris work to keep New Mexico States

Troy Gillenwater rom dropping in two in the lane.

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april 27, 2009

BY CASE KEEFER

[email protected]

KANSAS CITY, Mo. As theMassachusetts players rushed onto the floorat the Sprint Center in celebration, SherronCollins lay there face down and motionless.

Collins, a junior guard, didnt want to getup. He had no desire to look at what washappening above him, where the Minutemencongratulated each other with chest bumpsand the scoreboard read Massachusetts 61,Kansas 60.

Collins hurt. Less than 10 seconds ear-lier, he missed a left-handed layup in trafficunderneath the basket that would havegiven Kansas the victory.

I got up there and I thought it was in,Collins said. It just came out.

But it wasnt the final moment. Sophomoreguard Conner Teahan grabbed the reboundon the left block with three seconds remain-ing and three Minutemen surrounded him.

Teahan hesitated. He didnt get a shot off

and the ball was knocked away. As playersfrom both teams scrambled for the ball, thebuzzer sounded.

It had no chance to go in from my per-spective, Self said. At least for me, I didntthink we executed. I didnt think it was goodjudgment on the last play.

kansas umass

DeCember 13, 2009

60 61 kansas temple

DeCember 20, 2009

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Weston White/KANSAN

Sophomore Cole Aldrich sits stunned on the foor with

junior Sherron Collins laying fat on his stomach. Coach Bill

Sel blamed Kansasloss on poor execution.

Jayhawks stunned in KC Kansas cruises past Temple

Ryan McGeeney/KANSAN

Sophomore Cole Aldrich goes up or a shot against

Temple. Aldrich recorded 13 points and 11 rebounds to

bounce back rom a disappointing game against UMass.

BY CASE KEEFER

[email protected]

Sherron Collins and Cole Aldrich had noreason to deny it they both thought aboutthe 61-60 loss to Massachusetts a lot duringthe past week.

When practices were hard, Collins remem-bered how his final shot bounced off the rimwith seconds to go. Aldrich noticed how dis-appointed his teammates were and wonderedhow different it would be if Collins left-hand-ed layup went in.

I wouldnt say rock bottom, Aldrich, asophomore center, said. But we were in thedepths of the waters where we were trying todo everything we could to get back to the sur-face. Things werent going all that well.

Then came a 71-59 victory against Templewhere everything went back to normal forKansas.

Collins smiled and took it all in.It was a bounce-back game, Collins said.

We needed a win.

kansas arizona

DeCember 23, 2009

67 84

Wildcats dominate in Tucson

Photo courtesy of The Daily Wildcat

Arizonas Jordan Hill leaps over KansasCole Aldrich and

Marcus Morris. Hill dominated the Jayhawks with 23 points

and 11 rebounds.

BY CASE KEEFER

[email protected]

TUCSON, Ariz. The wrong guy came out.Kansas coach Bill Self wanted all his starters

on the bench at the end of an 84-67 Arizonarout at the McKale Memorial Center. He sentin senior center Matt Kleinmann to replacethe final starter left on the court, freshmanforward Markieff Morris, as the final secondsticked off the scoreboard.

Only Morris stayed in and freshman for-ward Quintrell Thomas accidently checkedout. Self shook his head.

It was a fitting end to the second half for theJayhawks. Kansas was frustrated, confused andblown out in the final 20 minutes.

I guess I dont have any word for it, soph-omore center Cole Aldrich said. It wasntpretty.

After combining for 17 points and 12rebounds in the first half, the Morris twinsmustered only two points and two reboundscombined in the final 20 minutes.

Arizonas Jordan Hill scored 23 points andyanked down 11 rebounds.

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8/24


apriL 27, 2009

BY CASE KEEFER

[email protected]

Kansas coach Bill Self allowed his playersto return home for three days to celebrateChristmas with their families last week. For ColeAldrich, the break came at the perfect time.

Aldrich went back to Bloomington, Minn.,a day after struggling with only 10 points andfour rebounds in an 84-67 defeat to Arizona. He

didnt let his performance ruin the holiday, butAldrich kept thinking about basketball.

It was a nice time to get away and see somefamiliar faces and hang out with the family andwhatnot, Aldrich, a sophomore center, said.And try to get our minds right again.

Aldrich and Kansas certainly looked refreshedTuesday as they breezed past Albany in a 79-43victory. Aldrich responded from his rough gameagainst Arizona with 20 points, six reboundsand three blocks.

Im happy with the way I played, Aldrichsaid. Mostly, Im happy with the way the whole

team played. We played pretty well tonight.

CASE KEEFER

[email protected]

So this is why Kansas coach Bill Self calledthe season Sherrons Show before it began.

Collins had already starred in most ofKansas 12 games with averages of 17 pointsand five assists. But the junior guard puttogether his best performance of the season and he says his career in a 92-85 victory

against Tennessee.Collins scored a career-high 26 points, tied

a season-high with five rebounds and addednine assists. He stormed the Jayhawks out toa 14-point lead early and held the Volunteersoff when they cut the deficit to seven late.

I didnt even get that much sleep lastnight, Collins said. And I came out moreenergized than Ive ever been in a game.Thats how bad I wanted this game.

Collins tossed and turned in his bed atJayhawker Towers last night. He kept think-ing of the opportunity Kansas (10-3) had to

beat a ranked opponent and re-establish itself

after losing two of its last four games.Collins didnt need to worry at all once the

game began. The result was never in doubt.Collins scored seven points in the openingsix minutes of the game as Kansas glided to a25-9 advantage.

We really didnt have an answer forCollins, Tennessee coach Bruce Pearl said.

Collins did whatever he wanted out there.

BY CASE KEEFER

[email protected]

Kansas was unstoppable early, complacent inthe middle and resilient late.

That was enough to beat Siena 91-84. But notenough to please Kansas coach Bill Self.

We were horrible defensively, Self said.That was a bad defensive team playingtonight.

Self described the performance by both teamsas good offensive basketball. Problem is thatsnot the style Self, a defensive coach, prefers.

Self wants his team to pester opponents

through guarding them tough. He expectsKansas (11-3) to lockdown defensively if it getsan early 20-point lead. And thats exactly whatthe Jayhawks failed to do against the Saints.

For the first time since the Arizona defeattwo weeks ago, Kansas trailed an opponent.Four minutes into the game, Siena led 9-5before Kansas erupted during a six-minutestretch and went on a 25-1 run.

Junior guard Sherron Collins and sopho-more center Cole Aldrich who else?

starred in what appeared to be a first half

runaway. Aldrich grabbed numerous offensiveboards and added three points. Collins hit anopen three-pointer in the middle of the run andrecorded two assists.

I just think we shared the ball really well,we finished, Collins said. And Cole carriedus a lot.

That was a theme throughout. Aldrich fin-ished with a career-high 24 points and also had13 rebounds and four blocks.

The biggest thing about scoring 24 was justhitting the offensive boards hard and trying toget those easy points like I try to do every time,

Aldrich said. And just the way they set it up.Siena started to chip away at the imposing

30-10 Kansas lead immediately after a timeout.By halftime, Siena was only behind 51-38. Withseven minutes remaining in the game, theSaints cut the lead down to 69-65.

The biggest disappointment tonight waswe broke down defensively, Collins said.Transition, we didnt do a good job slowingthem down.

kansas aLbany

december 30, 2008

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ja nua ry 3, 2 009

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Weston White/KANSAN

Sophomore center Cole Aldrich blocks Tennessees

Tyler Smiths layup during the second half.

