KCMB Kansas City News: KU schedule

Showing posts with label KU schedule. Show all posts

Thursday, February 21, 2013

Kansas Beats Oklahoma State In Double Overtime

In a critical game for the Big 12 title race, the Kansas Jayhawks won a double overtime thriller against the Oklahoma State Cowboys, 68-67. The win moves Kansas back into first place, and KU now has its sights set on a ninth consecutive league title after winning the hardest game left on its schedule.

Oklahoma State and Kansas are both top defensive teams, which was on full display last night as both failed to get anything going offensively. Kansas’ Ben McLemore struggled from the floor, but the Jayhawks once again got a strong game from point guard Elijah Johnson, who attacked the rim and took good care of the ball. For the most part, Kansas was carried by Travis Releford (18 points) and Jeff Withey (17 points).

Kansas led for almost the entire second half, and seemed on the verge of putting the game out of reach when Releford made an acrobatic layup to give Kansas a four point lead late in the game. However, Oklahoma State rallied back to force overtime, and forced a second OT when Kansas again let a lead slip away. Both teams stalled on offense, as Johnson fouled out for Kansas and star freshman Marcus Smart fouled out for Oklahoma State. At the end of the game, KU’s Naadir Tharpe got into the lane and hit a short jumper, which gave KU a one point lead. In the final seconds, Oklahoma State’s Markel Brown took a tough jumper that missed, and Releford made an acrobatic save along the sideline to prevent a dead ball and allow the clock to run out. It was a deservingly thrilling finish to the biggest game of the Big 12 season.

Kansas has a favorable home schedule remaining, as it hosts TCU, West Virginia and Texas Tech – the three worst teams in the league. Kansas will face another tough test on Monday when they travel to Ames to take on a good Iowa State team. If the Jayhawks can win that one, it may be nearly impossible for KU to lose out on a ninth consecutive Big 12 title.

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Friday, February 15, 2013

A Closer Look At Kansas' Upcoming Schedule

After once again embarrassing K-State in Allen Fieldhouse, the Jayhawks have grabbed a share of first place in the Big 12 and positioned themselves to make a run at a ninth consecutive Big 12 championship. While blowing out the Wildcats will help the Jayhawks erase the memories of its recent three-game losing streak, KU still has a very tough remaining schedule.

Kansas’ home games are not very daunting, as they face Texas, TCU, West Virginia and Texas Tech in the comfortable confines of Allen Fieldhouse. Texas could present the most problems, as the Longhorns recently got star point guard Myck Kabongo back from suspension. The Longhorns just knocked off a tough Iowa State team in double overtime, and gave Kansas all sorts of problems earlier in the season. Still, Kansas will be the favorite Saturday and a heavy favorite in its other remaining home games.

The road games are where things get tricky for the Jayhawks. First, Kansas will travel to Stillwater to face Oklahoma State – the team that gave Kansas a rare home loss twelve days ago. Oklahoma State has been playing very well lately, and Kansas has a history of stumbling in Stillwater. Things don’t get any easier for KU in its next road game, as they travel to Ames to face Iowa State. The Jayhawks needed a Ben McLemore banked three to force overtime at home against the Cyclones, and lost in Ames last year. Kansas closes out the year visiting the talented – yet inconsistent – Baylor Bears. While KU easily dispatched the Bears earlier in the year, Baylor has NBA talent, and may be fighting for an NCAA tournament berth.

It appears that Kansas’ race for another league title may simply come down to two games: at Oklahoma State and at Iowa State. If KU wins both of these games, it may be impossible for the Jayhawks to not claim at least a share of the league title.

Monday, February 11, 2013

Kansas Looks To Snap Losing Streak Tonight Against Kansas State

The Kansas Jayhawks have lost three straight games for the first time in eight years, and things do not get any easier tonight. KU will host Kansas State, who currently has a one game lead over the Jayhawks in the Big 12 standings. The game will begin at 8:00 p.m.

K-State currently controls its own destiny in the Big 12, but it will likely take a rare win over Kansas to take the league crown. The Wildcats have lost 45 of 48 against Kansas, and have been routinely blown out in Allen Fieldhouse. The two teams met earlier this season, and KU prevailed 59-55 in Manhattan.

The key to beating KState will be outside shooting, as the Wildcats have hit 41 percent of their threes during its current win streak. KSU struggled from three against KU in the first meeting between the two schools, with Rodney McGruder and Angel Rodriguez shooting a combined 8 of 22. Despite Kansas’ struggles, KState will have to shoot better than the 35 percent clip it had the last time it faced the Jayhawks.

Most of Kansas’ problems start at point guard, where senior ElijahJohnson has struggled mightily during the Jayhawks losing streak. In the past three games, Johnson is shooting 9 of 37 from the floor, including 5 of 21 from three. Even worse, he has had several costly turnovers late in games when KU still had a chance to pull out a win. If Johnson can take care of the basketball and hit some shots, the Jayhawks’ struggling offense will begin to look a whole lot better.

Kansas has struggled recently, but the Jayhawks began to look better against Oklahoma on Saturday. KU is due for a good game, and it may come at home where Allen Fieldhouse will be rocking. This could be the point where the Jayhawks turn it around – or its streak of conference titles will be on life support.