Big 12 Conference Notebook
by Zach Ewing
Can Texas go on without Tucker?
The Texas Longhorns were blasted with some bad news this past week when they learned that star forward P.J. Tucker is academically ineligible based on the fall semester and will not play again this season. Tucker led the team with 13.7 points and 8.0 rebounds a game and has been the only Longhorn to step up in several games this season. He will be sorely missed.
“I feel for P.J. right now,” coach Rick Barnes said in a news release Thursday. “We hope he can learn a huge lesson from this and come back as a stronger and more mature person. There’s no question that his loss will affect our team. It does create opportunities for some other guys.”
In addition, freshman center LaMarcus Aldridge is still out indefinitely with a knee injury that sidelined him for both Texas’ games last week.
The good news in Austin is that with Aldridge out and Tucker in foul trouble for the first half last Monday against Oklahoma State, the Longhorns were still able to go into halftime with a 12-point lead. Then, on Saturday at Oklahoma, Texas’ first game without Tucker, the balanced Longhorn squad was able to lead throughout the game before falling 64-60. It was a gutty performance by a team that showed it wouldn’t roll over without the star sophomore.
But without Tucker and Aldridge, Kevin Bookout and Oklahoma out-rebounded the Longhorns 42-33, something that doesn’t happen to Texas very often. The question, then, is whether UT can overcome this loss and still be the top-15 team they have been all year. Barnes has a very balanced team and it is possible, if perimeter players like Kenton Paulino and Daniel Gibson can score a lot of points, and if the once-deep front line that now consists of Jason Klotz and Brad Buckman (and Aldridge, when he comes back) can keep bigger, deeper teams at bay without getting into foul trouble. It won’t be easy.
Kansas smoked in Philly
The Big 12 lost its only undefeated team Saturday when Kansas walked right into a trap at Villanova and lost 83-62. The No. 2 Jayhawks were behind from the opening tip and were down by seven at halftime. Then, things got really ugly. Allan Ray and Curtis Sumpter started making three-pointers from everywhere on the floor and the Wildcats scored 31 of the first 36 points after halftime, extending their lead to a whopping 32 points at 72-40. Ray had 27 points and Sumpter finished with 25; they combined for 11 three-pointers.
KU coach Bill Self said the loss was a result of a lot of things the Jayhawks weren’t doing well catching up with them. He benched all of his starters for a long stretch midway through the second half to send them a message. After a respite against Baylor on Tuesday, he’ll see if his players got the message Saturday when they play host to Texas.
Buffs get a much-needed boost
Through the first two and a half weeks of conference play, one thing was clear: Colorado, with losses to Nebraska and Baylor included in the team’s 0-4 conference start. But the Buffaloes could see a glimmer of hope this week. Despite an embarrassing loss to Baylor on Wednesday, CU got good news with the early return of Julius Ashby, a powerful forward who was supposed to be out two months with a torn tendon in his foot. Instead, Ashby returned a month early and played 16 minutes against the Bears, making all three of his field goal attempts and finishing with six points. Saturday, the Buffaloes got their first Big 12 win of the season at Iowa State and Ashby was a big reason why. Despite shooting just 1-of-7, he contributed with 13 rebounds in 38 minutes of play.
Oklahoma keeps on rolling
Kansas’ loss left no unbeaten in the Big 12, but there are still two teams that haven’t lost in conference play: the Jayhawks, and the somewhat surprising Oklahoma Sooners. OU continued its run this week with two tough victories, at Texas A&M 70-54 and at home against Texas by a score of 64-60. Drew Lavender had a huge day in College Station with 23 points and OU blew open a close game with a 13-1 finishing run. The Sooners had a little more trouble with the Longhorns, but a three-point play from Kevin Bookout and a Lavender three-pointer in the game’s final two minutes gave OU its first win in the Red River Shootout in six tries, and gave the Sooners a perfect 4-0 conference mark.
On the flip side…
Iowa State has made a mess of its season. After losing three straight tough games at Missouri, versus Kansas and at Oklahoma State, ISU was supposed to get back on track at home against lowly Colorado. But the Cyclones instead suffered an inexplicable loss, 54-52 in overtime. It was an ugly game, in which neither team shot better than 35 percent, and CU’s Andy Osborn won it with a three-pointer with 15.9 seconds left in the extra period. It left the Cyclones as the lone winless team in the conference.
Big 12 Conference Player of the Week
Ronald Ross, Texas Tech — Ross’ play in a 78-62 victory at Missouri was a microcosm of how the Red Raiders performed as a whole. He scored many of his 22 points on easy baskets and thus shot 8-of-11 from the floor in Tech’s only game of the week. The Red Raiders are now 3-1 in the Big 12.
