WEDNESDAY

Great stat from @BlairKerkhoff: Last 9 yrs KU Big 12 road record (56-18) better than all Big 12 teams at HOME but Texas (59-15).
@JMarchiony


Self on Joel Embiid’s being called for a technical foul for pulling down on the jersey of DeAndre Kane on Monday: “He made the one bad play where he lost his composure big-time against K-State (ejected for flagrant 2 foul). That play yesterday was not a bad play. People make a big deal about that. The only reason it was a technical is because deadball contact fouls have to be technicals. He is learning. He is growing up. He does have a little fight to him, a little orneriness. That’s good to see because I didn’t think he’d played with as much aggression the last couple games as he should be playing with.”
LJW


Admit it. You’re starting to understand the fuss over Andrew Wiggins.

Even the creative Iowa State student hecklers armed with acidic tongues and strong spirits in Hilton Coliseum conceded as much Monday night as Wiggins covered so much space in the air, moved so quickly on the ground. He stunned them into silence.

They let him have it at the beginning of the night, all right: “Hey, Wiggins. You’re the most overrated basketball player in history.”

Then, just in case he didn’t make himself clear, the wise guy added: “Ever!”

No, he’s not. He’s 18, still figuring it out, still making mistakes. His handle can’t always keep pace with his blurry moves. His three-point touch comes and goes and comes back again. His finger rolls sometimes roll off the front of the rim. In time, he’ll fill out, get so much stronger, tighten his ball-handling, improve his jumper.

Already, he’s the team’s best defender, oh-so-hard to guard and now so tough to keep off the boards.

He’s so far from his ceiling, yet his head was so high above the rest Monday night that he came away with a stunning 19 rebounds to go with 17 points in 38 minutes.

The verbal darts faded during KU’s 77-70 victory against Iowa State because it’s a little more difficult to use the tongue when the jaw has dropped to the floor.
LJW Keegan


It baffles me that Iowa State, which lost to KU three times last season and had every reason in the world to take the floor with more hunger, anger and intensity than the visiting Jayhawks on Monday night, actually got out-hungered by Kansas. Credit KU coach Bill Self and veteran point guard Naadir Tharpe for explaining to the young guys on this roster just how hostile Hilton would be and for preparing them to feel like the underdog with everything to prove. It worked brilliantly and KU got one of its best games of the season in terms of pure effort.

…The Jayhawks were sensational out of timeouts Monday night, whenever Iowa State showed signs of making a run. I can recall at least three or four times when Iowa State closed the gap to six or so points and appeared to be poised for a big run, only to watch Kansas calmly call timeout and respond by getting an easy bucket right at the rim, most often from Embiid. That's clearly solid coaching but it also showed incredible poise by Self's players.
LJW Tale of the Tait


In a game where both teams went completely off the map in one statistical area (KU in turnovers; Iowa State in shooting), the Jayhawks were able to come away with a tough road victory because of their defense. Yes, ISU missed some shots, but KU deserves some credit here as well for doing a better job of switching on screens while also making it difficult for the Cyclones to score at the rim. According to SCACChoops.com, ISU made just 17 of 35 dunk and layup attempts (48.5 percent), and that was after entering the game as the fifth-best close shooting team in the nation (73.9 percent).

This hints that KU center Joel Embiid might have even had bigger impact than his stat line showed. After the game, ISU coach Fred Hoiberg commented that Embiid was probably the first true "rim-protector" that the Cyclones had seen all season, and that especially affected leading scorer Melvin Ejim. The senior, who had made 82.1 percent of his close shots before Monday, made just 2 of 9 against the Jayhawks (22.2 percent).

KU's 0.98 point-per-possession mark actually was its fourth-worst mark of the season, with KU losing the other three games below it. That means holding a dangerous ISU offense to 0.891 PPP (its previous worst t was 1.038 PPP against Michigan) was the real key for the Jayhawks in their second straight victory at Hilton Coliseum.

…Bottom Line

Those people amazed that Iowa State was still in the game while shooting such a horrible 3-point percentage (4-for-25, 16 percent) are technically correct. But they're also missing the flipside.

