One of the greatest streaks in sports.
@SethDavisHoops
2 well Coached teams tonight in Lawrence. The PHOG and Bill Self’s team a picture of consistency w/10 straight BIG12 Titles. Tremendous run!
@TimBrando
Students start Rock Chalk chant with :24 left and KU up six. Bill Self says ‘Not Yet!’ Chant stops.
@JMarchiony
Self flashes a 10 on the way out to a huge roar.
@joshklingler
Bill Self once again has more Big 12 titles (10) than home losses (9)
@AndrewCurtis24
Roy Williams won an amazing 9 Big Eight/12 titles in 15 KU seasons. Bill Self has won 10 in 11 years.
@BlairKerkhoff
How remarkable is Kansas’ 10 straight Big 12 titles? No other college hoops program has a current league title streak longer than 3.
@JeffEisenberg
I call it my ‘net worth’ question. If you had to put your net worth on one team to win it all, which would u choose? Could do worse than KU.
@SethDavisHoops
I’m not sure if I’d have the guts to pass on Andrew Wiggins at No. 1. So much talent. So much potential. Plays so effortlessly.
@ChrisMannixSI
Visit 10straight.com (Interactive look-back at each season’s story lines, roster, etc)
http://10straight.com
H/T @phoggg
Kansas men's basketball senior Niko Roberts and sophomore Perry Ellis have been named to the Academic All-Big 12 Team, announced by the league office Wednesday. Both Jayhawks were selected to the academic all-conference second team.
Kansas leads the Big 12 with 50 all-time Academic All-Big 12 honorees since the inception of the conference in 1996-97. Texas is second with 42. KU has 37 Academic All-Big 12 First Team honorees and 13 second-team selections.
In the Bill Self era, Kansas has had 27 student-athletes named Academic All-Big 12, which is best in the Big 12 during his 11 seasons at KU.
Roberts is a three-time member of both the Athletic Director and Big 12 Commissioner's Honor Roll member. Ellis, also a three-time AD and Big 12 Commissioner's Honor Roll member, was named to the inaugural Academic All-Big 12 Rookie Team in 2013.
First team members consist of those student-athletes who have maintained a 3.20 or better GPA while the second team selections hold a 3.00 to 3.19 GPA.
To qualify, student-athletes must maintain a 3.00 GPA or higher either cumulative or the two previous semesters and must have participated in 60 percent of their team's scheduled contests. Senior student-athletes who have participated for a minimum of two years and meet all the criteria except percent of participation are also eligible.
KUAD
I believe you and I will live out our days on the terra firma, enjoying our lives into the twilight, and will not see duplicated what Bill Self has just done. I don't think there will be a coach in a major college basketball conference who ticks off 10 consecutive regular-season championships in the next 60 years or so. I mean, it had never happened under one man until now, so why would it happen again so soon? It's amazing to consider.
How about this: From the other five major conferences alone, 31 coaches over the past nine seasons have one at least one regular-season title. The Big 12 has had Bill Self. To be fair, Self has shared the regular-season crown with Texas' Rick Barnes twice and Bruce Weber once. But still. A 31-to-1 difference. And we'll inevitably include this year's champions as well. At the current pace, if you want to add the AAC into it, the number will jump to 34 coaches over 10 years from the other major conferences vs. Self's fiefdom.
I've listed the history of the power leagues and who did what when, but first:
Big 12 winning percentage of House of Self since 2004-05: .846. Composite major-conference winning percentage for all coaches not named Bill Self who won a regular season title since 2004-05: .824.
Average NCAA tournament seed for Bill Self at Kansas since 2004-05: 1.8. Average composite NCAA tournament seed for all other major-conference regular season champions since 2004-05: 2.6.
…UCLA holds the record -- under multiple coaches -- for the most league titles in a row, with 13. It seems improable -- yet not far-fetched -- that Self could match that. Any coach would take winning a national title over all other basketball achievements, but Self should be as proud of this streak (graduating players notwithstanding) over anything else he's ever done as a coach.
CBS Norlander
Under normal circumstances, we might spend this space reminding you how much the RPI absolutely adores Kansas' resume this season, how eye-popping the nitty-gritty team sheet is. The No. 1 RPI, SOS and noncon SOS. The 18 (!) games played against the RPI top 50, the 11 against the RPI top 25. It's a crazy, crazy profile, and it doesn't get anywhere close to the sheer awe-inducing insanity of Kansas coach Bill Self's latest accomplishment. On Monday night, Self's Jayhawks clinched a share of their 10th straight Big 12 title. The facts of this streak are mind-boggling; there are no ready comparisons to make. It was silly enough two years ago, when the Jayhawks' streak stood at eight. Now all we can do is laugh and tip our caps in the appropriate direction.
ESPN Bubble Watch for the Big 12
It is among the most impressive streaks in college basketball history. But this might be even more astounding: Three times within the streak, Kansas has returned zero starters from the previous year’s team and nevertheless claimed at least a share of a league championship (2005-06, 2008-09 and 2013-14).
“It’s something you know coming in,” Jayhawks freshman guard Wayne Selden said Monday night. “That’s the standard.”
Still, it’s a high standard to uphold while overhauling an entire starting lineup. These are the three seasons that, in theory, presented the greatest threat to the streak. Here’s a look at how they rank, in terms of how impressively Kansas avoided surrendering its crown:
SI: Which of Bill Self’s Big 12 titles is most impressive?
3. Kansas
Even though Kansas destroyed Texas and played well in a win over Oklahoma this week, I’m hesitant to get too excited since sustaining these kinds of efforts has been a problem for the Jayhawks all season. What I’m not at all hesitant to get excited about, though, is Kansas’s 10th consecutive Big 12 championship, which it clinched with Monday’s win over Oklahoma. That makes Bill Self the only coach in college basketball history to win a decade’s worth of consecutive conference championships in a major conference. If you’re going back over that last sentence to try to find a bunch of qualifiers, you’re wasting your time. Literally no one else in the history of the sport — including John Wooden, Adolph Rupp, Knight, Krzyzewski, and Travis Ford — have won 10 straight major conference titles as head coach. That’s insane.
To further blow your mind, here is a list to remind you of the state of the world when Kansas started its streak on March 2, 2005:
• Ricardo Patton, Wayne Morgan, Jim Wooldridge, Quin Snyder, Barry Collier, Kelvin Sampson, Billy Gillispie, Eddie Sutton, and Bob Knight were all coaching in the Big 12.3
• Brad Pitt was married to Jennifer Aniston. • Britney Spears was married to Kevin Federline.