Big 12 Conference Rookie of the Week
Daniel Gibson, Texas — This choice was too easy. Gibson, whose play will have to elevate with P.J. Tucker gone for the season, scored 27 points and had 10 rebounds in the Longhorn’s 75-61 upset of Oklahoma State. He also drew Joey Graham’s all-important fifth foul with more than eight minutes left in the game. Gibson then had 18 points and five assists in a 64-60 loss to Oklahoma.
Big 12 standings (games through Jan. 23)
Team Big 12 Overall Kansas 4-0 14-1 Oklahoma 4-0 15-2 Oklahoma State 4-1 14-2 Texas Tech 3-1 11-4 Texas 3-2 14-4 Texas A&M 2-3 12-3 Missouri 2-3 10-8 Nebraska 2-3 8-7 Kansas State 1-3 11-4 Baylor 1-3 9-6 Colorado 1-4 9-7 Iowa State 0-4 8-7
Around the Big 12
Baylor Bears (9-6 overall, 1-3 Big 12)
For the second straight season, Baylor has surprised everyone by simply winning a conference game. This year, the woefully undermanned Bears turned the trick Wednesday at home against Colorado. The 67-59 victory was decided at the beginning of each half. BU had an 18-1 run to start the game, and after Colorado closed to 34-29 at halftime, Baylor had an 11-5 run to start the second and took a 45-34 lead it would not relinquish. Four Bears scored in double figures, led by Aaron Bruce’s 14. Tommy Swanson, Baylor’s only returning scholarship player, had 13 points and 10 rebounds. Baylor’s nine wins surpass its total from all of last year.
It was a much different story Saturday in Stillwater. Baylor hung with the host Cowboys for most of the game, but in the end, Oklahoma State cruised to an 82-53 win. The Bears actually had an early 18-11 lead, but that was erased by a 19-1 Cowboy run. Baylor then cut the lead to 42-34 early in the second half, but OSU responded with a 7-0 run and Baylor never got closer than 10 the rest of the way. Tim Bush had 19 points and seven rebounds for the Bears to go with Swanson’s 15 points and 11 points and seven boards from Bruce.
This week: Tuesday vs. Kansas State, Saturday at Texas A&M
Colorado Buffaloes (9-7, 1-4)
Ricardo Patton’s team controlled play for much of its Wednesday tilt with Baylor, but a big BU run at the start of each half doomed the Buffaloes to a 67-59 loss. After falling behind 18-1, the Buffaloes came back within five at halftime thanks to 13 points from Richard Roby. But when Baylor extended its lead to 11 after a second-half run, the Buffs couldn’t cut the lead to less than seven. Roby had only two second-half points, but still led the team with 15. Glean Eddy added 12 points and nine rebounds, Jayson Obazuaye had 10 points and six boards, and forward Julius Ashby returned from injury to get six points and three rebounds on 3-of-3 shooting in 16 minutes.
Just when it looked like things couldn’t get any worse for the basketball fans in Boulder, they got a lot better. Colorado shot just 33 percent from the field and had 20 turnovers in an extremely ugly game Saturday at Iowa State, but managed to win 54-52 in overtime. CU led 42-37 with 4:46 left in regulation, but couldn’t score again and let the Cyclones tie the game at 42. The Buffaloes then erased a 52-50 Iowa State lead with a three-pointer from right of the key by Andy Osborn with 15.9 seconds to play. ISU couldn’t score on two tries late in the final seconds, and CU held on to win. Despite the woeful shooting, the Buffaloes won because they also held ISU to 35 percent from the floor and out-rebounded Iowa State 54-35, including 22 offensive rebounds. Glean Eddy had a double-double with 12 points and 11 rebounds.
This week: Wednesday vs. Missouri, Sunday vs. Oklahoma State
Iowa State Cyclones (8-7, 0-4)
The 54-52 OT loss to Colorado, was Iowa State’s only game of the week, which made it a pretty bad seven days. After only losing one game at Hilton Coliseum all of last year, ISU has now lost its first two Big 12 games at home. The loss was also the 10th straight overtime loss in conference play for the Cyclones. Jared Homan tied the game at 42 with 1:14 left in regulation, but Iowa State missed three shots in the final 10 seconds of regulation and then lost on Andy Osborn’s three-pointer. After the three, Damion Staple missed a shot in the paint. Osborn missed one of two free throws with about five seconds left, but Iowa State’s inbounds pass was batted around until there was only 0.1 second left on the clock. Curtis Stinson led the Cyclones with 15 points, nine rebounds and five assists, but shot just 6-of-19. Likewise, Will Blalock had 14 points and five assists but was only 5-of-14, and Homan had 11 points and eight rebounds but shot just 4-of-11.