The fact that KU won a game convincingly while turning it over on more than 30 percent of its possessions in a tough road environment is just as remarkable. Quick math: KU turned it over on 24 of its 79 possessions, meaning it scored 77 points on its 55 non-turnover possessions. That means when KU didn't turn it over, it scored a healthy 1.4 PPP. If the Jayhawks have a horrible turnover game (20 turnovers) instead of a catastrophic one (24), we'd expect the Jayhawks to win by about 13 instead of seven.

In the rematch, expect both ISU to shoot it much better and KU to hold onto it much better. To look at only one number as a fluke, though, would be failing to see the whole picture.
TCJ Newell Post


Winning in Ames is not easy. Is Kansas starting to figure things out?

Katz: Yes. The Jayhawks were in control for most of the game because this team is maturing into a title contender. Kansas needed the normal process of a young team. Unfortunately, the Jayhawks' development is always skewed because of the talent. The Big 12 still goes through Lawrence, always has during Bill Self's tenure and now it looks as though that will continue.

Medcalf: Yep. And a lot of it has to do with Naadir Tharpe seizing a leadership role in recent games. Plus, Joel Embiid and Andrew Wiggins are beginning to realize their potential.

Brown: The Jayhawks are starting to get consistent play from freshman guard Wayne Selden Jr. He was named Big 12 newcomer of the week Monday and is starting to find his comfort zone, knowing when he needs to score and when he needs to create for others.
ESPN


ESPN Weekly Power Rankings: KU #10 for week 11

It looks as if the alternate jerseys Kansas University’s basketball players have worn the last two games are turning into permanent jerseys ... at least for the remainder of the 2013-14 season.

“Because I personally, and our players personally, prefer those to what we have been wearing,” KU coach Bill Self said Tuesday on his weekly ‘Hawk Talk’ radio show, explaining the switch in fashion. “Not that what we’ve been wearing (during nonconference season) has been bad, we just prefer these to be better. If the color schemes allow us to wear them like they did last night, I’d anticipate you seeing those uniforms moving forward the rest of the year,” Self added.

The Jayhawks wore gray uniforms during Monday’s 77-70 victory at Iowa State after wearing cream colored jerseys with the script word, ‘Jayhawks’ on the front in Saturday’s 86-60 home win over Kansas State.

“I think the grays are gorgeous,” Self said.

He’s not as big a fan of the jerseys worn in nonconference play and during the conference opener at Oklahoma.

“The uniforms we have now are probably my least favorite uniforms that we’ve had since I’ve been here, without question,” Self said. “So I wanted to make sure we got other (alternate) uniforms to wear. It’s not anybody’s fault; I agreed to it.”

Self did say he’s generally in favor of a no-frills look at KU.

“Going forward, our uniforms are going to be solely traditional and we’re not going to have any of this stuff other schools are going to,” Self said, ostensibly referring to some of the camo/neon uniforms teams like KU sampled last season.

“I’m not into marketing and understanding all the ins and outs of that ... I think there are so many things done through apparel that’s so positive for so many places. You see what’s happened at Oregon, and Baylor has done some things. Louisville has done some things (in wacky color combinations and neon). Even Nike came out with a line last year where all the teams wore something totally different than what they have ever done before.

“I think those things are great and I do think kids enjoy them, but for us, it doesn’t fit to who we are as much as it does with some other people. Not everybody can boast of having the history and tradition that we have. It doesn’t mean we won’t do some things periodically, because we will and I’ll tick people off who say, ‘Why are you going to wear this for this one game?’ There will be some things going on we agreed to do with adidas periodically because that’s part of the contract. We’re happy to do so, but the core of who we are needs to stand strictly from a tradition standpoint.”

Self was asked if the players liked the alternate jerseys. “We shot about 55 percent both games, so they liked ’em,” he said with a laugh. “They thought they were great.”
LJW

Getty image

It’s time for another Freshman Watch. We’re doing this for Celtics fans, who have to watch Kelly Olynyk and Kris Humphries play major minutes over the next few weeks, and for the people in Milwaukee who have to live and die with Brandon Knight three times a week. They need this.