• Dan Rather was the anchor of CBS Evening News. • Peter Jennings was the anchor of World News Tonight.
• Tom Cruise hadn’t yet jumped on Oprah’s couch. • Zero episodes of Deal or No Deal had aired.
• Zero episodes of The Colbert Report had aired. • Zero episodes of The Office had aired.
• E! still aired The Howard Stern Show. • Nobody knew who Deep Throat was.
• Nobody knew who Carrie Underwood was. • Nobody knew who Mike Jones was.4
• Only one Saw movie (out of an eventual seven) had been released.
• Zero chapters of R. Kelly’s Trapped in the Closet (out of an eventual 2,398) had been released.
• Jimmie Johnson had zero NASCAR championships.
• The Chicago Cubs hadn’t won a World Series since 1908.
If you still aren’t impressed, consider this: In the last 10 seasons, Syracuse, Duke, Kentucky, and UConn have combined to win nine conference championships. Every Kansas fan could put a statue of Bill Self in their front yard and I’d still think they’re taking him for granted.
Grantland Titus’s Top 12
H/T @stinkybulldog
There are some things you’d like to have back. The 9-iron into the parking lot, the pass into the fifth row, the $10 bet on the Broncos … they all qualify.
So does a 2003 column suggesting Bill Self should stay at the University of Illinois, that for all the tradition and resources Kansas could offer, he would be better served remaining in Champaign.
Ill-conceived at the time, it seems absurd now. Monday night, Kansas won its 10th straight Big 12 Conference championship under Self, clinching a title share that could become outright with a win Saturday at Oklahoma State.
The Jayhawks also have a national championship (2008) and a runner-up finish (2012) during Self’s tenure. So yes, he made the right move.
The 2003 pitch for him to stay — off-target as it was — hinged on what Self had built in three years at Illinois. The 78-24 record, two Big Ten Conference titles and three NCAA Tournament appearances were only part of it.
The real selling point was how he had turned early success with Lon Kruger’s holdovers into a recruiting bonanza. The future looked brighter than the midday sun.
“Illinois can never match Kansas’ past,” the column read. “But it can be what Kansas is in the present, a perennial power capable of winning it all.”
There was mention of the young talent on the 25-7 team of 2002-03: sophomores Roger Powell and Luther Head and freshmen starters Dee Brown, Deron Williams and James Augustine.
Two years later, with Self in Lawrence and Bruce Weber in Champaign, that was the starting five for Illinois’ 2005 national runner-up team.
Would Self have won it all? No way to know.
But by 2008, Kansas was cutting down the nets at The Final Four and Illinois was going 16-19.
Weber sustained only modest success after that, and now, two years into the John Groce era, the program is still struggling to find its way.
Meanwhile, Self has more consecutive Big 12 titles than home losses (9) at Kansas, a cold, hard fact that makes you wonder.
What if he had stayed?
What if he had listened to Kansas’ offer of more money and an office on Naismith Drive and said, “I’m flattered, but I have a good thing going at Illinois. I want to see how far we can take it.”
Where would Illinois be now?
Maybe the Illini would be stringing together Big Ten titles, odd as that sounds. Illinois has not won the regular-season championship since 2005, and in the past three years has tied for ninth (2012), tied for seventh (2013) and is tied for 11th this season.
Winning 10 straight Big Ten titles is difficult to fathom, with or without Self. With him, Illinois at least would have been in contention every year.
Illini fans would take that, though many have never forgiven Self for leaving. Then-athletic director Ron Guenther fanned those flames, saying at the time:
“I think when we talked three years ago, Bill felt this was a stop that he could live with a long time. I think what’s disappointing is when you make a commitment to get the job done, the right thing was for him to stay. You come in, you do the job, you finish the job, and then you move on.”
Self would have been a fool to stay. It was foolish to suggest he should.
Guilty as charged.
But what if he had?
Daily Pantagraph
A lot of Kansas fans recognize the tournament as a crapshoot, and the title as a delicious dollop of gravy atop a great season. The real sign of a school's basketball prowess—and the strength of its competitive culture—is this streak of conference titles.
"It is much more significant an achievement than winning the tournament," says Kansas basketball booster Dana Anderson. "It requires consistency over an extended period of time."
"The format of March Madness is not designed to find the best team," said David Booth, another prominent booster. "I think the 10 conference championships are more meaningful. It's one of the most amazing things I've ever experienced."
Even the grandson of Phog Allen, the winningest Jayhawks coach of all time, says the streak may have elevated the current Kansas coach, Bill Self, above the late legend whose statue stands outside the arena. "It may be the greatest accomplishment by any KU coach when you think about it," Mark Allen, Phog's grandson.
All of these superlatives are even more impressive when you consider that Kansas does know a thing or two about winning basketball titles. It owns three NCAA tournament titles, the last one coming in 2008.
…Ten consecutive titles in a major conference is something that no other coach in the history of college basketball can claim, according to NCAA records. Adolph Rupp came the closest when Kentucky won nine titles between 1944 and 1952. John Wooden retired in the middle of UCLA's unfathomable stretch of 13 straight conference titles in the 1960s and 1970s.
More recently, Gonzaga coach Mark Few won the West Coast Conference every year between 2001 and 2011, but that league is considered a mid-major and never sent more than two other teams to the NCAA tournament.
By contrast, the modern Big 12 ranks behind only the Big Ten Conference since 2008, according to statistics compiled by kenpom.com. This season, the Big 12 is loaded with seven potential NCAA tournament teams.
Before Saturday's game here in Allen Fieldhouse, a scoreboard video opened with the declaration that "the conference championship has made its home here" and ended with a player squeezing his hands together to flash nine rings, which can now be upped now to 10.
Wall St Journal
Before we drill into this one, I want to congratulate the Kansas Jayhawks on 10 straight league championships. KU fans should count their lucky stars every day because of Bill Self.
I'm still of the opinion the Big XII is overvalued.
Every TV mouthpiece from Brent Musberger to those local or regional announcers can be nauseating in their praise of the Big XII. They ramble tirelessly on how superior the conference is when compared to other leagues. I heard one guy the other day say the Big XII could get eight teams in the NCAA tournament. I nearly threw up.