If things don’t get better soon for Iowa State, they won’t and the NCAA Tournament will be only a dream. Wednesday’s game at Kansas State is a must-win.
This week: Wednesday at Kansas State, Saturday vs. Oklahoma
Kansas Jayhawks (14-1, 4-0)
Saturday’s blow-out loss to Villanova looked shocking at first glance, but it was actually a long time in coming. For an example, look at Wednesday’s 59-57 survival at home versus Nebraska. The Jayhawks played a sloppy, half-hearted game full of mistakes: they shot just 13-of-28 from the free-throw line, were out-rebounded 43-36 and continually let the Huskers back in the game. Wayne Simien had no points or rebounds in the first half because of foul trouble, but when he returned, Kansas started the second half on a 10-0 run to take a seven-point lead. But Joe McCray led Nebraska back within 58-57 in the closing minutes. Aaron Miles hit one free throw to make it a two-point game, but KU needed a miss of a wide-open three from Corey Simms to survive. Despite the quiet first half, Simien had 12 points and seven rebounds. No other Jayhawk finished in double figures, although Alex Galindo’s eight points were crucial in keeping Kansas close in the opening half.
All of those mistakes finally caught up with Kansas on Saturday afternoon in Philadelphia. Villanova handed the Jayhawks their worst loss in more than four years by a score of 83-62. But the game wasn’t even that close. With the score 41-34 Villanova at halftime, the Wildcats started the second on a 15-2 run. After three KU points, ‘Nova scored 16 more unanswered and led 72-40. Wayne Simien had 15 points, eight rebounds and six assists, but not much else went right. The statistics were telling: Villanova shot 12-of-19 from three-point range and got 52 points from Curtis Sumpter and Allan Ray, while Kansas had 22 turnovers and enough sloppy play to make coach Bill Self bench nearly all of his regulars for a long stretch in the second half. He’s hoping the experience will wake his boys up.
This week: Tuesday at Baylor, Saturday vs. Texas
Kansas State Wildcats (11-4, 1-3)
After its best game of the year, a 74-54 win against Missouri, K-State got the whole week to practice for Saturday’s game at Texas A&M. It didn’t help much. The Wildcats made a 10-0 run to end the first half tied at 30, but couldn’t get any offense going in the second. Kansas State had only 15 points through the first 17 minutes of the second half.
Meanwhile, the Aggies were going hog-wild behind Acie Law and Antoine Wright. The Aggies ended up winning 65-51. Jeremiah Massey was the only offensive presence for K-State, as he scored 20 points on 7-of-11 shooting. The normally productive Fred Peete was held to two points on 1-of-11 shooting and KSU, third in the country at 43 percent three-point shooting, shot just 23 percent from beyond the arc.
This week: Wednesday vs. Iowa State, Saturday at Missouri
Missouri Tigers (10-8, 2-3)
Mizzou’s second straight poor performance ended in a 78-62 loss to Texas Tech at home on Wednesday. The Tigers trailed for the entire first half, but were within 44-40 early in the second when the game’s key sequence began. MU stole a Tech pass, but Thomas Gardner was unable to finish in transition. The Red Raiders came down the court and drained a three-pointer on the ensuing possession and turned what could have been a two-point game into a seven-point game. That sparked a 16-3 Texas Tech run that made the score 57-42. Missouri settled for poor looks from behind the three-point line way too many times and finished 4-of-20 from long distance. Linas Kleiza had 10 points and 12 rebounds but wasn’t enough of a factor as MU allowed the Raiders too many easy looks inside.
The Tigers put forth a much better effort Saturday afternoon in their 80-70 victory at home against Nebraska, and Kleiza was certainly a big factor. He scored a career-high 31 points and had 10 rebounds. Missouri, which has struggled all year on offense, faced a Husker team that gives up an average of just 58 points a game, but was able to score by dishing the ball inside to Kleiza and by driving into the paint. That resulted in a lot of trips to the free-throw line: 26-of-31 for Missouri (including 15-of-17 for Kleiza) against only 8-of-10 for Nebraska. Still, Mizzou was only ahead 52-51 with 12:28 left when they embarked on a long 18-5 run to take a 70-56 eight minutes later. To go with Kleiza’s 31, Gardner had 17 points on 6-of-9 shooting, including a three-pointer at the first-half buzzer that gave MU a 38-37 lead. Jimmy McKinney added 13 points.