One note before we get started: Maybe it’s just because we’ve all been nitpicking everyone to death, but over the past few months the Greatest Draft Class in History has started to come back to earth. We’ve all sobered up a little bit after getting drunk on the collection of all this talent. This isn’t the ’03 draft, where four guys (Wade, LeBron, Melo, and Bosh) could pop up and take franchises to the playoffs.

This Forbes piece from Mark Heisler outlines the prevailing attitude these days: “Deep as this draft class is, its star quotient is another question … No one in this class is as highly regarded as No. 1 picks Anthony Davis (2012), Kyrie Irving (2011), John Wall (2010), Blake Griffin (2009) or Derrick Rose (2008).”

A year ago you were a cool basketball fan if you hyped the 2014 draft class; now you’re cool if you say the 2014 draft class is all hype.

For the record, though, if you land in the top five or six, you’re getting a guy who can probably be a key part of a title nucleus one day, and there’ll be future starters all the way down to the teens. Or to put it a little differently: If the top of this class doesn’t have a LeBron, it still has a lot of candidates who could be Wade or Bosh. More than any other year in recent memory, actually. It’s insane.

2. Andrew Wiggins, Kansas
He may not be a Kevin Durant– or LeBron-type superstar, but that’s still his ceiling, and in the meantime the floor is pretty high. He could be a lockdown defender. He’s already a one-man fast break. He could rebound from the wing as well as anyone this side of Durant. He could rain 3s and then cut through the lane and finish at the rim.

Everyone always talks about how we’re in the middle of the “new” NBA, right? Teams are spreading the floor and killing you from the outside in. So, a once-in-a-generation athletic small forward who can lock down people on defense and shoot 3s and get to the rim in transition … how is that not the perfect player for the new NBA? If the league’s going to look more and more like the Warriors … isn’t Wiggins kinda like Andre Iguodala from outer space?

Anyone who tells you the NBA is “down on Wiggins” is lying. He’s not the player who was supposed to turn college basketball upside down, but as an NBA prospect, he’s just as addictive as he’s always been.

Imagine if Wiggins didn’t enter this season as the icon for NBA tanking and a freshman takeover, and if that guy were Joel Embiid instead. Everyone would watch Kansas games and say, “Yeah, that center is impressive but he’s not dominating. Maybe he doesn’t have the motor you need from a superstar. But holy shit, imagine what that wing from Canada could be in a few years. THAT guy is impressive.”

That’s why this process can be kinda stupid sometimes.

1. Joel Embiid, Kansas
On the other hand: IMAGINE JOEL EMBIID IN A FEW YEARS.

It’s ridiculous. He’s so big, and so coordinated, and so impossible to deal with on either end of the floor. We’re not used to centers like this, because centers like this mostly stopped existing 15 years ago.

What he is right now could help NBA teams, because anyone who’s that big and can use his body makes life so much harder for an offense. Size is a talent when you pair it with someone who can actually use it. Embiid already does that better than most 7-footers, and he’ll only get better as we go.

…He’s got touch around the rim, his footwork is flawless, and he can change every shot he sees on defense. He’d be blocking shots in the NBA if he started tomorrow, and there’s enough skill on offense to make you think his scoring could get a lot better over the next few years. That’s what separates him from everyone else, I think. Any draft conversation basically boils down to a tug-of-war between what’s there now and what might be there later, and Embiid combines the two better than anyone. Even better than Wiggins. For now.
Grantland


After speaking with numerous NBA GMs and scouts, Wiggins' teammate, Joel Embiid, has taken his top spot on our Big Board. Embiid, who was ranked No. 6 on our Big Board in July, has steadily risen all season. Unencumbered by the lofty expectations that confronted several of the other top prospects, he's been the one guy who has exceeded, pretty dramatically, scouts' expectations.

That doesn't mean, Wiggins, or Duke's Jabari Parker for that matter, are out of the running for the No. 1 pick. The most important part of the college basketball season is still in front of us and both Wiggins and Parker have strong support among certain NBA franchises and could very well go No. 1 depending on who wins the lottery.