It’s amazing what you hear on a Saturday just flipping from game to game. Another announcer started trashing the SEC and at the same time was espousing on the virtues of the ACC.
There was no mention of Tennessee, a middle-of-the-pack SEC team, steamrolling Virginia by 35. Virginia is going to win the ACC over the likes of Syracuse, Duke, and North Carolina and they got run out of the gym by a down-trodden SEC team.
Don't get me wrong, the Big XII is a good conference. It’s not a great conference.
You'll never convince me one team can win the championship 10 years in a row if it played in the best conference in America.
It’s never happened in the Big 10 or the ACC or the old Big East or the SEC.
And by the way, the SEC has won five national basketball championships in the last 15 years. The Big XII has one, and you can thank Kansas for that.
That’s my whole point here. The Jayhawks own the Big XII. Kansas is one of the best brands in college basketball. But make no mistake, this run of 10 straight championships never, never happened at Mt. Oread without Bill Self.
KSHB Jack Harry
JoJo, before the lion-killing days! Shown on ESPN during KU vs OU
He barely registered on the stat sheet, but I thought this was Brannen Greene's best game since Kansas State. The on-again-off-again reserve forward brought great energy to the floor during the 9 minutes he was out there, which was especially noticeable on the offensive glass, where he stole two extra possessions for the Jayhawks and gave the offense a lift on a night when the home fans were grumbling and the energy was lacking. Greene missed both shots he attempted and made just 1-of-2 free throw tries, but his contributions in the other aspects of his game — offensive rebounding, pushing the pace in transition, not turning the ball over once — showed not only his continued growth but also why Self continues to look his way even after off nights or disappointing days. By now it's clear that Greene is not the kind of player who will win a game by himself (at least not yet). But when he figures out how to do more good things than bad things during the limited time he's out there, it usually impacts the game and the outcome a great deal.
We've reached that time of the year where freshmen are no longer freshmen and youth is no longer an excuse for mistakes, miscues, lapses or any other slip ups. Few players embody that the way KU freshman Wayne Selden does. Selden has been a solid but understated leader in his own right throughout the 2013-14 season, but it has become clear lately that he has no problem taking that leadership to the next level. On Monday, Selden barked at fellow-freshman Conner Frankamp when he elected not to shoot the ball with 6:30 to play in the first half and KU up by two. Not pulling the trigger resulted in a three-second call on KU during a time when the Jayhawks were trying to gain some separation. Credit Frankamp for not crying about it and Selden for having the ability to say something when something needed to be said. A couple of possessions later Selden put his money where his mouth was by burying a three-pointer from the same spot to pull KU within 29-28 with 4:30 to play in the first half. Self said after the game that Selden could become one of the better leaders KU has had here. The reason? “He gets it,” Self said. And he's getting it a little more every time out.
LJW Tait: The Day After
Sometimes, he’ll stumble upon the critical shrapnel on Twitter. Sometimes he’ll get a text message or call from his high school coach, Jason Smith of Brewster Academy in New Hampshire.
“Kansas fans,” Tharpe recalls Smith saying. “They try to kill you, Naa.”
Maybe it’s a bad turnover at an inopportune time. Maybe it’s a defensive breakdown. But usually — well, almost always — it’s his shot-selection. Last season, while serving as Kansas’ backup point guard, Tharpe had a tendency to fire up an off-balance jumper early in possessions. He was the seventh-leading scorer on a KU team that basically played seven players. But his shot selection often suggested the confidence of Ray Allen.
So Kansas fans would joke about the #NaadirTharpeHeatCheck, or they would question a step-back 18-footer with 29 seconds left on the shot clock, and Tharpe would just try to roll with it.
“I just laugh at it,” Tharpe says.
The truth is, Tharpe says, he doesn’t know how to play any other way. When he was a point guard at Brewster, one of the top prep schools in the country, the roster was loaded with future pros. He played alongside Thomas Robinson and Syracuse standout C.J. Fair. Iowa State senior star Melvin Ejim came off the bench. And yet, Tharpe was never shy about taking the big shot.
This goes back a ways, Tharpe says. When he was growing up in Worcester, Mass., Tharpe’s older brother and mentor, Tishaun Jenkins, used to pound the following point home.
“If you can’t take making that shot and everybody loving you — and you can’t take missing a shot and everybody hating you — you shouldn’t be playing this game.”
KC Star
The league championship makes Kansas the fifth team in NCAA history to win 10 or more consecutive conference championships (UCLA-13, 1967-79) (Gonzaga-11, 2001-11) (Connecticut-10, 1951-60) (UNLV-10, 1983-92).
"It means we've had a lot of good players come through here," Self said. "It's been a great run. You don't win unless you have better guys than the other guys and we've had better guys. I'm thrilled to death and I'm happy a bunch of young kids are growing up. We are finding different ways to win and we are getting a little bit tougher, but we are not near as tough as we need to be -- but we have become mentally tough down the stretch.
"It has been a good year, when you win the league it's a good year. Now we need to go make it a great or special year."
The Jayhawks didn't do much celebrating on the court Monday night. Self said he'd rather wait until his team has the outright title. They travel to Oklahoma State on Saturday.
"We want to go in and win at Stillwater on Saturday. There would be nothing better for us than to go down there and do something special in a juiced building on someone else's court," he said. "Then we want to back it up and have a great senior night. Then we want to go and play well at West Virginia and have as much momentum as we can going into the Big 12 Tournament."
Salina Journal
What are your thoughts on this season’s Jayhawks?
My thoughts on this year's Jayhawks are exactly what they were when I first saw them play during KUbball camp last summer. The most talented, athletic team I have ever seen on the college level. They have the ability to go down in history, even with the number of losses they have. They also, because of their average age, have the ability to not realize potential that their talent would otherwise allow. I wish them luck and the mental fortitude to capitalize on their talent and hard work as the post season drama unfolds.
Q&A with Scott Pollard
SI Luke Winn Power Rankings: KU #7
LJW image
2/27/14, 9:36 AM
Congratulations to @22wiggins on being announced as @TheBBPA 2014 Harry Jerome Athletics Award recipient!
@CanBball
Harry Jerome Awards
VIDEO Jason KIng: Joel Embiid Best Kansas Hoops Prospect since Danny Manning
Self spoke about freshman Andrew Wiggins on Doug Gottlieb’s radio show on CBS Sports Radio. “His consistency and his athletic ability are at an all-time high. I’ve seen more and more every day why NBA people have thought so highly of him. He’s just a couple years away, in my opinion, from being one of the premier players in the world — on any level,” Self said.