Sherron Show fusters Vols

kansas siena

ja nua ry 6, 2 009

91 84

Deensive eort rustrates Sel

Weston White/KANSAN

Freshman orward Marcus Morris attempts to block a

shot by a Siena player. Coach Bill Self said his team turned in a

horrible performance on the defensive end.

Aldrich responds to adversity

Tyler Waugh/KANSAN

Kansas and Albany players try to control a loose ball

during the Jayhawks 79-43 victory in Allen Fieldhouse.

Sophomore center Cole Aldrich led Kansas with 20 points.

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april 27, 2009

kansas michigan state

ja nua ry 10, 2009

62 75

BY CASE KEEFER

[email protected]

EAST LANSING, Mich. In basketball,there are runs. And then, there are runaways.

Michigan State ran away from Kansas inits 75-62 victory by outscoring the Jayhawks19-1 during a 10-minute stretch in the firsthalf. Despite Jayhawk rallies in the second halfthat cut the deficit to as low as nine points,they could never recover from trailing 37-18at halftime.

We just tried to keep chipping at it, chip-ping at it and it worked, sophomore centerCole Aldrich said. But that first half it wasjust too much for us.

Kansas coach Bill Self felt confident beforethe game and four minutes into it. Self thoughthis team would hang with No. 8 MichiganState (13-2) and have a chance to win at theend. At the first media timeout, Kansas (11-4)led 11-6.

Reality started to crash as hard as the snow

was falling in the blizzard outside the BreslinCenter. Michigan State sophomore guardKalin Lucas, who finished with a team-high22 points, ignited his team with two three-pointers over the next few minutes.

The rest of the half, they were terrific, Selfsaid. And we played about as poorly as wecould play.

Kansas failed to make a field goal for the next10 minutes. Aldrich botched two alley-oopdunks on passes from junior guard SherronCollins. Sophomore guard Brady Morningstarbricked a three-pointer.

Self was desperate. He resorted to nearlyclearing his bench in the first half. At onepoint, three players who didnt even appearin Kansas last game senior center MattKleinmann, junior guard Tyrone Appleton andfreshman forward Quintrell Thomas wereon the floor together.

When youre playing that poorly, why dont youtry something? Self said. Thats what we tried to

do and obviously, we didnt score points from it.

Self didnt use any gimmicks in the se condhalf. If Kansas wanted came back, it wasgoing to do it with a monster effort fromCollins.

Collins roared out of the locker room withseven points in just more than three minutesto cut the lead to 39-27. Collins scored a game-high 25 points with all but five of them com-ing in the second half with eight assists andeight turnovers.

I think we competed as hard as weve com-peted all year in the second half, Collins said.Weve just got to find a way to do that in thefirst half.

Michigan State prevented Kansas from com-ing any closer than 12 points away in the mid-dle of the second half with a balanced effort.

One thing we can take away from thisgame is the way we competed in the secondhalf, Aldrich said. I thought we came out andplayed really well.

But Kansas could never catch up after the

head start it allowed Michigan State.

Jayhawks stumble against Spartans

Photo courtesy o The State News

Michigan States Raymar Morgan pushes the ball against

KansasTyrel Reed. Reeds 10 points couldnt prevent the

Jayhawks13-point defeat.

kansas kansas state

jan uary 13, 2009

87 71

Taylor erupts or 20 points

in Sunfower ShowdownBY CASE [email protected] coach Bill Self thought Tyshawn

Taylor might have contracted a dreaded caseof the freshman slump. Taylor felt like he hadlost confidence.

The freshman point guard had only scored10 points with two assists and four turnoversin Kansas last two games. Everyone seemed tobe worried about Taylor. Except junior guardSherron Collins.

Collins knew all that talk was nonsense.Collins, who says Taylor is almost like a littlebrother, expected him to break out. Collinswas right. Taylor scored 20 points and had fourrebounds, three assists and two steals to leadKansas to an 87-71 victory against Kansas Statein its Big 12 Conference opener.

I think this game put Tyshawn on the map,Collins said. Everyone is going to have torespect him.

If the question before the game was who will

emerge as Kansas third option behind Collinsand sophomore center Cole Aldrich, Taylorgave a resounding answer.

The Jayhawks jumped out to an 18-0 leadto start the game behind 13 combined pointsfrom Taylor, Collins and Aldrich.

Collins said Self challenged the Jayhawks toget off to a fast start by telling them in practicethat the Wildcats would come out and punkthem early. It was the other way around.

When we hit them with it, they were justsurprised, Collins said. They couldnt counter

it very well.Taylor was the primary reason why Kansas

State never took the lead. Among his brightestmoments was a blocked three-point attemptby Kansas States Fred Brown that led to juniorguard Mario Littles first field goal at Kansas onthe other end.

His aggressiveness paid off as he got to thefree-throw line for 13 shots. Taylor made nineof them.

I just felt like I had to step up, Taylor said.


10/24


apriL 27, 2009

Weston White/KANSAN

Sophomore guard Brady Morningstar dives on the oor or a steal against Texas A&M. Morningstar fnished with two

steals against the Aggies in Kansas73-53 victory on Big Monday.

Weston White/KANSAN

Freshman forward Marcus Morris shootsover Colo-

rados Austin Duault during Kansas73-56 victory.

BY CASE KEEFER

[email protected]

Kansas coach Bill Self and his players love totalk about toughness.

They swear its more than a sports clich butsometimes struggle to define exactly what theymean by the term. Sophomore center ColeAldrich wont have that problem anymore.

If someone asks, Aldrich will referenceKansas 73-53 victory againstTexas A&M. To Aldrich, itembodied everything hemeans by toughness.

We just kept going atit. When balls were on theground, we were diving forthem. We were trying to fightwith them, Aldrich said. Wedid a good job today.

And it started at the begin-ning. The Jayhawks wel-comed their first Big Monday game of the

year by, well, making big plays. Junior guardSherron Collins hit two three-pointers to startthe game as Kansas ran out to an 18-4 lead.

The pummeling continued as junior guardMario Little scored seven points in three min-utes to extend the lead to 30-10. The Jayhawkskept pounding the Aggies with the intensity ofa boxer determined to make his opponent suf-fer for an entire 12 rounds. Texas A&M barelylanded any counter-punches.

We just tried to give them the first hit,Aldrich said. We knew they were going to try

to come out and hit us. We just tried to comeout really strong and I think we did a reallygood job of that.

Little specifically. He recorded 15 pointsand was 6-for-6 from the field in only 14minutes of playing time as he continues torecover from injuries in his lower left leg andleft hand.

Thats basically what Ive been doing allmy life, Little said. Ive just been a scorer.

Im big enough to post some guys, and I canstep out.

A 17-point lead after 20 min-utes didnt satisfy Little. It didntsatisfy any of the Jayhawks.

That was our main focus,Little said. Were just trying to once we get people down keepthem down and not let them backin and make it a game.

As they came out for the sec-ond half, Collins who had 16points, seven assists and three

steals clapped his hands together and ener-gized his teammates.

Allowing a possible comeback was notan option. Aldrich, who finished with 16points and eight rebounds, scored 10 pointsdown low in the second half. Freshman for-ward Marcus Morris, who scored 10 points,knocked down two three-pointers in less thana minute.

It was a complete game, Self said.Probably about as complete as weve been onboth ends.

Jayhawks out-tough Aggies

kansas texas a&M

Ja nua ry 19, 2009

73 53

We just kept going

at it. When balls

were on the ground,we were diving or

them.Cole AldriCh

Spm cnt

kansas coLorado

Jan uar y 1 7, 2 009

73 56

BY CASE KEEFER

[email protected]

BOULDER, Colo. It counts as a roadvictor y.

