Kansas가 Kansas St.를 상대로 22연승, Kansas St.의 홈인 Manhattan에서 29연승 행진을 이어갔다. Aaron Miles의 부진(8턴오버)에도 불구하고 Langford와 Simien의 활약으로 승리했다.
이제 거의 모든 역경을 이겨낸 것 같다. 작년에는 모든 선수가 일정 수준 이상 해줘야 이길 수 있었는데 올해는 한 명이 부진해도 나머지 선수들이 공백을 메우며 올해 팀이 작년에 비해 성장한 증거다. 특히 3점슛의 괄목할만한 발전이 눈에 띈다. 이제 3점은 우리의 약점이 아니라 힘이다.
Kansas의 유일한 약점은 볼핸들링이다. Aaron Miles 외에는 탁월한 볼핸들러가 없다. 압박 수비가 강한 상대를 만났을 때(Oklahoma, Oklahoma St.) 어떻게 대처하는 지 눈여겨봐야겠다.
Highlights | Photos
KANSAS HEAD COACH Bill Self
On scoring by Keith Langford, J.R. Giddens and Wayne Simien...
"I think there have been some times where that [three players scored majority of points] has happened. The rest of our team scored about nine. Those three were good, especially offensively. We had some guys play out of character tonight. Aaron [Miles] has been so good, but to have so many unforced errors is not indicative of how good he can play. Christian [Moody] didn't get a chance to play at all tonight, so those three had to come through for us to have a chance to win."
On scoring runs being the difference in the game...
"The end of the first half and the first five to seven minutes of the second half, that 10 minutes was maybe the difference in the game. It was exactly the same game as last year's game, where we went on a run right before halftime to go up and hang on for dear life."
On defending K-State's Jeremiah Massey
"In the first half Sasha [Kaun] did a great job. We thought Sasha and Christian [Moody] were the two best to guard him. We felt like we knew what he would do when he caught it and he did it and was effective. We tried trapping him the last seven or eight minutes and we did a better job, but he still found a way to muscle his way in there. He is a good player and we certainly could have done a better job, but I give him credit."
KANSAS STATE HEAD COACH JIM WOOLDRIDGE
On Jeremiah Massey's first half shooting
"I think maybe past the first couple (shots) he had a few good looks down there. For the most part, I felt like he got some good looks at the basket."
On cutting Kansas' 17-point second half lead to four points
"We just made some shots. I think that's the key when you play a team that has as many weapons as they have. We had to stay on pace with them offensively. We had a coupe of droughts in there where they kept scoring and we didn't. We'd dig ourselves a hole, dig out of it, then dig ourselves another hole and dig out of it again. That takes a lot of energy. They've just got some guys on their team that are pretty difficult match-ups, so you have to keep pace with them offensively and we just weren't able to do that."
SENIOR FORWARD Wayne Simien
On prolonging the streak...
"It means a lot; I have a lot of friends who go to Kansas State. I grew up watching K-State football. It is a rivalry game regardless of the win-loss record. We run into each other a lot during the summer working at camps, so we get along off the court."
On the upcoming game against Colorado...
"Every game is important, and every game we play from now on is a championship game. This is the time when we set ourselves apart from the rest of the league, and it doesn't matter who comes in. We are going to treat it like a big game."
SOPHOMORE GUARD J.R. Giddens
On playing on the road...
"I like to play on the road. After we win, it is fun to look into the stands with a little grin on my face. The trashtalk from the fans motivates me."
On Kansas State's three-point shooting...
"They are a good team. They shot their threes well. I think they are one of the best three-point shooting teams in the league and in the nation. We knew we had to hold them off until the end of the game."
SENIOR GUARD Keith Langford
On the streak...
"We were satisfied with the win tonight. We did not want to let the streak end on our watch. We wanted to continue to lead and do what the others have done before us."
SENIOR GUARD Aaron Miles
On his play tonight...
"I was a little angry with myself for mishandling the ball. I had eight turnovers, but we still won. That is all that matters. We are 9-0 now."
On Kansas State's run in the second half...
"In college basketball you expect teams to make runs. I think (their run) was keyed off of turnovers and bad passes, but you have got to withstand the run. We were able to stop the clock and make freethrows in the end."
MANHATTAN, Kan. (AP) -- Kansas State scored 65 points. So did Kansas' trio of Wayne Simien, Keith Langford and J.R. Giddens.
Toss in nine points from four teammates and the third-ranked Jayhawks had a 74-65 victory Wednesday night, stretching their winning streak against their frustrated state rivals to 29 games.
Even more improbable is the 22-game winning streak the Jayhawks have strung together on the Wildcats' home court. Kansas has not lost in Manhattan since 1983.
"It's one of the most unbelievable things we have in sports," Kansas coach Bill Self said. "You just don't have this away from home. A lot of lucky bounces and a lot of good teams, and tonight we were fortunate to have both."
A sellout crowd -- the first at Bramlage Coliseum since Kansas was here in 2003 -- carried anti-Kansas signs and put up a roar through most of the game. Someone even managed to throw a live chicken under the Kansas bench shortly before tipoff.
But the Jayhawks (19-1, 9-0 Big 12) never trailed and withstood a late rally to win their fifth in a row since playing poorly in their only loss of the season at Villanova.
"We played pretty well for the most part but we got some lucky breaks, too," Self. said
"It's going to end. There's no doubt it's going to end," he said of the streak. "I certainly hope we can extend it as long as possible."
The Wildcats (13-7, 3-6) uncorked a 14-2 run late in the game that included Fred Peete's 3-pointer followed by five straight points by Jeremiah Massey. Cartier Martin's jumper brought the crowd to its feet and sliced the lead to 58-54 with 4:21 to go.
But then Simien made a free throw and Langford broke Kansas State's zone defense by driving the lane for a layup at the shot-clock buzzer. A moment later when the Wildcats threatened again, Giddens hit a 3-pointer from deep in the corner that Self said was the biggest basket of the game.
"After we win, it's fun to look into the stands with a little grin on my face," Giddens said. "The trash talk from the fans motivates me."
With 1:16 left, Peete hit a 3-pointer to answer one by Giddens and make it 64-59.
Simien made two free throws and increased the lead to 73-64 with less than a minute left.
Simien had 23 points and 13 rebounds -- his 30th career double-double -- Langford had 24 points and Giddens added 18, including 4-of-6 shooting from 3-point range. The senior-dominated Jayhawks shot 53 percent and held Kansas State, which has only one senior among its top six players, to 38 percent.
Peete and Massey each had 20 points for Kansas State, which has lost three in a row overall.
"They've got an awfully good basketball team," Kansas State coach Jim Wooldridge said. "They can move it from spot to spot and there is always a weapon waiting on it."
The loss left Wooldridge 0-10 in five seasons against his school's most hated rival. He is 64-72 since taking over a program that had sunk to the depths of the Big 12 under Tom Asbury.
"I kind of feel bad for Jim to be honest with you because it's not fair to put (the streak) all on him," Self said. "I know there's a lot of people who would be very disappointed in our team if we don't come over here and be successful."
In one of the longest streaks of any rivalry in college basketball in recent years, Kansas State has not beaten Kansas since upsetting the top-ranked Jayhawks 68-64 at Allen Fieldhouse on Jan. 17, 1994.
Kansas, which last lost in Manhattan on Jan. 29, 1983, closed out the first half on a 9-2 run for a 35-25 lead.