LJW
Before he was on the cover of Sports Illustrated, before he was anointed as the Second Coming, before he was built up and torn down more times than a Vegas casino, Andrew Wiggins was Little Bro.
To the Wichita State basketball team, he was brother Nick's right-hand man (and vice versa), the guy who turned up and played "NBA 2K" and "Call of Duty" until his eyelids gave up the fight. That dude.
"He's a big 'Call of Duty' (guy)," Nick Wiggins, senior reserve guard with the No. 2 Wichita State Shockers, says of little brother Andrew, the freshman wing sensation with the No. 8 Kansas Jayhawks. "He will stay up and play 'Call of Duty' by himself.
"When he comes, he kind of kicks it with us. He's just a little kid. Still 18-19 (years old)."
No star treatment. No pretense. No shock. No awe.
"They (The Shockers) don't look at him like that," Nick says of Andrew, who'll be an NBA lottery pick in a few months, a ray of hope for basketball-smelly towns such as Orlando, Philly and Boston. "He's just Little Bro."
Up all night. Again. Doing Little Bro things. Again.
"He's a cool dude," Shockers guard Tekele Cotton says of Andrew. "He's very humble. And he's a young kid and he's one of the best in college basketball, obviously; he's a great player. I know him as a friend. Me and Nick are real close, and Andrew, he's cool."
…"Nick (Wiggins and the Shockers), they're really good dudes," says Kansas forward Perry Ellis, one of two Wichita natives in the Jayhawks' rotation. "And I talk to them, sometimes, when I get a chance."
"I wouldn't say that we're buddy-buddy," Nick Wiggins says. "But we're cool.
"If I see them out somewhere, I will say, 'What's up?' Just out of (the) respect I have for those guys over there."
Fox Sports Keeler: Rivals and friends, Jayhawks and Shockers
LJW: What if Andrew Wiggins never came to Kansas?
Vote for Wiggs for the Wooden Award
The second grade BGC Tigers were beyond excited, when @LandenLucas33 came to visit today! #RockChalk @MsJordanNicole
2/26/14, 12:28 PM
Man all the nice things you fans come up and say makes it easy to keep working to get better each day !! Love y'all
@LandenLucas33
Nobody has yet reserved a spot on the Hollywood Walk of Fame for budding actor Justin Wesley.
Yet the Kansas University senior basketball power forward from Fort Worth, Texas, has certainly received local acclaim — from the 10,000 or so individuals who attended showings of the movie “Jayhawkers” Feb. 14-16 in the Lied Center.
“I must be really good at fooling people, I guess,” Wesley said Wednesday in giving his first public thoughts since the premiere of the picture. He had been quieted by NCAA rules that do not allow him to promote showings of the film, just discuss his role in general.
“I wouldn’t say ‘surprised’ is the right word,” he added of all the positive comments he has received about his portrayal of Wilt Chamberlain in the Kevin Willmott production. “I’m grateful everybody enjoyed it and liked it. I’m glad my family enjoyed it. It was an overwhelming experience, a great experience. I’m just happy about it.”
…Wesley, who will speak to the fans along with fellow seniors Tarik Black and Niko Roberts after Wednesday’s Senior Night game against Texas Tech, said he’s willing to continue his acting career.
“Kevin asked me if I’d be interested in doing it. I told him yes, so if he has any projects he thinks I’d fit in, I’d be more than willing to help him out with it,” Wesley said. “People seem to think I have a talent to do it. We’ll see what happens. I might roll the dice on it (as a career).
“It’s definitely something I didn’t see in theater arts class in elementary school,” Wesley added with a grin.
LJW
“Pay Heed. The game you love began here. Respect those who came before you. Make their legacy your own. Because destiny favors the dedicated. And rings don’t replace work. In this game you don’t get what you want. You get what you earn. We are Kansas. Together we rise. Rock Chalk Jayhawk!
Big 12 / College News
Wichita State has had a heck of a season. But you can’t make a case for Shockers to be a one seed over Kansas, Arizona, Syracuse or Florida.
@JonRothstein
VIDEO Campus Insiders: Who deserves No. 1 seed? Kansas or WSU?
If the tournament started today, I believe Kansas would be a No. 2 seed and Wichita State would be a No. 1, in which case they would both be sent to the Midwest. That means a meeting in the Elite Eight would be possible. The only question then will be whether the state of Kansas can survive such a titanic clash.
Of course, there is also a chance that both these teams could end up on the top line, especially given the way Syracuse has played the last couple of weeks. While that raises the even more-tantalizing possibility that these teams could meet at the Final Four, it also reduces the chances that they would play, since it is so difficult to get that far.
SI Seth Davis
The Big 12 Conference along with Brenda Tinnen, General Manager and Senior Vice President of Sprint Center/AEG Kansas City have confirmed that the 2014 Phillips 66 Big 12 Men’s Basketball Championship has once again sold out.
“Selling out the Phillips 66 Big 12 Men’s Basketball Championship at Sprint Center in five days is remarkable,” said Tim Allen, Senior Associate Commissioner and Championship Director. “It is a testament to the hard work and support of everyone in Kansas City and we look forward to another memorable experience for our student-athletes, coaches, administrators and fans.”
The 2014 Championship marks the sixth year that Sprint Center has hosted the four-day event, scheduled for March 12-15. The Championship has sold out in each year since returning to Kansas City in 2008 and from 2010-14.
Big12sports.com
Good thing Marcus Smart isn't superstitious. At least when it comes to his number.
Wearing No. 43, rather than his usual 33, after a team manager left his jersey back in Stillwater, Smart changed the game late and posted another of his strong stat lines: 17 points, seven assists, eight rebounds and five steals.
“It felt weird playing with it, especially when they announced my name and it was 43,” Smart said. “As you can see, I played a very decent game in it. So superstition isn't a very big deal right now.”
…It was a light crowd at TCU's Daniel Meyer Coliseum, where the announced attendance of 5,723 looked more like 2,500.
And maybe half were Cowboys fans — family and friends who showed up to cheer on six OSU players who were back in the Metroplex, where they all went to high school.
The Oklahoman
Words that appear on Stevie Clark's new website — difference maker, servant-leader and giver.
Words that don't — suspended, arrested and dismissed.