In the record book, Kansas 73-56 victoryagainst Colorado was its first victory awayfrom home this se ason. Sherron Collins doesnot care about the record book.

It really doesnt feel like a road win,Collins, a junior guard, said. We know wereon the road, but our fans here were great.

Kansas coach Bill Self estimated that 6,000people out of the announced attendance of10,212 were Kansas fans. A number of themheld up signs proclaiming Colorados homecourt as Allen Fieldhouse West.

Other than the Buffalo logo at the cen-ter of the court and the picture of formerColorado great Chauncey Billups on thesouth side of the gym, there was no indica-tion that the Coors Events Center belonged

to Colorado.

Road woes no more

Not even a minute

from Mass Street

Just cross the bridge

Support 55 years of the best localburgers, pizza and beer.


11/24


april 27, 2009

kansas nebraska

ja nua ry 28, 2009

68 62

kansas colorado

ja nua ry 31, 2009

66 61

kansas iowa state

jan uar y 2 4, 2 009

82 67

BY CASE KEEFER

[email protected]

AMES, Iowa Rap blared, Sherron Collinsbellowed and the rest of the Jayhawks cheered.

Kansas locker room on the southwest sideof Hilton Coliseum got a little rowdy afterits 82-67 victory against Iowa State. That wasno surprise. Not after Kansas started Big 12Conference play 4-0 to establish itself as one of

the conferences main contenders.It feels like its coming together, Collins,

a junior guard, said. Were finding out aboutourselves. Were not there yet, but were findingan identity.

Collins is the largest part of that identity. Hetied a career-high with 26 points and addedfive assists and four rebounds in a contestwhere Kansas never trailed.

Arguably, Collins compiled the best gameof his career. Undoubtedly, Collins put on thesecond best performance of the game. Butthe day belonged to Iowa State forward Craig

Brackins.Brackins, a sophomore, scored 42 points and

grabbed 14 rebounds. He was two points awayfrom breaking the Big 12 scoring record.

BY CASE KEEFER

[email protected]

LINCOLN, Neb. Kansas coach Bill Selfsaid it was nothing.

Self thought a loose ball scuffle betweenjunior guard Mario Little and Nebraska guardCookie Miller with nine minutes remaining inKansas 68-62 victory at the Devaney Centerwas meaningless. Junior guard Sherron Collinsdisagreed.

That was the biggest thing, Collins said.When someone tries to punk us and do

something like that, thats when we come outfighting.Self and Collins both have evidence to sup-

port their opinions. Self would say the gamewasnt decided until eight minutes later whenCollins hit four consecutive free throws in

the final 30 seconds to put the game out ofNebraskas reach.

Collins pointed out that it was 44-44 at thetime of the mix-up. From then on, Kansas out-scored Nebraska 13-7.

But what exactly happened? No puncheswere thrown. The referees called no fouls.What triggered the officials and Kansas assis-tant coaches to come out on the floor to sepa-rate the players after Little and Miller tangledfor the ball at the top of the key? The Jayhawkssay it was Miller.

All Im saying is he was talking, Little said.The first half belonged to the Cornhuskers.

They were ahead by as many as 13 points andheld the Jayhawks scoreless for a four-minutestretch in the middle of the half.

I felt very fortunate that we were only downfive at halftime, Self said. They dominatedthe first half.

BY CASE KEEFER

[email protected]

Kansas coach Bill Self has a theory abouttalented teams.

Self says teams with really good players like the Jayhawks can win games in twodifferent ways. Preferably, they play great andcruise to victory. If not, they play poorly andare forced to make something happen latewhen it matters. Theres not much in between.

For the second straight game, Kansas usedthe second option. It resulted in a sluggish66-61 victory against Colorado in AllenFieldhouse.

Individually, we played terrible. It wasntvery good, Self said. Were a lot better basket-ball team than we played today.

For now, the Jayhawks are happy theyescaped the Buffaloes. Kansas extended thenations longest home court winning streakto 36 despite an off-day from junior guard

Sherron Collins.Collins, who finished with 11 points on

4-for-16 shooting, missed seven of his firsteight shots.

It was just one of those games, Collins said.My teammates carried me especially Cole.

Collins outshines Brackins

Weston White/KANSAN

Freshman guard Tyshawn Taylor drives to the basket or

a layup. Taylor put up 10 points in the Jayhawks 82-67 victory

against Iowa State.

Kansas slips past Colorado


Junior guard Sherron Collins makesa grab or the ball

as Colorados Dwight Thorne II looks or an open lane to the

basket during the second hal the game against Colorado in

Allen Fieldhouse.

Scule sparks Jayhawks

Weston White/KANSAN

Freshman guard Tyshawn Taylor fghts to maintain possession o the ball on the foor. Taylor scored six points and

turned the ball over six times in the Jayhawks 68-62 victory against Nebraska.

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12/24


apriL 27, 2009

Collins seizesthe reins

Junior guard goesfrom sixth manto Jayhawksmain man

Photo by Ryan McGeeney/KANSAN

This story appearedin the November 20,2008, issue of TheKansan.


13/24


april 27, 2009

BY CASE KEEFER

[email protected]

Sherron Collins smiles a lot these days.Collins, junior guard, might to try to hide it,

but he cant stop. Te grin that stretches acrossCollins ace keeps reappearing.It comes at all dierent times. When Col-

lins makes a jump shot or drives to the basket,hes not araid to show his joy. He beams whenreecting on last years national champion-ship team. Ask him about his new role on thisyears Kansas team and thats when his smilebecomes as wide as the Sears ower in his na-tive Chicago is tall.

Tats just me, Collins said. Its my per-sonality, and I just li ke to smile.

And who can blame him? Collins has re-

sponsibilities or the Jayhawks that no playerhas possessed in nearly hal a decade. For mosto coach Bill Sel s six-year tenure at Kansas,his teams have dened sharing success. Play-ers took an equal amount o shots. Go-to guyslled the roster.

Not anymore. Not with this years team.Te Jayhawks dont have leaders. Tey have aleader. Everyone on the team knows whom tolook toward when they need instruction. Itsno secret who will control the game during vi-tal possessions. Guess who.

Sherron is the guy with us, Kansas coachBill Sel said. Its his team. Tats how I wantit.

n n n

A picture o Collins smile is immortalizedin every Kansas ans head. It even graced thecover o magazines and newspapers.

Collins has called that moment whenhe launched the basketball into the air at theAlamo Dome in San Antonio at the end oKansas 75-68 national championship victoryagainst Memphis one o the best o his lie.Collins played a key role in the game, scoring

11 points and stealing an in-bounds pass andmaking a three-pointer seconds later to cut theJayhawk decit to six with lessthan two minutes remaining.

In the six months aer thegame, Collins reected ondlyon his memories o the cham-pionship. He watched thelm o the game three times.Perhaps the o-court turmoilduring that span preventedhim rom watching it more.

No less than two weeks aer winning the

championship, Collins underwent arthroscop-ic knee surgery. He played through the painin his le knee all last year knowing it wouldhave to be taken care o right away in the o-season.

While recovering rom surgery and visitinghis ill ather in Chicago, Collins received morebad news. A Douglas Country judge orderedCollins to pay more than $75,000 by deaultto a woman who accused him o assault in aJayhawker owers elevator in June.

I went through a lot o injuries and toughtimes this year, Collins said. I think Ive dealtwith it pretty good and stayed positive.

Te district attorney cleared Collins ocriminal charges later in the summer. Te ac-cuser dropped the civil case two weeks ago.Collins said he couldnt wait to orget about itand start to ocus solely on basketball.