This week: Wednesday at Colorado, Saturday vs. Kansas State
Nebraska Cornhuskers (8-7, 2-3)
Maybe if Corey Simms practiced a few more threes, Lincoln would be talking about a huge upset, but instead, Nebraska’s game at Kansas on Wednesday was just a 59-57 loss. Simms had shot (and missed) only two three-pointers all year, but he was the one with a wide-open look in the final seconds at Allen Fieldhouse. He took the shot, but it rimmed out as all of Lawrence exhaled. Nebraska, taking advantage of Wayne Simien’s first-half foul trouble, took a 24-21 halftime lead, but fell behind on Kansas’ 10-0 run to start the second half. The Huskers, despite shooting just 32 percent, continued to keep it close because of KU’s missed free throws and Joe McCray’s performance. The freshman scored eight straight NU points to cut a 51-45 Kansas lead and then hit a lay-up to cut the lead to 58-57, setting up Simms’ miss in the final seconds. McCray finished with 19 points and seven rounds and Wes Wilkinson added 16 points.
The Huskers were unable to capitalize on the momentum of that game and lost Saturday at Missouri 80-70. Four Nebraska players scored in double figures, led by McCray’s 16 and 14 from Wilkinson and Aleks Maric. But the offense disappeared for eight minutes late in the game, as Mizzou made the game-changing 18-5 run. In the first half, Wilkinson dunked for a 37-33 lead but was given a technical foul for hanging on the rim, setting up a 5-0 MU run that gave the Tigers the lead at the break. There was a scuffle on the court after the game that started when McCray tried to steal the ball from Jason Horton even though Horton was simply running out the clock.
This week: Wednesday vs. Texas A&M, Saturday at Texas Tech
Oklahoma Sooners (15-2, 4-0)
Two huge wins against tough opponents this week for Oklahoma, starting with a 70-54 road victory against Texas A&M on Tuesday. The game was still close, 57-53, when Lawrence McKenzie hit two three-pointers to spark a 13-1 run to end the game. Leading scorer Taj Gray was held scoreless, but OU shot 53 percent from the field against a team allowing an average of just 35 percent. Drew Lavender picked up Gray’s slack, scoring 23 points on 9-of-17 shooting. Kevin Bookout, Terrell Everett and McKenzie all had 12 points.
An even bigger win for the Sooners came at home on Saturday, when OU took out Texas 64-60. The Longhorns led for most of the game, but the Sooners made a 6-0 run to take a 48-43 lead. Texas answered with a 6-0 spurt of its own. It was 56-55 Oklahoma when Bookout made the play of the game, fighting off three Texas defenders and throwing up a lay-up that somehow went in as he was fouled. He made the free throw, and on the next possession, Lavender drilled a three for a 62-57 lead. McKenzie hit two free throws with 7.7 seconds left to seal the win. Bookout had a dominating 18 points and 13 rebounds, while McKenzie had 15 points.
This week: Monday vs. Oklahoma State, Saturday at Iowa State
Oklahoma State Cowboys (14-2, 4-1)
Foul trouble cost Oklahoma State big in its first conference loss of the year in a 75-61 defeat at Texas. Terrence Crawford and, more important, Joey Graham, both got three early fouls and had to sit the rest of the first half. OSU was still ahead 24-23 when Texas ended the first half on a 16-3 run to go into the locker room up 12. A 10-0 run at the start of the second half cut the lead to two, but Texas answered with a 10-2 run. With about eight and a half minutes left, Daniel Gibson drove into the lane and drew Graham’s fifth foul, and OSU never challenged again. Graham had 12 points, but was on the bench too long. Ivan McFarlin had 19 points and nine rebounds in his absence and John Lucas had 14 points.
Graham and the Cowboys were back in action Saturday, when they blasted Baylor 82-53. Graham had 24 points and seven rebounds and shot 9-of-11 from the field. A 19-1 run erased an early Baylor lead and made it 30-19 Oklahoma State. The Bears cut the lead to eight early in the second half, but the Cowboys answered with a 7-0 run and then scored the game’s last 14 points en route to their 25th consecutive home win. Graham made all four of his free throws, meaning he is now 35-of-35 since Jan. 3.