The latest chapter in the Stevie Clark drama is playing out online. Over the weekend, a website touting the former Oklahoma State point guard was launched. It is called IAmStevieClark.com, and it highlights “The Person”, “The Player” and “The Point”.
“The purpose of this site,” it says in the section titled “The Point”, “was developed to highlight Stevie Clark as a person with a vision and a plan to reach his full potential and add value in ALL environments.”
I've read that sentence half a dozen times, and in all seriousness, I'm not entirely sure what it means. Seems like a decent amount of mumbo jumbo.
But I have a pretty good idea what the website means: Clark is trying to rehab his reputation.
Hard to blame him. The fall has been fast and furious.
…There's talk that he could follow his younger football-playing brother, Deondre, to LSU. Deondre indicated as much when he signed with the Tigers earlier this month, saying that the LSU basketball team was interested in Stevie.
Maybe that will all work out, but the launch of IAmStevieClark.com would seem to indicate that more rehab might be necessary. Having three off-court issues during the course of a career is a lot. Having them in less than three months is a serious red flag.
I mean, after being suspended then arrested, wouldn't most players do everything in their power to keep their nose clean?
Instead, Clark gets arrested for peeing out a car window.
That doesn't mean he's a bad person, but at a minimum, he's acted like a knucklehead. And unless Clark had shown himself to be the second coming of LeBron, coaches are going to think long and hard about taking a chance on a proven dimwit.
The Oklahoman
Behind 21 points from Javan Felix and a Cam Ridley double-double, the Longhorns jumped out to a big first half lead and then withstood the Bears' comeback attempt to hold on for their 10th conference win.
And there it is: win number 10.
After knocking off Baylor 74-69 on Wednesday night in Austin [BOX SCORE], the Longhorns have reached the 10-win mark in Big 12 play. Before the season began, we were laboring to find 9 wins on the conference schedule; this young group got there with three games still to play, and did it with a second win this season over a team that was considered among the pre-season favorites to win the conference.
It feels as though the universe is a little bit more orderly tonight, doesn't it? Rick Barnes is coaching up a young, cohesive group and sweeping the season series with Baylor, while Scott Drew is manically conducting the Underahievement Express down the stretch as he tries to avoid another trainwreck season. And this group of Longhorns once again responded to adversity like the veteran team that they aren't, rebounding from consecutive losses with a solid, important win that keeps their strong season very much on track.
Austin Statesman
Georges Niang scored 24 points, DeAndre Kane had 17 and 11 rebounds and No. 15 Iowa State beat West Virginia 83-66 on Wednesday night for its seventh win in eight games.
Naz Long had 15 points on five 3-pointers for the Cyclones (22-5, 10-5 Big 12), who have recorded three straight 10-win seasons in league play for the first time.
Iowa State rolled despite playing nearly the entire second half without star Melvin Ejim, who sat because of foul trouble.
Dustin Hogue helped cover for Ejim’s absence inside with 15 points and nine rebounds, including a rare 3 with 3:17 left that put the Cyclones ahead 79-65.
Juwan Staten had 19 points and Eron Harris added 15 to lead West Virginia (15-13, 7-8), which lost its third straight.
West Virginia guard Terry Henderson, who averages 12.1 points, missed his second straight game with an undisclosed illness.
AP
“Selling out the Phillips 66 Big 12 Men’s Basketball Championship at Sprint Center in five days is remarkable,” said Tim Allen, Senior Associate Commissioner and Championship Director. “It is a testament to the hard work and support of everyone in Kansas City and we look forward to another memorable experience for our student-athletes, coaches, administrators and fans.”
The 2014 Championship marks the sixth year that Sprint Center has hosted the four-day event, scheduled for March 12-15. The Championship has sold out in each year since returning to Kansas City in 2008 and from 2010-14.
Big12sports.com
Good thing Marcus Smart isn't superstitious. At least when it comes to his number.
Wearing No. 43, rather than his usual 33, after a team manager left his jersey back in Stillwater, Smart changed the game late and posted another of his strong stat lines: 17 points, seven assists, eight rebounds and five steals.
“It felt weird playing with it, especially when they announced my name and it was 43,” Smart said. “As you can see, I played a very decent game in it. So superstition isn't a very big deal right now.”
…It was a light crowd at TCU's Daniel Meyer Coliseum, where the announced attendance of 5,723 looked more like 2,500.
And maybe half were Cowboys fans — family and friends who showed up to cheer on six OSU players who were back in the Metroplex, where they all went to high school.
The Oklahoman
Words that appear on Stevie Clark's new website — difference maker, servant-leader and giver.
Words that don't — suspended, arrested and dismissed.
The latest chapter in the Stevie Clark drama is playing out online. Over the weekend, a website touting the former Oklahoma State point guard was launched. It is called IAmStevieClark.com, and it highlights “The Person”, “The Player” and “The Point”.
“The purpose of this site,” it says in the section titled “The Point”, “was developed to highlight Stevie Clark as a person with a vision and a plan to reach his full potential and add value in ALL environments.”
I've read that sentence half a dozen times, and in all seriousness, I'm not entirely sure what it means. Seems like a decent amount of mumbo jumbo.
But I have a pretty good idea what the website means: Clark is trying to rehab his reputation.
Hard to blame him. The fall has been fast and furious.
…There's talk that he could follow his younger football-playing brother, Deondre, to LSU. Deondre indicated as much when he signed with the Tigers earlier this month, saying that the LSU basketball team was interested in Stevie.
Maybe that will all work out, but the launch of IAmStevieClark.com would seem to indicate that more rehab might be necessary. Having three off-court issues during the course of a career is a lot. Having them in less than three months is a serious red flag.
I mean, after being suspended then arrested, wouldn't most players do everything in their power to keep their nose clean?
Instead, Clark gets arrested for peeing out a car window.
That doesn't mean he's a bad person, but at a minimum, he's acted like a knucklehead. And unless Clark had shown himself to be the second coming of LeBron, coaches are going to think long and hard about taking a chance on a proven dimwit.
The Oklahoman
Behind 21 points from Javan Felix and a Cam Ridley double-double, the Longhorns jumped out to a big first half lead and then withstood the Bears' comeback attempt to hold on for their 10th conference win.
And there it is: win number 10.