Even that, however, seemed difcult at theend o the summer. Collins showed up or therst day o practice beore Kansas Labor Dayweekend trip to Canada or three exhibitiongames out o shape and overweight.

Sel chastised Collins to the media. Tecoach openly questioned i Collins could be-come the leader the Jayhawks needed.

Collins got the message. He didnt hold itagainst Sel or calling him out. Collins saidhe deserved it. Less than a month later, Selscomments about Collins changed to phrasessuch as model citizen and great leader.

Collins worked hard to regain his standingwith Sel. Now, hes not only at the weight hewants to be 200 pounds but also in themind-set he wants to be.

Im 100 percent ne, Collins said. Noth-ing is bothering me. Im good.

n n n

Collins would rown.I he played poorly in practice or struggled

in a game, Collins ound it easy to get downon himsel during his rst two years at Kansas.But veteran Kansas guards Russell Robinsonand Mario Chalmers would always help himthrough it.

Collins is using their example and applyingit to his situation this season.

Last year, I was the one asking all the ques-tions, Collins said. Now, Im answering themall.

Sel says he has to be tougher on this yearsteam, which is lled with seven newcomers, sothey understand the expectations. Collins has

developed a knack or spotting young playerswho are disappointed aer a rough practice.

Collins always makes sure to pull them asideand tell them its or the better inthe long run. He reminds themo the benets. He points to lastyears National Championshipor reerence.

Tese new guys dont knoweverything yet, Collins said.Sometimes, I have to tell themwhat it be. Tats my job, to make

sure everyone is on the same page.

When Collins himsel makes a bad play ora mistake in practice, he responds the way hewants his teammates to.

He doesnt let it seem like it gets to him,ravis Rele ord, reshman guard, said.

But Collins provides ar more than practicesupport to his teammates. When reshmanorward Markie Morris was nervous beorethe rst game, Collins calmed him down.

He encouraged junior college transer guardyrone Appleton while he recovered rom a

hip exor injury. Collins has become insepara-

ble rom reshman guard yshawn aylor andconsiders him a brother. Collins spends timespecically with aylor helping to improve hisgame.

Hes been through it, aylor said. WhenIm rustrated a little bit, he talks me throughit a lot. He helps me a lot.

n n n

During the rst ew games o the season,Collins looked just as much like an orchestradirector as a point guard on the oor.

His arms ailed in dierent directions to tellhis teammates where to go on the court. Col-lins yelled out instructions. He even ran overto deend sophomore guard yrel Reed aer aFlorida Gul Coast player intentionally ouledReed by pulling him down to the court.

Te two games served as an illustration ohow much Collins teammates mean to him.Its just as clear how much Collins means tothem.

Hes the best point guard in the country,

Brady Morningstar, sophomore guard, said.

Tey all believe in him. Tey all think Col-lins is the one who can lead Kansas to the topo the college basketball world.

Even Sel. Te coach who doubted Collinsleadership ability three months ago now de-scribes the upcoming Kansas season as Sher-rons Show. Sel said Collins could take up to20 shots per game.

I dont know about the 20 shots a gamething, Collins said. But Im glad he gives methe reedom to go get a shot anytime I want toor go get something going.

When Kansas needs Collins to be more ag-

gressive oensively, he says it wont be prob-lem. Collins will take the majority o the shots.Its what Sel wants him to do, which greatlycontrasts with what Kansas teams have donein the past.

Its been a dierent guy every night, Selsaid. Now more than ever, i Sherron doesntplay good, theres a better chance o us notlooking good.

So ar, Sel hasnt had to worry about that.Collins smile tells the whole story.

Weston White/KANSAN

Junior guard Sherron Collins drives over Dayton center Kurt Huelsman or a layup in Kansas60-43 victory on March 22.

Ater two years coming of the bench or coach Bill Sel, Collins became the unquestioned leader o an inexperienced team.

Sherron is the guy

with us. Its his team.

Thats how I want it.

Bill Self

Kansas coach


14/24


apriL 27, 2009

BY CASE KEEFER

[email protected]

WACO, Texas They do everythingtogether.

Freshman forwards Marcus and MarkieffMorris wear the same clothes, eat at the sameplaces and take the same classes. So its onlyappropriate that the Morris twins both com-piled breakout games in a 75-65 Kansas vic-tory against Baylor at the Ferrell Center.

Coach always groups us together and saysif one of us plays good, the other plays goodand if one of us plays bad that means we bothplayed bad, Marcus said. Today, he told uswe played awesome.

Marcus scored 13 points and had sixrebounds. Markieff added nine points, ninerebounds and two blocks. More importantly,they combined for 11 points during a 16-7run at the beginning of the second half thatseparated the Jayhawks from the Bears.

Markieff made the third three-pointer of

his career from the top of the key to cap offthe run and put Kansas ahead 43-33. WhenBaylor coach Scott Drew called a timeoutimmediately afterward, Marcus ran out onthe court to congratulate his brother with achest bump.

When theyre getting hyped, junior guardSherron Collins said, there isnt any limit towhat we can do.

The game was never the same after the twinsenergetic start to the second half. AlthoughBaylor went on a 9-0 run over the next threeminutes to cut the lead to three, it never gotany closer than that to beating Kansas for onlythe second time in 15 all-time games.

The victory improved Kansas to 7-0 in theBig 12 Conference and 18-4 overall, but thiswas about more than that. This was aboutthe Jayhawks playing their best game of theseason.

And it all started the way Kansas coachBill Self wanted it to with defense. TheJayhawks held Baylors leading scorer, senior

guard Curtis Jerrells, to four points on 0-for-7shooting from the field.

The Jayhawks ran to the locker room clap-ping after the first half. Despite trailing formost of the half, Collins tossed in a floater atthe buzzer to give Kansas a 30-28 lead.

All five Jayhawk starters scored at least fourpoints in the opening half. But their mostimpressive accomplishment came on whereelse? the defensive end.

Baylor ranks third in the Big 12 in scoringand prefers to push the pace early. Kansaswouldnt allow it.

The Morris twins were key. Despite Baylorslineup of speedy guards, Marcus and Markieffwere able to hold their own and contribute tothe Jayhawks defensive effort.

Then came the second half where Marcusand Markieff took over. Together.

If hes doing good, Im going to try tomatch his intensity, Markieff said. Ill pickup his slack and hell pick up my slack. Wetalk about that.

kansas bayLor

February 2, 2009

75 65

Morris twins key to victory in Waco


Freshman orward Markief Morris and Baylor guard

Curtis Jerrells exchange words ater a conested play during

the rst hal. Markief and twin brother Marcus combined or

22 points and 15 rebounds.

kansas okLahoma state

February 7, 2009

78 67

BY CASE KEEFER

[email protected]

He had enough choices.Kansas coach Bill Self could have focused

on a number of positives that transpired forhis team in a 78-67 victory against OklahomaState.

Option A: For the first time this season,junior guard Mario Little led the team in scor-ing with 13 points.

I did? Little asked. About time.Option B: Sophomore center Cole Aldrich

recorded a career-high 18 rebounds themost by a Jayhawk since Wayne Simien had 20,four years ago against Kansas State.

Its tough, Aldrich said. It takes a lot out ofyou to get 18 boards.

Option C: Junior guard Sherron Collins heldOklahoma States Byron Eaton to eight pointson 2-of-6 shooting, preventing a repeat of lastseason when the Cowboys beat the Jayhawks61-60 behind Eatons career-high 26 points.

We just werent going to let that happen,Collins said. Especially not in our house.

So, which did Self choose after the vic-tory that improved Kansas to 8-0 in Big 12Conference play and increased its home courtwinning streak to 37 games?

None of the above.We finished the game miserably, Self said.