However, there's a growing number of talent evaluators who believe that Embiid will be difficult to pass up with the No. 1 pick. Size matters in the NBA. So does athletic ability, production and upside. Embiid checks all four boxes. We'll discuss some of these topics during my chat today at 1 pm ET.

Here's our fifth Big Board of the 2014 NBA draft.

#1 Joel Embiid

The buzz on Embiid has been building slowly since the McDonald's All American game and the Nike Hoop Summit this spring. Once considered a raw prospect who would take years to develop, Embiid seems to be improving by the week. Not only is he the most dominant big man in college basketball right now, but his college PER ranks second among players in our Top 30 (Creighton's Doug McDermott is No. 1).

His offensive game looks especially promising. In his last seven games, he's averaging 13.4 points in 24 minutes per game. He's blessed with quickness, excellent footwork and a soft touch on his jumper. His defense continues to improve as well -- especially his rebounding. He needs to get stronger, improve his in-game basketball IQ and learn how to control his temper when teams get physical with him. But Embiid is one of the few big-man prospects who passes both the eye test and the production test. There isn't a player in this draft with a higher ceiling. Given his strong production of late, he no longer appears as risky as we once thought and could end up being, in June, the consensus No. 1 pick in the draft.

#2 Andrew Wiggins

Wiggins has faced expectations that few players could ever match. He's been inconsistent and passive at times. His jumper has been streaky and his handle can be a little loose. If you get past that (we could say the same things about a lot of elite players at age 18), there is still so much there that keeps him in contention for the No. 1 pick. He's played his biggest games against his best opponents. Against the five ranked teams KU has played this season, Wiggins is averaging 20 ppg. With the exception of a tough game against San Diego State, his performances against Duke, Florida, Kansas State and Iowa State have been his signature games.

He's done most of his scoring this year without much help getting set up for assists, as just 10.5 percent of his jumpers have been assisted this season, per Hoop-Math.com. (Duke's Jabari Parker has been assisted on 57.5 percent of his jumpers by way of comparison). Wiggins has had to, for the most part, create his own scoring opportunities. He's gotten more aggressive putting the ball on the floor and drawing contact around the basket. He's no longer just settling for long jumpers. His rebounding numbers have been improving (he had 19 against Iowa State on Monday), and his defense has been better than any other player in our Top 10. Combine all of that with his elite physical attributes and athleticism, and for scouts who are comfortable projecting down the road, Wiggins is still an elite prospect.
ESPN Chad Ford ($)

It didn't take long to discover that Iowa State, the Big 12's highest ranked team, is also the league's greatest shooting fraud.

That was one of the sorriest three-point shooting exhibitions in college basketball this year. Iowa State was chucking treys all night and they were not falling, a lot of them not even close. 
Four of 25; they average nine makes a game.

Last night, The Cyclones made a putrid 16 percent.

KU actually defended better, but the Jayhawks still have problems guarding and they certainly can't protect the rock: 24 turnovers. It was still, a terrific win for Kansas, who was in complete control.
In this space before the game, I stated the Cyclones where the only team KU had to fear in the Big 12-- but not anymore.

Bill Self's teams do this every year. It's money time.

Don't kid yourself; Andrew Wiggins was clearly auditioning for all those NBA scouts sitting courtside. He went off for 17 points and 19 rebounds. He was into it big time, but he was also playing for Andrew Wiggins.

To his credit, he showed up at both ends of the court.

I'm more impressed with Joel Embiid. In no way is he a showboater. KU needs him to win the big games. He's the best player on the team. Fred Hoiberg says he's the best player in the country.
Embiid drew another penalty for delivering a cheap shot. He's got to control his temper, but I’m going to defend the guy. I think he's being targeted-- he's being baited.

Blame K-State for roughing him up Saturday. Blame Iowa State was trying to get under his skin Monday night.

The coaches know what they're doing. They want the guy on the bench or out of the game.

I don't condone fisticuffs, but it might lead to that if opposing teams keep baiting Embiid into losing his cool. They keep poking him with those little jabs when they think they can sneak one in on the ribs.

There's no question, he must control his temper, but it’s also up to the zebra's to see who initiates this stuff in the first place. They need to stop it.