After knocking off Baylor 74-69 on Wednesday night in Austin [BOX SCORE], the Longhorns have reached the 10-win mark in Big 12 play. Before the season began, we were laboring to find 9 wins on the conference schedule; this young group got there with three games still to play, and did it with a second win this season over a team that was considered among the pre-season favorites to win the conference.
It feels as though the universe is a little bit more orderly tonight, doesn't it? Rick Barnes is coaching up a young, cohesive group and sweeping the season series with Baylor, while Scott Drew is manically conducting the Underahievement Express down the stretch as he tries to avoid another trainwreck season. And this group of Longhorns once again responded to adversity like the veteran team that they aren't, rebounding from consecutive losses with a solid, important win that keeps their strong season very much on track.
Austin Statesman
Georges Niang scored 24 points, DeAndre Kane had 17 and 11 rebounds and No. 15 Iowa State beat West Virginia 83-66 on Wednesday night for its seventh win in eight games.
Naz Long had 15 points on five 3-pointers for the Cyclones (22-5, 10-5 Big 12), who have recorded three straight 10-win seasons in league play for the first time.
Iowa State rolled despite playing nearly the entire second half without star Melvin Ejim, who sat because of foul trouble.
Dustin Hogue helped cover for Ejim’s absence inside with 15 points and nine rebounds, including a rare 3 with 3:17 left that put the Cyclones ahead 79-65.
Juwan Staten had 19 points and Eron Harris added 15 to lead West Virginia (15-13, 7-8), which lost its third straight.
West Virginia guard Terry Henderson, who averages 12.1 points, missed his second straight game with an undisclosed illness.
AP
Bloomberg Businessweek: Fake Classes Scandal, UNC fails its athletes and whistle-blower
• Greg Anthony Joins Jim Nantz, Steve Kerr and Tracy Wolfson to call Final Four and National Championship • Ernie Johnson to Host Studio Coverage of Final Four and National Championship
• Clark Kellogg Returns to Studio Along with Charles Barkley & Kenny Smith
• Two-Time NCAA Champion Grant Hill Joins Studio Team; Andrew Catalon Joins as Play-by-Play Announcer
NCAA.com: Commentator teams announced for March Madness coverage
Big XII composite schedule (includes results, highlights, stats)
ESPN College GameDay Schedule
2013-14 TV Schedule
Recruiting
JaQuan Lyle sat behind the Kansas bench for the Jayhawks’ 83-75 victory over Oklahoma Monday night, and Kansas-bound big man Cliff Alexander wants his friend to join the team.
“It’s great, still out here,” Lyle told SNY.tv by text.
Kansas expects to have several guards returning in Naadir Tharpe, Frank Mason, Conner Frankamp, Brannen Greene and possibly Wayne Selden, and also brings in wing Kelly Oubre.
Still, sources close to the program said Kansas is high on Lyle as a combo guard who can handle and pass better than their other guards and that he would have a chance to start next season for the Jayhawks.
Lyle and Alexander are tight and have talked about packaging.
“Me and Cliff, we’ve been tight since about our eighth-grade year and our relationship just grew, so now he’s like a brother to me,” Lyle told SNY.tv previously. “Just the opportunity to play with him would be wonderful. Cliff makes me better, I make him better. Every big man wants a point guard who can get them the ball in the right place that they can score, make the job easier for them. And every point guard wants a big man who can get them open and get them an opportunity to make them look better.”
Lyle visited Oklahoma State Friday-Sunday and is at Kansas until Wednesday.
He has already visited Oregon and visits Memphis March 7. He’s expected to decide over spring break March 15-23.
Zags Blog
2/25/14, 12:14 PM
Rock chalk we gotta get @JMamba5 to commit to the family
@humblekid11
2/26/14, 7:46 PM
Tyler Ulis, Jahlil Okafor and Cliff Alexander will be recognized for their selection to the McDonalds AA team tonight at the Bulls game
@BLUEChip_Miller
SLAMonline: Recap Curie vs Whitney Young game
2/25/14, 10:15 AM
Good source telling me Cliff Alexander's eligibility has been cleared. So Curie may be punished, but Alexander likely won't be the reason.
@michaelsobrien
Curie coach Mike Oliver and his team was told on Wednesday morning that a statement regarding the Chicago Public Schools' investigation into the Condors' playoff eligibility would be released later in the day. A CPS spokesperson confirmed to the Sun-Times that a statement was forthcoming. At 6:30 p.m., the CPS changed course, saying no statement would be issued on Wednesday.
The Condors’ camp has more on their mind than just the investigation. Curie felt slighted by Mayor Rahm Emanuel after the win on Friday. Emanuel handed out the city championship medals to the first two Chicago Public League basketball champions during his tenure: Simeon and Young. He didn’t hand out medals on Friday. "He just got up, left and ignored us," Curie coach Mike Oliver said. "I really didn't expect that."
Emanuel watched the game in a front-row seat. He sat next to James Reynolds, the father of Young guard Miles Reynolds. "The mayor spent the entire game rooting for Young and sitting next to one of their parents,” said Crystal Robinson, the mother of Curie's Keenan Robinson.
“It feels like the mayor was very supportive of Whitney Young. I'm sorry, but both of these schools are in the city of Chicago.” Robinson wasn’t at the game, but she watched the broadcast at home. "I saw my son throw that winning ball in the air, we have that moment,” she said. “They can't take that away, whether the mayor wants to acknowledge it or not. How dare the mayor not go and congratulate them. It just hurts my heart that he didn't. We're not insignificant. I'm just a little parent that happens to live and work in Chicago."
Emanuel's communications director Sarah Hamilton said the perceived slight was not intentional. "The mayor enjoyed the thrilling quadruple-overtime game, but had to leave immediately after to attend the Home-Going Service for Father Charles Hayes, which he was late getting to because he wanted to stay and support the students until the end of the game,'' Hamilton said.
Link
Out on the court, inside the Jones Convocation Center at Chicago State University, a medal hung around the neck of Cliff Alexander. Curie’s star big man had just scored 20 points and grabbed 12 rebounds to lead the Condors to their first-ever Public League title. This was the matchup everyone in Chicago had hoped to see: two of the best big men in the country duking it out for city bragging rights.
More than 7,000 people, including Chicago mayor Rahm Emanuel, attended. And they weren’t disappointed. The game, which led Friday night’s late edition of SportsCenter, included one overtime-forcing buzzer beater, four extra periods and a game-winner from a seldom-used senior.
“It was a legendary game,” Okafor said. “It was epic.”'