The last taste I have in my mouth is how wefinished the game.

The Jayhawks couldnt have started muchbetter. They stormed out to a 22-12 lead eight

minutes into the game behind two three-pointers from Collins. Oklahoma State nevertrimmed the deficit below 10.

After Travis Releford threw down an alley-oop from Collins with nine minutes remain-ing, Kansas had its biggest lead at 64-44.

From there, the Cowboys outscored theJayhawks by nine and made four three-point-ers.

It was an efficient win, Self said. Until thelast seven minutes or so.

Sel looks past positives,

ocuses on shortcomings


15/24


april 27, 2009

kansas kansas state

february 14, 2009

85 74

kansas missouri

february 9, 2009

60 62

BY CASE KEEFER

[email protected]

COLUMBIA, Mo. No matter how immi-nent a Jayhawk victory appeared at MizzouArena, Kansas coach Bill Self always had afeeling it would end like this.

Missouris 62-60 victory was far from a sur-prise to him. Self didnt dream of fans clad in

gold and black rushing Norm Stewart Court orpredicted Missouri guard Zaire Taylors game-winning shot, but Kansas turnovers certainlywarned Self it might be coming.

Kansas committed 27 turnovers. Self cred-ited that for causing Kansas (19-5, 8-1) to dropits first Big 12 Conference game of the season.

Obviously, that was a big deal, Self said.We did a pitiful job pitiful job of han-

dling any kind of pressure.It was extra frustrating to the Jayhawks

because of how well they followed the outlineof winning a conference road game.

They took control early, leading by as manyas 14 points in the first half. They weatheredMissouri runs in the middle of the second

half Missouri went on two separate 8-0 runswithout taking the lead or tying the game.

We didnt play defense, junior guardSherron Collins said. Theres not much elseto say.

Sophomore center Cole Aldrich finishedwith 15 rebounds and five blocks, but only eightpoints on eight shots. Self thought Aldrichsoffensive inefficiency wasnt his fault.

Our players did a real good job guardingCole because they didnt get him the ball, Selfsaid. That was frustrating.

It all came down to Missouris final pos-session. Zaire Taylor had the ball on the rightwing against sophomore guard Tyrel Reed.

He shot-faked me and went around me,Reed said.

Taylor released. The shot was good with lessthan two seconds remaining to play.

Morningstar rocketed an in-bounds pass thelength of the floor to Aldrich, who heaved a10-foot buzzer beater. It clanked off the back-

board. No good.Its going to be one of those games that lin-gers for the longest time, Aldrich said.

BY CASE KEEFER

[email protected]

MANHATTAN Cole Aldrich rarelyshows emotion on the court.

But Aldrich, a sophomore center, couldnthelp it after he made a made a shot under thebasket while being fouled near the end of an85-74 victory against Kansas State.

He flexed, yelled and turned around to greetjunior guard Sherron Collins with a chestbump.

It was a big play, Aldrich said. It got meexcited.

The only thing more surprising thanAldrichs outburst was the fact that Kansascoach Bill Self didnt have a similar reaction.Self has complained all season that Kansasdidnt pass the ball to Aldrich when the gamewas on the line.

He couldnt complain Saturday at BramlageColiseum. The Jayhawks relied on their bigman to will them to victory.

Aldrichs three-point play that inspired

his uncharacteristic celebration came in themiddle of a two-minute stretch in which hescored seven points. Before Aldrichs takeover,K-State trailed only 67-65 with 5 minutes and30 seconds remaining. After it, the Wildcatswere never able to cut it to a one-possessiongame again.

Aldrich led the Jayhawks with 21 points,seven rebounds and a block.

We couldnt get the ball into our offensefor a while so we just said, Hey, were going tobring everyone high and throw it over the top,

Self said. And he delivered.At its peak, K-State led 30-14 after DenisClemente blew past freshman guard TravisReleford for a layup.

Amazing that we could come from 16 downto one at halftime, Self said.

Kansas went on a 17-2 run. The height of thestretch came when Collins floated a pass fromhalf court down to Aldrich at the other end.

Aldrich felt a slight push on his back fromfreshman guard Tyshawn Taylor and knew hehad to go get the ball. He leapt up and threw

down a crowd-silencing alley-oop.I knew it was the right pass, Collins said. I

even jumped after I threw it. I was just waitingfor Cole to go get it. Collins finished with 19points and six assists.

Moments after Collins lob, Clementereceived a technical foul for intentionallyelbowing Morningstar in the back.

Collins made both free throws and sopho-more guard Tyrel Reed made a three-pointeron the possession awarded for the penalty.

It turned out to be a pretty big play for us,

Self said. Kansas did everything right in thesecond half.Freshman forward Marcus Morris played

a key role and finished with a career-high 15points with seven rebounds. Most importantly,the Jayhawks went to Aldrich when it mat-tered.

Self said it was probably the best road vic-tory in his tenure at Kansas. Aldrich put itanother way.

The best way to say it is, were maturing as ateam, Aldrich said. Were growing together.

Mizzou comeback burns sloppy Jayhawks

Jon Goering/KANSAN

Sophomore center Cole Aldrich catches a ull-court pass and gets a nal shot up during the closing seconds o the gameagainst Missouri. Aldrichs shot missed and the Jayhawks ell to the Tigers.

Kansas matures in 16-point rally at Bramlage

Weston White/KANSAN

Junior guard Sherron Collins fghtsof two Kansas State

deenders to maintain possession with time running out. The

Jayhawks overcame a 16-point rst-hal decit to deeat the

Wildcats 85-74.


16/24

BY CASE KEEFER

[email protected]

The consensus is that the Jayhawks are

Sherron Collins team.

The consensus might be wrong. For the

second consecutive game, Kansas relied on

sophomore center Cole Aldrich not junior

guard Collins to carry it to victory. Aldrich

scored eight straight points midway through

the second half to separate Kansas from Iowa

State in a 72-55 victory.

Aldrich scored 22 points and added 11

rebounds his 14th double-double of the

season.

Collins had his moments, too. He finished

with 22 points, six assists and two steals.

With 44 combined points, Aldrich and

Collins contributed 60 percent of the Jayhawks

offense.


apriL 27, 2009

62kansas iowa state

February 18, 2009

72 55 kansas nebraska

February 21, 2009

70 53

BY CASE KEEFER

[email protected]

Markieff Morris had one of his better gamesof the season, Sherron Collins barely missed anyshots and Cole Aldrich dominated as usual.

Yet none of them had much to say aboutKansas 70-53 victory against Nebraska.

Collins started to forget about the Nebraska

victory immediately after the buzzer sounded atAllen Fieldhouse.

He could finally think about the Big Mondaymatchup against No. 2 Oklahoma in Norman,Okla.

Were going to be the underdogs and thatsfine with me, Collins said. Thats what evenmotivates us more people think we cant winand cant go out and beat these teams.

Aldrich stakes claim to Hawks Oklahoma on the horizon

Weston White/KANSANSophomore

center Cole

Aldrich slams

down a dunk late

in the second hal

to energize the

Jayhawks. Aldrich

led Kansas with 22

points, shooting a

perect 4-4 rom

the ree-throw line.

Ryan McGeeney/KANSANJunior guard Sher-

ron Collins locks

onto a Nebraska

player during the frst

hal o the Jayhawks

70-53 victory over the

Cornhuskers. The vic-

tory set up a matchup

o the Big 12s top two

teams, Oklahoma and

Kansas.

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17/24


april 27, 2009

kansas OklaHOMa

FebrUarY 23, 2009

87 78

Collins shoots Kansas past No. 3 OklahomaBY CASE KEEFER

[email protected]

NORMAN, Okla. Two blue blurs racedacross the floor at the Lloyd Noble Center asthe buzzer sounded on Kansas 87-78 victoryagainst Oklahoma.