That’s Jack’s Smack.
KSHB

Kansas Jayhawks

Another speculative pick, but less so than Kentucky. The Jayhawks struggled in the non-conference season, losing to Villanova, Colorado, Florida and San Diego State, but possible one-and-done freshmen Andrew Wiggins, Joel Embiid and Wayne Selden have elevated their games in the opening portion of Big 12 play. Embiid's rim protection and Wiggins' rebounding against Iowa State on Monday were incredible, and if they continue on this trajectory, they'll have a title-caliber defense.
SI Luke Winn: Magic Eight Ball - One of these teams will win the NCAA tournament


Kansas is among the top movers in this week’s bracket projection.  The reasons are pretty clear: two quality road wins and an overall schedule ranked No. 1 in the nation. Those types of statistics always play well on Selection Sunday.

In the span of a week, the Jayhawks won road games at Oklahoma and Iowa State – sandwiched with a lopsided home victory over improved Kansas State.  It’s mid-January and KU already has seven wins against Top 50 teams (RPI – through Monday, January 13).  Thus, Kansas finds itself as a No. 2 seed in today’s update.  Also worth noting: the Jayhawks’ four losses are by a combined 17 points and only one of those – San Diego State – occurred in the past month.
NBC


5. Kansas – 2007-08


For all of their talent — future NBA players Cole Aldrich, Darrell Arthur, Mario Chalmers and Brandon Rush — this Jayhawks team was overlooked by Memphis and UNC all year. They won 37 games, lost only three and were a No. 1 seed in the tournament. But they barely slipped by Stephen Curry and Davidson to reach the Final Four, and so critics had their fuel, dismissing them as another overrated Kansas team, a school notorious for getting upset in the big games. So what happened? They absolutely blitzed UNC in the Final Four, winning by 18 in a game that was never even that close. Then they went on to shock Memphis. When this team was on, like they were in the national semifinal against the Heels, they were impressive. Think about this: Carolina was ranked No. 1 for much of the season and featured a team that would roll to a championship the following year… and they trailed Kansas 40-12 at one point in that game.
Dime Mag: Top 10 College BBall Teams of the Past Decade

Attendees of the Kansas-Oklahoma State men's basketball game at 3 p.m., Saturday inside Allen Fieldhouse are encouraged to take part in the "I am Crimson, I am Blue, We are the Phog" festivities to create a patterned Crimson and Blue color scheme at the event.
 
Patrons will be provided complimentary extra-large T-shirts upon arrival to their seats, limit one per person. The T-shirt giveaway was made possible by Kansas Athletics, The Oread, The Eldridge, Bliss Sports, Ultimate Athletics and also by the game title sponsor, First National Bank.
 
To assist fans with their color designation, please click here to view a map breaking down the Crimson and Blue sections.

In addition to the FREE T-shirts, an ultra-high-resolution 360-degree photo will be taken immediately following the alma mater and the Rock Chalk Chant. The image will be over 26 billion pixels in size! Fans will need to make sure they dressed in their designated colors and in their seats pregame to ensure that they are in the photograph.

The interactive photo, sponsored by the Kansas Department of Transportation's YOU DRINK YOU DRIVE YOU LOSE campagin and powered by Blakeway Worldwide Panoramas, will allow fans to find and tag themselves, share with friends and celebrate the game. The interactive photo will be available on Monday after the event and there will be more information about the photo on KUAthletics.com.


NCAA.com: Five Best Basketball Traditions - Rock Chalk Chant #2

President Barack Obama welcomed your NBA champion Miami Heat to the White House on Tuesday afternoon, reliving the glory that was the 2012-13 season and Ray Allen's Game 6 shot and poking fun at Mario Chalmers.

Obama, who is known for being a big basketball fan and has hosted LeBron James and Dwyane Wade in previous White House pickup games, welcomed the team for the second consecutive year for the traditional ceremony reserved for respective pro sports champions.

During the ceremony, Obama brought up the biggest moment in last year's finals, when Ray Allen hit a game-tying, season-saving three-pointer against the San Antonio Spurs just when the Heat was on the brink of elimination, calling it "one of the most iconic shots of all time."

