No. 6 Jayhawks to Host No. 9 Cowboys Wednesday in Men's Hoops
Jan. 8, 2007
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It’s a battle of two Top 10 teams as No. 6 Kansas (13-2, 0-0) plays host to No. 9/10 Oklahoma State (15-1, 1-0) at Allen Fieldhouse Wednesday at 8 p.m. on ESPN2. KU has won a season-long seven straight after its 70-54 win at South Carolina Sunday. OSU brings a four-game winning streak into Allen Fieldhouse after defeating Baylor 81-77 Saturday in Stillwater. The Jayhawks have won 15 straight conference-openers with their last loss in a league-opener to Oklahoma on Jan. 8, 1991.
About Kansas
Kansas is the second of a four-game stretch in eight days. The No. 6 Jayhawks started the New Year with a 70-54 win at South Carolina, play host to Oklahoma State tonight, then travel to Iowa State Saturday and return home to face Missouri on ESPN’s Big Monday. Kansas is scoring 77 points a game and giving up 57.8 points. KU is outrebounding foes by seven a game – 39.4 to 32.4 – and holding them to 37.1 percent shooting. KU has 111 blocked shots to its opponents’ 35. Sophomore guard Brandon Rush leads the team in scoring at 13.3 points per game. His 27 three-point field goals also lead the squad. Sophomore guard Mario Chalmers is next in scoring at 12.7 points per game and is averaging 18.7 points in his last four contests, including 19 at South Carolina. He leads KU with 43 steals. Freshman forward Darrell Arthur comes off the bench and is averaging 12.5 points per contest. Arthur’s 32 blocked shots are a team best. Sophomore forward Julian Wright’s eight rebounds a game are a team high and he is scoring 11.9 points per contest. Freshman guard Sherron Collins and junior forward Darnell Jackson are top reserves. Collins is scoring 7.4 points per game, while Jackson has a 6.2 average. Junior guard Russell Robinson is a starter who leads the team in assists with 71 to go along with his 6.1 scoring average.
About Oklahoma State
No. 9/10 Oklahoma State is currently 15-1 on the season and opened Big 12 play with an 81-77 win against Baylor Saturday. The Cowboys opened the year 11-0, then lost against Tennessee (79-77) in Nashville. Tonight will be OSU’s first true road game of the season yet the Cowboys are 5-1 on neutral courts. OSU averages 84.9 points per game and is giving up 68.2. Oklahoma State is shooting 51.3 percent from the field and outrebounding foes 37.4 to 31.8. Senior forward Mario Boggan leads the team and is second in the Big 12 in scoring at 21.9 points per game. His 7.8 rebound average also leads OSU and is fifth in the league. Junior guard JamesOn Curry is next in scoring at 18.9 points per game and leads the team with 43 three pointers and 75 assists. Sophomore guard Terrel Harris is next in scoring at 11.6 points per game and his 30 steals are a team best. Senior forward David Monds (7.6 ppg, 5.6 rpg) and junior guard/forward Marcus Dove (6.4 ppg, 4.6 rpg) round out the Cowboy starters.
The Series
Kansas leads the overall series with Oklahoma State, 100-51, including a 54-10 record in games played in Lawrence (39-8 in Allen Fieldhouse). This series dates back to 1926 and Kansas has won the last 12 matchups in Allen Fieldhouse dating back to the 1990 season. The Jayhawks won last season’s two meetings – a 64-49 win in Stillwater and a 63-62 thriller in the quarterfinals of the Big 12 Championship in Dallas. KU has won six of the last eight matchups. OSU’s last win was in the semifinals of the 2005 Big 12 Championship in Kansas City (78-75).
Up Next
Kansas hits the road for a Big 12 matchup at Iowa State on Saturday. Tip time from Hilton Coliseum is set for 1 p.m. and the game can be seen on ESPN. KU then returns home to face Border Showdown foe Missouri on ESPN’s Big Monday with tip set for 8 p.m. from Allen Fieldhouse.