It was junior guard Sherron Collins runningup the sideline smiling and freshman guardTyshawn Taylor sprinting toward the middleof the court. Eventually, the two paths of cel-ebration met.

They shared a quick exchange, telling eachother good game, before Collins added anextra message.

He was like, Man, this is what weve beenwaiting for, Taylor said.

Collins, Taylor and the Jayhawks are donewaiting now. Kansas (23-5, 12-1) i s in sole pos-session of first place in the Big 12 Conferenceand three victories away from winning its fifthstraight Big 12 regular season championship.

The Jayhawks have Collins, Taylor and

sophomore center Cole Aldrich to thank forit. Aldrich might not have had the energy tosprint across Oklahomas gym after the game,but his presence was as important as anyones.

After all, Aldrich recorded a career-high20 rebounds. Taylor set a career-high with 26points. Statisticians dont keep career-highsof big shots, but Collins would have certainlypassed his.

This was a great win, Kansas coach BillSelf said. You dont see this too often fromyoung kids.

But Self didnt want to take too much credit.Heck, he wasnt even the one calling the shotsby the end of the game.

At least three times, Collins waved off theplays Self wanted from the bench with thegame on the line. Self was helpless.

I have no choice, Self said. Hes got theball.

Not that Self would want it any place else.Collins reaffirmed that when he tied a careerhigh with 26 points.

The Jayhawks appeared to be in a positionwhere they could coast to victory with 11 min-utes remaining and their lead at a game-high20. It wasnt that easy.

Twice, the Sooners trimmed the Jayhawklead to three points within the final five min-utes.

Both times Collins refused to run the

Jayhawks offense. He took three-point shotsfrom the top of the key and swished them toensure Oklahoma wouldnt get any closer.

He feels like its his team, Self said. Imreally proud of him. Hes been great.

Collins biggest shot came with 2:30 remain-ing. The crowd had reached deafening levelsafter Oklahoma freshman Willie Warren who had a team-high 23 points swished athree-point shot to make the score 74-71.

The next possession, Collins received apass from Taylor and made one of his own.Oklahoma never got it down to a one-posses-sion game again.

Of course, Kansas may have never been inthat position without Taylor.

Oklahoma opened the game on a 22-8 tear.At that point, Collins gathered the team andtold them not to let this one slip away.

Taylor must have listened. He made threethree-point shots before the end of the halfto finish the first 20 minutes with 16 points.Kansas went into the locker room with a 36-29

lead.I told him it was his game, Self said. He

was great. Tyshawn best game hes had incollege.

Weston White/KANSAN

Junior guard Sherron Collins hits one o his fve

three-pointers against the Sooners. Collins fnished with 26

points, including three crucial three-pointers in the fnal fve

minutes.

kansas MissOUri

MarcH 1, 2009

90 65

Weston White/KANSAN

Kansas exacts sweet revenge on MissouriBY CASE [email protected]

Call it perfection. Call it revenge. Call it astatement.

Really, Kansas 90-65 victory against No. 11Missouri (24-5, 11-3) was a combination of allthree.

Kansas coach Bill Self said the first half, whereNo. 15 Kansas (24-5, 13-1) flew out to a 45-19

lead, was the best he had seen the Jayhawks playsince last years 84-66 Final Four victory againstNorth Carolina. Junior guard Sherron Collinssaid the performance came out of anger of theway Kansas lost to Missouri 62-60 earlier in theseason. Whatever it was, Kansas victory put

it alone in first place in the Big 12 Conferenceand one game away from clinching the regularseason championship.

We expected to win, Collins said. But whoknew the score would be like this?

Actually, freshman guard Tyshawn Taylordid. Taylor hated thinking about last monthsdefeat at Mizzou Arena. He said he knew Kansaswas better than Missouri. He said he knew theJayhawks would prove it Sunday.

I thought the score was going to be like thisthe whole time, Taylor said. I just felt that wewere better than before to be honest with you.

That much was obvious. Kansas began to sep-arate itself from Missouri almost immediately.Two minutes into the game, the Jayhawks trailed4-3. That was the last time Missouri was ahead.

Collins who scored 25 points with sixassists and five rebounds in the game keyedan 18-1 run over the next six minutes with anopen three-point shot and a layup following aviper-like slither through the lane.

Alongside Collins, Taylor was the one initiat-ing the attack. His most significant play came inthe final seconds of the first half.

Collins fired Taylor the ball on the right wingand he connected with a three-point shot tomake the score 45-19. Taylor felt the shot sig-naled that the game was over. But at halftime,Self reminded his team how they managed to leta 14-point halftime lead slip away the first timeagainst the Tigers.

We kind of gave one up in Columbia, sopho-more center Cole Aldrich said. Coach said,Hey, were in the same predicament we were inup in Columbia. We knew they were going tomake runs.

Only the Tigers didnt. They couldnt becauseAldrich made every attempt irrelevant, scoring13 of his 19 points in the second half and alsofinishing with 14 rebounds.

All the Jayhawks were smiling after the game.They knew how important the victory was andhow a number of themes surrounded it.

Freshman forward Marcus Morris hits a shot in ront

o the basket, drawing the oul or a three-throw attempt.

Morris missed the ree throw, fnishing with our points in the

Jayhawks 35-point victory against the Tigers to avenge an

earlier deeat.


18/24


19/24


april 27, 2009

kansas texas tech

march 4, 2009

65 84

kansas texas

march 7, 2009

83 73

BY CASE KEEFER

[email protected]

LUBBOCK, Texas Kansas clinched ashare of the Big 12 Conference regular seasonchampionship Wednesday. No one seemed tonotice.

The Jayhawks received no trophy. Theydidnt celebrate. They didnt feel like the top

team in the Big 12. How could they? Kansassuffered an embarrassing 84-65 defeat to TexasTech, the 11th place team in the Big 12, atUnited Spirit Arena.

Yeah, Im ecstatic, Kansas coach Bill Selfsaid sarcastically. I told our guys, Yeah, con-gratulations, we win our league and get beatby 19.

But by virtue of Missouris 73-64 victoryagainst Oklahoma at Mizzou Arena, Kansas isassured the No. 1 seed in the Big 12 Conferencetournament next week in Oklahoma City.Kansas (25-5, 13-2) can also win the Big 12

outright with a victory against Texas Saturdayat Allen Fieldhouse.

The Jayhawks were not interested in discuss-

ing that. Why would they be? A disastrouseffort from the entire team enabled TexasTech to win only its third Big 12 game of theseason.

Everybody was just kind off of their marktonight, sophomore center Cole Aldrich said.

Junior guard Sherron Collins, who averaged25.5 points in two games last week, went 3-for-19 from the field for 11 points. Aldrich, who

averaged 14 rebounds per game in the last fourgames, recorded only three rebounds to gowith eight points against the Red R aiders.

Sophomore guard Brady Morningstar failedin his assignment of guarding Texas Techs AlanVoskuil, who had a career-high 35 points andnine three-point shots on his senior night. Selfand freshman forward Marcus Morris ruinedJayhawk comeback attempts in the second halfwith technical fouls.

It was Kansas third straight defeat at UnitedSpirit Arena. A building Self has never won inwith the Jayhawks. But their defeats in 2005

and 2007 came down to the final possessions.In addition to Voskuils 9-for-15 perfor-

mance from beyond the arc, Texas Tech went

15-for-27 as a team. Kansas was only able tolimit the long-range onslaught for a nine-minute stretch from the end of the first half tothe middle of the second.