"With five seconds left," Obama says, "Chris Bosh gets an incredible offensive rebound, passes it out to Ray, he's backing up, he has to jump forward, hits one of the most iconic shots of all time."
Obama also brings up Allen's infamous moment when he yelled out, "Get those fucking ropes outta here!"

"Then [Ray Allen] added a few choice words about the ropes, which we cannot repeat here. Ray -- I do want you to know, when you say those things on the court, people can read your lips. You do understand that?"

Obama also brought up the Heat's quest to win a third straight title and how he relates to them.
"They've now won twice, but they've gone to the finals three times. Sometimes it feels like they're still fighting for a little respect. I can relate to that."

The president brought up the organization's commitment to local charities, as well as its work with veterans.

"They also showed what heart means off the court," Obama said. "Last year, they raised close to $2 million for local charities. Before this event, they met with some of our amazing wounded warriors over at Walter Reed, and we're proud to have some of those wounded warriors here in the audience here."

But the best moment of the ceremony came at Mario Chalmers' expense, when just before the team took their photo with the POTUS and his gifted jersey, Obama said, "We should make it quick before one of these guys starts yelling at Mario [Chalmers]. Sometimes it's just a bad pass, guys, it's not Mario's fault. I've got your back, man."
Palm Beach New Times


Wait, wait, wait. Does that Jayhawk have a joint in its mouth?

"My manager did that," rapper Kidd Upstairs chuckles. "I think he's got a blunt in his mouth. He's a party Jayhawk."

Well, all righty, then.

Last month Kansas freshman sensation Andrew Wiggins was hanging backstage with hip-hop icon Kanye West. This month, the Jayhawks' star swingman is the subject of a hip-hop single by Kidd, a 24-year-old rapper based out of Los Angeles.

And if you think the release art for the tune "Andrew Wiggins" -- which features the famous Jayhawk logo in, shall we say, "party" mode -- is, um, trippin', you should hear some of the lyrics, KU fans:
Link


VOTE for Coach Self & his Assists Foundation (currently 22nd out of 48 coaches!)


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

DYK? - #Big12MBB has seven (out of 10!) teams with overall winning percentages of .750 or higher.
@Big12Conference


Kansas has taken command of the Big 12 basketball race. Some things do not change.

The Jayhawks have won the Big 12 outright or tied for the title nine straight years. KU had the decency to share the title with Kansas State in 2013, with Texas in 2008 and 2006, and with OU in 2005. But Kansas always is at the top.

And the Jayhawks are there again, taking a clear lead with a 77-70 victory Monday night at Iowa State.

Just three games into the conference race, Kansas is in command. The Jayhawks are the lone unbeaten in the Big 12, at 3-0. KU has two road wins, including a victory at a fellow contender (Iowa State).

Using the method of giving a team one point for a road victory and taking away a point for a home defeat, the standings look like this: KU +2, OSU +1, Kansas State +1, OU even, Baylor even, Iowa State even, Texas even, West Virginia even, TCU -2, Texas Tech -2.

Which makes OSU’s game Saturday at Kansas even more important. The Cowboys could fall two games behind the Jayhawks and would then need help.

It’s awfully early to be worrying about a conference race that won’t be concluded until March. But fitting. Because it’s Kansas.
The Oklahoman


Cameron Clark and Buddy Hield struggled offensively all night.

Yet somehow, with less than four minutes left, Oklahoma led Kansas State on the road at Bramlage Coliseum.

But the Sooners' offensive struggles finally caught up with them, and their defensive woes re-emerged as the Wildcats beat No. 25 OU 72-66 in front of a crowd of 12,250.
The Oklahoman


Rick Barnes says he won’t need to be told when it’s time for him to move on. He’ll know it before anyone else does.

Barnes is a self-proclaimed gym rat. That’s where he wants to be, whether it’s working with players on defensive technique or studying the flex offense with former NBA coach Jerry Sloan.

Last year, though, the 59-year-old Barnes admitted his love and desire to be at the gym wasn’t what it had been. His team wasn’t responding to coaching, wasn’t playing as a team and, quite simply, wasn’t living up to the lofty expectations that Barnes had created at Texas.