…Most scouts agree Alexander is a more explosive athlete than Okafor. The 6-foot-8, 240-pounder is an elite rebounder and a ferocious dunker. While he was on the court preparing for Friday night’s game, for instance, Alexander casually dribbled in from the three-point line and, without breaking stride, leapt so high his head was at the rim and flushed home a one-handed dunk. With less than a minute left in the first quarter, Alexander threw down another gym-shaking jam. Ask people who’ve spent hours watching Alexander, and they’ll tell you the same thing: that’s standard for the Curie standout. “Cliff is such a freak athlete,” sad Evan Daniels, a national recruiting analyst for Scout.com.
Scouts are also impressed with Alexander’s toughness, shot-blocking and motor. While he’s raw offensively and hasn’t yet developed a consistent jump shot, Alexander’s athleticism and physical skills should be big assets for the Jayhawks next season.
And based on the rapid developmental curve Alexander has followed, there’s reason to believe he’s just scratching the surface of his potential. “His calling card is rebounding and just being athletic and tough and contesting shots. That’s where he’s at his best right now,” Daniels said. “He certainly has gotten better and has plenty to work with. There’s some significant upside there.”
…Most national recruiting rankings currently peg Okafor ahead of Alexander, though there are some who believe Alexander could supplant Okafor at No. 1 (to say nothing of uncommitted five-star center Myles Turner). Both Alexander and Okafor are expected to spend just one year in college. They are projected as the No. 1 and No. 3 picks, respectively, in DraftExpress’ 2015 mock draft.
Before they reach the NBA, though, Okafor and Alexander will try to help two historic programs on track to earn top-three seeds in the NCAA tournament replace a crop of freshmen that could declare for this summer’s draft. Kansas forward Andrew Wiggins, center Joel Embiid and small forward Wayne Selden are considered first-round prospects, as is Duke forward Jabari Parker.
However many of those players do turn pro after this season, Alexander and Okafor will ensure that Kansas and Duke will not lack for talent next season.
SI
Curie High School and Cliff Alexander, who is No. 3 in the ESPN 100, recently won the Chicago Public League championship and will compete for a state championship in March.
Alexander is powerful and explosive in the paint both at scoring and rebounding. He is best utilized running the floor and then playing on the blocks. At times he can function at the foul line with a straight-line drive or a short jumper.
Joel Embiid is a paint player this year, but I can tell you, from watching him in high school, he could face up with an offseason of work. His jumper is accurate from the high post and even to the arc. If he were to come back, he could play up top in the high-low offense and be a good pick-and-pop big man.
Embiid and Alexander certainly could coexist and be hard to guard because they are extremely athletic with great size, length, power and mobility. Defensively, Kansas would protect the paint and control the defensive backboard as well as anyone in the nation.
Both would need to polish up and develop their face-up games while still staying dominant inside.
It would be a great problem for Kansas coach Bill Self, who has had tremendous success in developing his post players and winning Big 12 championships.
ESPN Biancardi
Myles Turner, a 6-foot-11 senior center from Trinity High in Euless, Texas, will make an official recruiting visit to Kansas University for next Wednesday’s Senior Night game against Texas Tech, Rivals.com reported today.
He’s ranked No. 6 nationally by Rivals.com.
Zagsblog.com reports he also will visit Duke on March 8. Turner is also considering Texas, Kentucky, Oklahoma State, SMU, Arizona and Ohio State.
LJW
2014 big man @Original_Turner visits Texas A&M Saturday. Considered a long shot, but they're giving it a go
@adamzagoria
2/25/14, 11:17 AM
Kurtis Townsend from Kansas will watch Justin Simon tonight.
@jacklegwin
2/26/14, 7:10 PM
Kansas in to see Stevenson star junior Jalen Brunson tonight in North Suburban Conference showdown vs. North Chicago
@joehoopsreport
2/26/14, 8:32 PM
G Jalen Brunson (@jbcrossover5): 39 PTS for Stevenson in a win over North Chicago
@D1Circuit
2/27/14, 8:20 AM
I love Chicago but wow it's freezing. Glad I'm heading to Dallas today.
@Coachjhoward
Recruiting Calendar
My Late Night in the Phog videos, KU Alumni games videos, 2011-12 Border War videos, Legends of the Phog videos, KC Prep Invitational, & Jayhawk Invitational Videos and more now on YouTube
http://www.youtube.com/user/kcjcjhawk
“It’s great, still out here,” Lyle told SNY.tv by text.
Kansas expects to have several guards returning in Naadir Tharpe, Frank Mason, Conner Frankamp, Brannen Greene and possibly Wayne Selden, and also brings in wing Kelly Oubre.
Still, sources close to the program said Kansas is high on Lyle as a combo guard who can handle and pass better than their other guards and that he would have a chance to start next season for the Jayhawks.
Lyle and Alexander are tight and have talked about packaging.
“Me and Cliff, we’ve been tight since about our eighth-grade year and our relationship just grew, so now he’s like a brother to me,” Lyle told SNY.tv previously. “Just the opportunity to play with him would be wonderful. Cliff makes me better, I make him better. Every big man wants a point guard who can get them the ball in the right place that they can score, make the job easier for them. And every point guard wants a big man who can get them open and get them an opportunity to make them look better.”
Lyle visited Oklahoma State Friday-Sunday and is at Kansas until Wednesday.
He has already visited Oregon and visits Memphis March 7. He’s expected to decide over spring break March 15-23.
Zags Blog
2/25/14, 12:14 PM
Rock chalk we gotta get @JMamba5 to commit to the family
@humblekid11
2/26/14, 7:46 PM
Tyler Ulis, Jahlil Okafor and Cliff Alexander will be recognized for their selection to the McDonalds AA team tonight at the Bulls game
@BLUEChip_Miller
SLAMonline: Recap Curie vs Whitney Young game
2/25/14, 10:15 AM
Good source telling me Cliff Alexander's eligibility has been cleared. So Curie may be punished, but Alexander likely won't be the reason.
@michaelsobrien
Curie coach Mike Oliver and his team was told on Wednesday morning that a statement regarding the Chicago Public Schools' investigation into the Condors' playoff eligibility would be released later in the day. A CPS spokesperson confirmed to the Sun-Times that a statement was forthcoming. At 6:30 p.m., the CPS changed course, saying no statement would be issued on Wednesday.