This week: Monday at Oklahoma, Sunday at Colorado
Texas Longhorns (14-4, 3-2)
Daniel Gibson made Texas fans forget about P.J. Tucker’s looming academic trouble Monday night, scoring 27 points and getting 10 rebounds. He had 17 points in a first half that Tucker mostly missed with foul trouble, including six points in a 16-3 run that gave UT a 39-27 halftime lead. But Tucker, playing in what was later revealed as his last game of the season, played a big role in the second half. When Oklahoma State cut the lead to 39-37, Tucker scored on a lay-up and dished to Kenton Paulino for a three before Gibson hit a three to make the score 49-39. Then, after the Cowboys cut the lead to 64-58, Paulino hit another three to seal the deal. Tucker had 15 points in his final game, and Paulino had 10 to go with Gibson’s fabulous 27.
The Longhorns couldn’t complete a tough week unscathed, however, losing 64-60 Saturday at Oklahoma. Without Tucker and the injured LaMarcus Aldridge, Texas was out-rebounded 42-33. Still, UT led for most of the game until Kevin Bookout and Drew Lavender stole the game for OU in the last five minutes. Gibson had another good game, scoring 18 and dishing five assists. He also made a shot to cut the Oklahoma lead to 62-60 late before the Sooners sealed it at the line. Brad Buckman added 12 points and nine rebounds and Jason Klotz had 14 points. Now, another very tough week ahead for Texas.
This week: Tuesday vs. Texas Tech, Saturday at Kansas
Texas A&M Aggies (12-3, 2-3)
The Aggies’ 11-game home winning streak was snapped last Tuesday in a 70-54 loss to Oklahoma. The first half was a tight affair, complete with eight ties and five lead changes, but A&M went the first five minutes of the second without a field goal and let the Sooners on a 14-2 run. Antoine Wright tried to lead the Aggies back, but they could get no closer than 57-53, the point at which OU went on a 13-1 run to end the game. Wright finished with 24 points on 8-of-12 shooting, but didn’t get any help. Acie Law had just eight points on 3-of-11 shooting.
A new home winning streak started in College Station with a 65-51 victory against Kansas State on Saturday. Acie Law hurt his ankle and limped into the locker early in the game, but returned before halftime. He and Wright had a huge second half. They scored all of the points in an 8-0 run that made it 55-40, and Law hit a jumper from the corner for a 61-44 lead. Law had a very complete game — 17 points, four rebounds and five assists while Wright had 14 points and seven rebounds.
This week: Wednesday at Nebraska, Saturday vs. Baylor
Texas Tech Red Raiders (11-4, 3-1)
Bobby Knight’s offensive schemes worked wonders in Columbia on Wednesday, leading Texas Tech to a lot of easy baskets and a 78-62 victory over Missouri. They also produced very balanced scoring, with four players scoring more than 15 points. Ronald Ross had 22 points on 8-of-11 shooting, Devonne Giles had 17 points and eight rebounds and Martin Zeno had 16 points and six assists. Jarrius Jackson had 15 of his 17 points in the first half as Tech took a 40-34 lead at the break. The game was decided, however, with a 16-3 run midway through the second half that gave the Red Raiders a 57-42 lead. TTU led by as many as 20 points in the closing minutes and scored 25 points off of 19 Missouri turnovers.
Since all-world player Andre Emmett graduated, Knight’s system seems to be working wonders for Texas Tech. They continually get easy baskets and force teams into mistakes on defense, and are staring directly at the NCAA Tournament if they continue this type of play. A marquee win, available this week at Texas, would really catapult the Red Raiders into the national spotlight.
This week: Tuesday at Texas, Saturday vs. Nebraska
Five games to watch this week
5. Oklahoma at Iowa State, Saturday: The Cyclones are talented enough to overcome their 0-4 conference start and rip off six or eight wins in a row. But they can’t afford a third loss at home, and Oklahoma will be a real challenge.
4. Texas A&M at Nebraska, Wednesday: Here’s a game that will break up the logjam of 2-3 teams in the middle of the conference. If A&M is for real, it has to win road games like this one.
3. Texas Tech at Texas, Tuesday: Texas will still be adjusting to life without P.J. Tucker, and Texas Tech is high-flying and ready to take the Longhorns out if they slip.
2. Texas at Kansas, Saturday: Two teams that have a lot of questions to answer: Can Kansas come back from the stomping it took at Villanova? Can Texas beat a high-level team without P.J. Tucker? Which one of these teams will be in the Big 12 championship race a month from now?
1. Oklahoma State at Oklahoma, Monday: ESPN has done a great job picking Big 12 games for its Big Monday package. This one should be terrific, with OU gunning to stay undefeated in conference and OSU trying to avoid a second straight Big Monday loss.