The dreadful 2012-13 season, which ended without an NCAA Tournament berth for the first time in Barnes’ 15 years as the Longhorns’ coach, raised questions about his job status. Those questions have gained more steam with a new men’s athletics director, Steve Patterson, now in charge.

Just look at what happened to Mack Brown, Barnes’ close friend and the longtime Texas football coach who resigned last month. Some believe Barnes could be headed for a similar fate as Brown in a few months, especially if this season’s teams misses the tournament again, but he shrugs off any such notion.

“I can only tell you this — I will know when my time is up,” Barnes said after Texas’ 67-64 victory over Texas Tech on Saturday. “Nobody is going to have to tell me because I’ve got too much respect for this university and the program, too much respect for the players who have come here, so believe me.

“I can tell you that I’m excited about Steve Patterson for one reason. I haven’t spent a lot of time with him, but I can just tell you this … Mack Brown said to me, ‘You can trust Steve Patterson. Everything he did with me, he was upfront, first-class, so you can trust everything he tells you.’ I just know we’ve got this program back to where we want it, and now it’s just building on it.”

Barnes believes the Longhorns could be “a player away” from getting back to discussion of national prominence for the right reasons. Maybe the player to help restore the program to prominence is Euless Trinity standout Myles Turner. He’s being heavily recruited by several schools, including Texas, and is expected to be a difference-maker wherever he winds up.
FW Star-Telegram


Michael Frazier II scored a career-high 21 points and No. 7 Florida handled Georgia 72-50 on Tuesday night, setting a school record for consecutive home wins.

The undermanned Gators won their 25th straight at the O'Connell Center, topping the previous mark set between March 2006 and November 2007. Two-time national champions Corey Brewer, Taurean Green, Al Horford and Joakim Noah did most of the heavy lifting in that streak.
AP

Michael Qualls has a history of poster-worthy dunks in his two seasons at Arkansas.

His latest might just become a thing of legend all around the state.

Qualls slammed home a thundering two-hand rebound dunk with .2 seconds remaining in overtime to send Arkansas to an 87-85 victory over No. 13 Kentucky on Tuesday night.

The win came at a time of desperation for the Razorbacks (12-4, 1-2 Southeastern Conference), who had opened SEC play with two losses — including a heartbreaking overtime defeat to No. 7 Florida at home on Saturday.

And it came in dramatic fashion, thanks to the high-flying Qualls, who said he also won two games in high school with last-second rebound dunks.
AP


As he was leaving the floor at Bud Walton Arena after UK’s 87-85 overtime loss to the Razorbacks, UK’s Aaron Harrison and an Arkansas fan exchanged words.

Herald-Leader photographer Mark Cornelison got a couple of pictures of the brief encounter.
Lex HL

Former Kentucky star Richie Farmer was sentenced Tuesday to more than two years in prison for abusing his power as the state's agriculture commissioner.

Farmer hired friends and had them do little to no work and also had state employees run errands, including having them build a basketball court at his home, prosecutors said.

He was sentenced to 27 months in federal prison and ordered to pay $120,500 in restitution.
AP


Bradley coach Geno Ford gives a straight-forward scouting report on No. 5 Wichita State. Believe the numbers and believe the reputation.

"We've actually been playing well the past three games and they just had their way," Ford said. "They're a great team. They deserve their ranking."

The Shockers routed Bradley, 72-50, on Tuesday night at Koch Arena to remain one of the nation's three unbeaten teams and extend its school-record win streak to 18 games. On Saturday, the Shockers needed to rally from 19 points to win at Missouri State in overtime. On Tuesday, the Braves offered no resistance after the early minutes.

WSU coach Gregg Marshall started playing his deep reserves with 13 minutes to play, treating fans to the unexpected sight of walk-on John Robert Simon guarding Bradley leading scorer Walt Lemon Jr. The Shocker starters, three of whom played 40-plus minutes Saturday, relaxed and cheered from the bench for most of the game's final 10 minutes.
Wichita Eagle


Wisconsin fell from the ranks of the unbeaten on Tuesday, losing at Indiana and giving the Hoosiers a much-needed marquee win.