The Condors’ camp has more on their mind than just the investigation. Curie felt slighted by Mayor Rahm Emanuel after the win on Friday. Emanuel handed out the city championship medals to the first two Chicago Public League basketball champions during his tenure: Simeon and Young. He didn’t hand out medals on Friday. "He just got up, left and ignored us," Curie coach Mike Oliver said. "I really didn't expect that."
Emanuel watched the game in a front-row seat. He sat next to James Reynolds, the father of Young guard Miles Reynolds. "The mayor spent the entire game rooting for Young and sitting next to one of their parents,” said Crystal Robinson, the mother of Curie's Keenan Robinson.
“It feels like the mayor was very supportive of Whitney Young. I'm sorry, but both of these schools are in the city of Chicago.” Robinson wasn’t at the game, but she watched the broadcast at home. "I saw my son throw that winning ball in the air, we have that moment,” she said. “They can't take that away, whether the mayor wants to acknowledge it or not. How dare the mayor not go and congratulate them. It just hurts my heart that he didn't. We're not insignificant. I'm just a little parent that happens to live and work in Chicago."
Emanuel's communications director Sarah Hamilton said the perceived slight was not intentional. "The mayor enjoyed the thrilling quadruple-overtime game, but had to leave immediately after to attend the Home-Going Service for Father Charles Hayes, which he was late getting to because he wanted to stay and support the students until the end of the game,'' Hamilton said.
Link
Out on the court, inside the Jones Convocation Center at Chicago State University, a medal hung around the neck of Cliff Alexander. Curie’s star big man had just scored 20 points and grabbed 12 rebounds to lead the Condors to their first-ever Public League title. This was the matchup everyone in Chicago had hoped to see: two of the best big men in the country duking it out for city bragging rights.
More than 7,000 people, including Chicago mayor Rahm Emanuel, attended. And they weren’t disappointed. The game, which led Friday night’s late edition of SportsCenter, included one overtime-forcing buzzer beater, four extra periods and a game-winner from a seldom-used senior.
“It was a legendary game,” Okafor said. “It was epic.”'
…Most scouts agree Alexander is a more explosive athlete than Okafor. The 6-foot-8, 240-pounder is an elite rebounder and a ferocious dunker. While he was on the court preparing for Friday night’s game, for instance, Alexander casually dribbled in from the three-point line and, without breaking stride, leapt so high his head was at the rim and flushed home a one-handed dunk. With less than a minute left in the first quarter, Alexander threw down another gym-shaking jam. Ask people who’ve spent hours watching Alexander, and they’ll tell you the same thing: that’s standard for the Curie standout. “Cliff is such a freak athlete,” sad Evan Daniels, a national recruiting analyst for Scout.com.
Scouts are also impressed with Alexander’s toughness, shot-blocking and motor. While he’s raw offensively and hasn’t yet developed a consistent jump shot, Alexander’s athleticism and physical skills should be big assets for the Jayhawks next season.
And based on the rapid developmental curve Alexander has followed, there’s reason to believe he’s just scratching the surface of his potential. “His calling card is rebounding and just being athletic and tough and contesting shots. That’s where he’s at his best right now,” Daniels said. “He certainly has gotten better and has plenty to work with. There’s some significant upside there.”
…Most national recruiting rankings currently peg Okafor ahead of Alexander, though there are some who believe Alexander could supplant Okafor at No. 1 (to say nothing of uncommitted five-star center Myles Turner). Both Alexander and Okafor are expected to spend just one year in college. They are projected as the No. 1 and No. 3 picks, respectively, in DraftExpress’ 2015 mock draft.
Before they reach the NBA, though, Okafor and Alexander will try to help two historic programs on track to earn top-three seeds in the NCAA tournament replace a crop of freshmen that could declare for this summer’s draft. Kansas forward Andrew Wiggins, center Joel Embiid and small forward Wayne Selden are considered first-round prospects, as is Duke forward Jabari Parker.
However many of those players do turn pro after this season, Alexander and Okafor will ensure that Kansas and Duke will not lack for talent next season.
SI
Curie High School and Cliff Alexander, who is No. 3 in the ESPN 100, recently won the Chicago Public League championship and will compete for a state championship in March.
Alexander is powerful and explosive in the paint both at scoring and rebounding. He is best utilized running the floor and then playing on the blocks. At times he can function at the foul line with a straight-line drive or a short jumper.
Joel Embiid is a paint player this year, but I can tell you, from watching him in high school, he could face up with an offseason of work. His jumper is accurate from the high post and even to the arc. If he were to come back, he could play up top in the high-low offense and be a good pick-and-pop big man.
Embiid and Alexander certainly could coexist and be hard to guard because they are extremely athletic with great size, length, power and mobility. Defensively, Kansas would protect the paint and control the defensive backboard as well as anyone in the nation.
Both would need to polish up and develop their face-up games while still staying dominant inside.
It would be a great problem for Kansas coach Bill Self, who has had tremendous success in developing his post players and winning Big 12 championships.
ESPN Biancardi
Myles Turner, a 6-foot-11 senior center from Trinity High in Euless, Texas, will make an official recruiting visit to Kansas University for next Wednesday’s Senior Night game against Texas Tech, Rivals.com reported today.
He’s ranked No. 6 nationally by Rivals.com.
Zagsblog.com reports he also will visit Duke on March 8. Turner is also considering Texas, Kentucky, Oklahoma State, SMU, Arizona and Ohio State.
LJW
2014 big man @Original_Turner visits Texas A&M Saturday. Considered a long shot, but they're giving it a go
@adamzagoria
2/25/14, 11:17 AM
Kurtis Townsend from Kansas will watch Justin Simon tonight.
@jacklegwin
2/26/14, 7:10 PM
Kansas in to see Stevenson star junior Jalen Brunson tonight in North Suburban Conference showdown vs. North Chicago
@joehoopsreport
2/26/14, 8:32 PM
G Jalen Brunson (@jbcrossover5): 39 PTS for Stevenson in a win over North Chicago
@D1Circuit
2/27/14, 8:20 AM
I love Chicago but wow it's freezing. Glad I'm heading to Dallas today.
@Coachjhoward
Recruiting Calendar
My Late Night in the Phog videos, KU Alumni games videos, 2011-12 Border War videos, Legends of the Phog videos, KC Prep Invitational, & Jayhawk Invitational Videos and more now on YouTube
http://www.youtube.com/user/kcjcjhawk
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