Not coincidentally, thats when Kansas gotback in the game. The Jayhawks trimmedthe lead to 43-41 when Collins converted ona layup in traffic. They got an opportunityto tie the game for the first time on the next

possession.But Aldrich missed a layup and Morningstar,

who went 1-for-7 from the field for threepoints, bricked a three-point attempt. Fromthere, the Jayhawks chances spiraled away.

Kansas cut it to a two-possession game at60-54 with eight minutes remaining. Thatswhen Marcus disagreed with a personal foulcall on him and got a technical. Texas Techmade all four free throws resulting fromMarcus personal and technical fouls.

We had no post presence inside. We hadnobody else making shots. Our whole team,

collectively, played very, very poor all around,Self said. Coaching, execution, everything waspoor. They whipped us in every capacity.

BY CASE KEEFER

[email protected]

Excuse Big 12 Conference CommissionerDan Beebe for not making Kansas Big 12regular season championship sound monu-mental.

Its just that Kansas has now won five straight and seven of the last eight Big 12 titles.So it seems the situation Beebe was in Saturdayhad become inevitable awarding Kansas

with a conference crown.Im proud to present to you yet another Big

12 Conference championship trophy, Beebesaid after Kansas defeated Texas 83-73 to winthe championship outright.

The conference championship was Kansas52nd in its 111 years of basketball. But this onewas different. After losing its entire startingfive and seven of its eight top players from lastyears national championship team, this onewas the most improbable of the bunch.

Even Kansas coach Bill Self, who stressed

all year that expectations would not changebecause of a young roster, shared a secret aboutthis season after the victory.

I will tell you this: The other times Ivebeen here, it would be a poor year if we didntwin the league, Self said. This one, I wouldnthave thought that.

But junior guard Sherron Collins and soph-omore center Cole Aldrich would have. Collinsand Aldrich led the Jayhawks to a 14-2 Big 12record, a game better than last years national

championship team, and topped it off by star-ring against Texas on Saturday.Collins scored 21 points and had seven

assists. Aldrich recorded his 18th double-double of the season with 12 points and 10rebounds.

Still, Self said his player of the game wasBrady Morningstar.

The victory put Kansas alone at the topof the Big 12 standings, finishing one gameahead of Oklahoma (13-3) and two in front ofMissouri (12-4).

Jayhawks whipped and routed in Lubbock


Sophomore guard Brady Morningstar struggles or atwo-point basket during the frst hal against Texas Tech. The

Red Raiders won 84-65, handing the Jayhawks their frst loss

in almost a month.


Senior center Matt Kleinmann collects himsel or a moment beore joining his teammates ater deeating Texas 83-73 and

winning the conerence title Saturday. Kleinmann was a member o fve-straight Big 12 titles.

Kansas takes fth-straight conerence crown


20/24


apriL 27, 2009

kansas bayLor

big 12 tournament, march 12, 2009

64 71

BY CASE KEEFER

[email protected]

OKLAHOMA CIY Sherron Collinswould rise, swish the three-point shot andKansas would somehow win in the nal 30 sec-onds.

Tats what anyone who has ollowed Kan-sas this season thought when Collins, a junior

guard, got an open three-point attempt with 38seconds remaining against Baylor in the quar-ternals o the Big 12 Conerence tournament.Kansas trailed 67-64 at the time. It was the kindo situation Collins had shined in all season.

Only this time, Collins elevated reely romthe right wing and completely missed. Air ball.

It just got away rom me. I elt it at the endwhen I let it go, Collins said. I just lost it. Idont know what happened to it.

Tat summarizes Kansas eelings as a wholeaer it lost in its rst game o the Big 12 tour-nament to ninth-seeded Baylor 71-64 at the

Ford Center. It was only the second t ime in thehistory o the tournament that the top-seededteam lost in the quarternal round. For the rsttime in our years, Kansas wont be the Big 12tournament champion.

And the Jayhawks had no explanation or it.Kansas coach Bill Sel, who said the Jayhawkshad practiced really well all week, was par-ticularly astounded.

Youre the Big 12 champs and youve got achance to come down here and validate yourregular season, Sel said, and to not play withmore energy than we did is just totally inexcus-

able.For the ourth straight game away rom Al-

len Fieldhouse, Kansas ell behind by doubledigits early.

Baylor guard Curtis Jerrells gave the Bearstheir largest lead o 30-13 when he hit a three-pointer at the end o the shot clock with sevenminutes remaining. Clearly, Baylor was playingbetter than its 5-11 Big 12 record. It didnt looklike the No. 9 seed.

Ten again, Brady Morningstar said, wedidnt look like the No. 1 seed.

Morningstar blamed the deeat on himsel

multiple times or his deensive efort againstBaylors LaceDarius Dunn, who scored 24points and made six three-pointers.

Dunn made some key plays late in the game,but his most devastating stretch came when hescored 11 points in the opening nine minuteso the rst hal.

I eel like I let them get of to a good startand let him get him of to a good start, Morn-ingstar said. Which hurt our team and eventu-ally led us to lose the game.

Even when the Jayhawks were down by 17,however, there was no reason or panic. Kan-sas had recovered rom similar double-digitdecits in road games against Kansas State andOklahoma.

Tis one appeared to be on the same path.Te Jayhawks trailed only 37-33 at halime.Tey went ahead 58-53 with less than nineminutes remaining when reshman orward

Marcus Morris made a shot under the basket.Ten, the unexplainable part o the game

started. Kansas went the next ve and a halminutes without scoring any points, and Baylorregained the lead at 65-58.

We let it slip away, Collins said. I dontthink I led the team as well as I should have.

He still had a number o chances or re-demption in the nal minutes. Collins made athree-point shot to cut the lead to 65-64 with2:50 remaining.

But he ollowed it by missing layups on thenext two possessions. Ten the air ball.

Te bottom line is our team is built aroundSherron and Cole, Sel said. We need thosetwo guys to perorm.

Collins nished with a team-high 16 pointsand six assists, but shot 6-or-20 rom the eld.Sophomore center Cole Aldrich grabbed 14 re-bounds, but had only eight points.

I dont know what went wrong, juniorguard Mario Little said. We just stopped play-ing, I guess.

One and done: Bears bounce Jayhawks

Weston White/KANSAN

A dejected Kansas bench looks on as Baylor regains the lead against Kansas late during the second hal. The Jayhawks71-64

deeat likely lost them a chance to play the opening round o the NCAA tournament in Kansas City, Mo.

Weston White/KANSAN

Junior guard Mario Little gets trapped along the base-

line ater picking up his dribble during the frst hal against

Baylor. Baylor orced 11 Kansas turnovers.

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21/24


april 27, 2009

BY CASE KEEFER

[email protected]

MINNEAPOLIS A one-minute stretchin the middle of the second half of Kansas84-74 victory against North Dakota State inthe opening round of the NCAA Tournamentillustrated the whole game.

Sherron Collins made a 15-foot jump shoton one end of the floor. Before most fans evenhad a chance to look up, North Dakota StatesBen Woodside answered with a layup. Tenseconds later, Collins made a layup after flyingdown the court. Then, Woodside converted ona three-point play.

Forget Jayhawks against Bison. Friday at theMetrodome featured Collins versus Woodside.

I wasnt thinking of it like that, Collins, ajunior guard, said. But it definitely looked likeit and felt like it at times.

Collins finished with a career-high 32 pointson 12-for-26 shooting. Woodside, a senior,recorded 37 points on 13-for-23 shooting. Soyes, Woodside probably won the individualmatchup.

But Woodside didnt have Cole Aldrich.