Three-point attempts from Traevon Jackson and Ben Brust didn't fall in the final seconds, enabling the Hoosiers to hang on for the 75-72 win.
CBS


On Tuesday night the unranked Indiana Hoosiers beat the #3 Wisconsin Badgers 75-72 in an exciting game that came down to the last possession. After IU locked up the win, many of the younger fans in attendance at Assembly Hall stormed the court, hugging their classmates and cheering and generally acting like happy college kids.

For some NCAA basketball fans and pundits, this was a Bad Move.

It was a Bad Move because rushing the court, presumably, should be saved for big occasions. And when a school with the basketball history of Indiana rushes the court for a mid-season win, it shows a proper lack of respect both for the game and to the school's history of big wins. By rushing the court during any old win, the argument goes, it demeans the truly big, important wins.

This is dumb.

It's dumb for a lot of reasons, a few of which are here:
Indy Star


The NCAA and conference realignment on their own are completely absurd, so once you start throwing frivolous lawsuits in the mix, it’s a real joyride. The ACC is demanding a whole bunch of exit fee money — $52.3 million — from Big Ten-bound Maryland, which naturally doesn’t want to pay money if it doesn’t have to.

The ACC got really mad, and then Maryland started stomping their feet really loudly and is now alleging the ACC tried to “lure other schools” from the Big Ten. That means Maryland deserves, I dunno,somewhere in the realm of $157 million, give or take.

Lawsuits make you all warm and fuzzy, don’t they? Here’s what will probably happen: There will be a big public show from both sides because this is what these people do. Then they’ll make threats and claims. Then they’ll make more threats and claims. And eventually they’ll settle on an amount that’s less than the original exit fee and definitely not $157 million.

College sports is big business, and no amount of speculating on whether or not Wake Forest and Pittsburgh invited Northwestern and Penn State, or some other Big Ten friends, to go bowling with them even though they were already supposed to go to Jenny’s house because they were going to watch Now and Then and order pizza is going to change that.
SI


CourtVisionAnalytics: Where Do Rebounds Go?


Yahoo Forde: When did college basketball become an old man’s game?


Athlon: 10 midseason disappointments


TSN: Fix college athletics’ academic crisis by having a Sports major


Big XII composite schedule (includes results, highlights, stats)


ESPN College GameDay Schedule


2013-14 TV Schedule

Recruiting

1/14/14, 6:00 PM
Curie up 48-22 at half vs Dunbar. @humblekid11 has 14pts. Mostly dunks. Jesse Jackson + Kansas coach Jerrance Howard in Curie crowd
@14judge


At Curie to see Cliff Alexander @humblekid11 play, he told me earlier "Everytime I get the ball I try to break the backboard" #KU #ChiHoops
@Beth_Long


Big week ahead for Huntington Prep


Irving rallied from a 17-0 second-quarter deficit, with R.J. Wills hitting a layup with 2.5 seconds left in a 37-36 win over Euless Trinity, the state’s sixth-ranked Class 5A boys team.

Kishion Mitchell hit a 3-pointer with 1:02 left, giving Irving its first lead of the game. Trinity’s 5-star post player, Myles Turner, answered with a 3-pointer with nine seconds left, giving Trinity a one-point lead and setting up Wills' last-second heroics.

Trinity (16-6, 5-1) is tied with Irving MacArthur for first place in District 6-5A, one game ahead of Irving. Turner had seven points, eight rebounds and five blocks.

…King McClure, Triple A Academy, guard: Scored 33 points as Triple A, the state’s fourth-ranked 3A team, beat No. 8 Wilmer-Hutchins, 90-83. Tyler Singleton added 28 points for Triple A. Triple A won the Class A Division I state championship last season before moving up to 3A.
Link


Australian Dante Exum has completed meetings with eight powerhouse player representation agencies and left them a strong impression that he plans to enter the June NBA draft, sources told Yahoo Sports.

Several of the agents who traveled to Sydney to meet with Exum, 18, and his family over recent weeks believe it's inevitable that the gifted young forward will bypass college basketball and enter the talent-rich 2014 NBA draft class.
Yahoo


Hoophall Classic schedule (Jan 16-20)

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