Aldrichs 23 points and 13 rebounds were thedifference for the Jayhawks.

I thought Cole and Sherron were offen-sively Im not going to say defensively asgood as either one of them had been all year,Kansas coach Bill Self said.

Collins and Aldrich, a sophomore center,dominated in spurts. Collins opened the gamewith 13 points in seven minutes to give Kansasan 18-17 lead it never relinquished.

North Dakota State cut it to a three-pointgame three times in the second half. On two ofthose occasions, Aldrich prevented the Bisonfrom getting any closer with dunks.

Those moments pleased Self the most. Hewarned the Jayhawks at halftime that the Bisonwould make runs that needed to be weathered.Mission accomplished.

Im leaving out of here thinking we playedgood, Self said. One thing that was impressiveto me was how much poise we showed whenthe game got tight.

North Dakota State appeared to have one

last gasp with two minutes remaining whenWoodside hit a three-point shot to make thescore 73-67. The Bison played tight defense on

the other end and forced Collins into a wildlayup attempt that ricocheted off the glass.

But Aldrich caught it and slammed it downfor a putback dunk while being fouled. Heconverted on the free throw to make it a three-point play. Score: 76-67. Game: Ended.

After the highlight-worthy play, Aldrichhummed the Sportscenter theme song intoCollins ear.

It was really fun, Aldrich said. It was one

of those things where the ball came off at theright place and I took it and threw it in.

Woodside scored two more points beforethe buzzer sounded. Although Woodsides finalbasket meant little, it appropriately showed thatKansas found no way to slow him all day.

Self gave five different players a chance toguard Woodside. None of them had prolongedsuccess. Collins offense was the only way tocombat Woodside.

At one point, it seemed like there wasntanybody else on the court but them two,junior guard Tyrone Appleton said.

Woodside wound up with more points, butCollins advanced. Thats the benefit of havingAldrich as a teammate.

Collins, Jayhawks withstand Bison barrage

Aldrichs triple-double spursKansas into Sweet Sixteen

BY CASE KEEFER

[email protected]

MINNEAPOLIS Five national champion-ships. Fifty-two conference titles. Forty-onestraight home victories.

And now, one official triple-double. ColeAldrich accomplished something nearly impos-sible Sunday at the Metrodome: He became thefirst player in Kansas storied basketball historyto reach a milestone.

Aldrich, a sophomore center, scored 13points with 20 rebounds and 10 blocks in a60-43 second round NCAA Tournament vic-tory against Dayton.

This will go down, because of the stage, asone of the best individual performances wevehad, Kansas coach Bill Self said.

At the beginning of the season, a SweetSixteen berth for the Jayhawks would have

sounded even more improbable than anAldrich triple-double.

But Aldrichs speedy maturation process hasallowed the Jayhawks to exceed expectations.Therefore, its fitting that Aldrich in hishometown, nonetheless was the centerpieceof the Jayhawks triumph against the Flyers.

I couldnt write it any better, Aldrich said.You couldnt have a Hollywood writer write it

any better.Aldrich didnt find out about his historic

stats until the end of the game when seniorcenter Matt Kleinmann checked in for him.The Kansas fans began chanting triple-dou-ble and a few of Aldrichs teammates cameup to him.

I think you got it, they said.Got what? Aldrich asked.A triple-double, they said.Really? Aldrich said. Thats pretty sweet.

Weston White/KANSAN

Junior guard Sherron Collins pounds his chest ater hit-ting a basket. Collins led Kansas past North Dakota State with

32 points and 8 assists in the Jayhawks frst-round victory.

kansas north dakota state

nCaa tournament, marCh 20, 2009

84 74

kansas dayton

nCaa tournament, marCh 22, 2009

60 43

Weston White/KANSAN

Sophomore center Cole Aldrich smacks away a shot or one o his 10 blocks during Kansas60-43 victory Sunday against

Dayton. Aldrich was the frst player since Shaquille ONeal on March 19th, 1992, to record a triple-double with blocks in the

NCAA tournament.


22/24


apriL 27, 2009

kansas michigan state

ncaa tOUrnament, march 27, 2009

62 67

Big two not enough against Spartans

BY CASE KEEFER

[email protected]

INDIANAPOLIS It had to end like this.Not necessarily in the Sweet Sixteen at LucasOil Stadium in a 67-62 defeat to MichiganState. But from the beginning of the year, itwas clear that Kansas wouldgo as far as Sherron Collinscould take it.

In the end, Collins willedthe Jayhawks to a 65-60 leadwith just more than threeminutes remaining againstthe Spartans. And no furtherthan that.

From there, Collins, ajunior guard, committed a keyturnover, made a key foul andmissed a key free throw. Then, it was over.

I can take the loss or whatever, Collinssaid. I take it on my shoulders.

But its not that simple. Because withoutCollins, the Jayhawks would have never stooda chance against the Spartans. He played agame-high 38 minutes, scored a game-high 20points and led Kansas out to a 32-19 lead inthe first half.

No, the blame could go around to everyoneafter the loss. Collins teammates knew it.

Everybody that played in the game didthings that if they think back, they couldbe like, Well, this cost usthis game, freshman guardTyshawn Taylor said.

Taylor was part of one ofthe major problems. Beforethe Sweet Sixteen, Kansascoach Bill Self talked abouthow players other than Collinsand sophomore center ColeAldrich needed to contributemore than they had in thefirst two rounds of the NCAAtournament.

Didnt happen again. Collins and Aldrich who finished with 17 points, 14 rebounds,four assists and four blocks accounted for60 percent of Kansas offense.

Sherron and I will do anything for us towin, Aldrich said. Sometimes, thats what itcomes down to.

Collins, specifically, carried the burden. Hegot a one-minute break before checking back

into the game with 6:45 remaining and thescore tied at 51.

Three minutes later, Collins had helped the

Jayhawks regain the lead at 60-55 with twobaskets off of nifty drives through numerousSpartan defenders. Perhaps one more field goalwould have clinched a Jayhawk victory andforced the Spartans into desperation.

Basketball this time of yearcomes down to one or two posses-sions, Self said. And thats cer-tainly what happened tonight.

Michigan State won those pos-sessions. The Spartans recoveredfrom their five-point deficit andtied the game at 60 in less thantwo minutes after point guardKalin Lucas drove the lane to freeRaymar Morgan for a dunk.

Collins raced to the basket onthe other end, but got careless with the balland lost it when attempting a pass to Aldrich.Turnovers plagued the Jayhawks all night.Collins had six of Kansas 19.

The biggest thing, Self said, was we turnedthe ball over.

Taylor said the biggest thing was that Kansasjust couldnt get a stop with the game on theline. Michigan States possession after Collinsturnover was the best example.

Lucas, who finished with 18 points and sevenassists, blew past Collins and rose for a 10-foot

jump shot. Collins fouled himand the shot still swished. Afterthe three-point play, MichiganState led 63-60.

I got an and-one called onme, Collins said, shaking hishead. It was a big play.

After Collins two uncharacter-istic gaffes, he still received a finalshot at redemption: a free throw.

With 19 seconds remaining

and Kansas trailing 65-62, Collinsgot to the line for a one-and-one. Collins, whoearlier in the season set the Kansas record bymaking 35 straight free throws, shorted thefirst attempt and Michigan State corralled therebound. The Spartans had knocked off thedefending national champions.

I think we were relying too much onSherron to make plays for us, Taylor said.

That was the story all year. Most of the time,it worked. This time, it failed.

Weston White/KANSAN

Sophomore center Cole Aldrich puts his arm around junior guard Sherron Collins as they walk to shake hands wi

2009 04 27 basketball rewind 09

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