Kansas to Take on Villanova in Men's Basketball
Game Notes in PDF Format
Jan. 21, 2005
No. 2 Kansas concludes its non-conference season at Villanova Saturday, Jan. 22. The game will tip at 11 a.m. (Central) from the Wachovia Center in Philadelphia. The game will air on ESPN and can be heard on the Jayhawk Radio Network.
The Jayhawks are one of four teams in NCAA Division I who remain undefeated. KU’s 14-0 record is the best start to a season since the 1996-97 team went 22-0. Kansas is coming off a 59-57 win against Nebraska on Wednesday. The Jayhawks improved to 4-0 in Big 12 play for the second straight season. Villanova returns home after a 67-66 loss at No. 9 Boston College. The Wildcats are 9-4 on the season and 2-3 in Big East play. Villanova’s four losses have been by six points or less and a combined 10 points total.
About Kansas
No. 2 Kansas has been ranked in the top two nationally the entire season after opening as the nation’s preseason No. 1 in both polls. The Jayhawks are coming off a 59-57 win against Big 12 foe Nebraska on Wednesday. The two-point win marked the sixth time in the last eight games KU has won by six points or less. The win made Kansas 4-0 in Big 12 play for the second straight season. Named Big 12 Player of the Week on Monday, senior forward Wayne Simien paced KU with 12 points and seven rebounds against Nebraska. The league’s preseason player of the year is the only conference player to currently average a double-double with 17 points and 11.7 rebounds. Senior guard Keith Langford is next in scoring at 14.3 points per game. He is also second on the team in assists with 44 and is tied for second in three-point field goals with 14. Sophomore J.R. Giddens is averaging 10.2 ppg. The guard leads Kansas and is fifth in the Big 12 in three-point field goals made at 2.14 per game. Senior point guard Aaron Miles ranks fourth on the team in scoring at 8.6 points per game. He also boasts a league-best 7.14 assists per contest. Junior forward Christian Moody came back to the lineup against Colorado after sitting out the Iowa State contest with an injury. Moody, a walk-on, is averaging 6.5 points and is second on the team with 5.1 rebounds per game. Freshman forward Alex Galindo (5.8 ppg) made his first start for the Jayhawks at Colorado, while freshman center C.J. Giles (3.5 ppg) has started four of the last five games for KU.
Kansas Head Coach Bill Self
Kansas coach Bill Self is 38-9 in his second season at KU and 245-114 in his 12th season overall. Last year, KU posted a 24-9 record and finished tied for second in the Big 12 race at 12-4. KU advanced to the Elite Eight of the NCAA Tournament for the third straight year, falling to Georgia Tech in overtime, 79-71. Self’s 24 victories tied Dick Harp for the most wins by a KU coach in his debut season at Kansas. Prior to KU, Self led Illinois to two Big Ten titles and three straight NCAA Tournament appearances. Before Illinois, he guided Tulsa to two WAC championships in 1999 and 2000 and was The Sporting News National Coach of the Year in 2000. A four-time Naismith Coach of the Year Award finalist, Self began his coaching career at KU in 1985-86 and was an assistant at his alma mater – Oklahoma State – from 1986 until 1993. His first head coaching stint was at Oral Roberts where he guided the Golden Eagles to the NIT in 1996-97, their first postseason appearance since 1983-84. Self is 1-1 against Villanova including 1-0 while head coach at KU.
Last Game – No. 2 Kansas 59, Nebraska 57
Despite a cold first half in which KU connected for just 21 points, No. 2 Kansas held on to defeat visiting Nebraska 59-57, at Allen Fieldhouse. Nebraska’s Corey Simms had a chance to win the game as time expired, but his three-point attempt rimmed out. The Cornhuskers controlled the first half, holding KU to 36 percent (9-of-25) shooting in the opening 20 minutes. Kansas seniors Wayne Simien, Keith Langford and Aaron Miles combined for just one point in the first 20 minutes on a collective 0-for-7 effort from the field. Simien played just three first-half minutes after committing two early fouls. At the break, Nebraska led 24-21. In the second half, the game remained close as the Jayhawks picked up defensively, holding the Huskers to 29 percent (10-of-34) from the field. Simien scored all of his team-high 12 points in the second half to lead the Jayhawks to victory. Senior Keith Langford and sophomore J.R. Giddens each added nine points, while senior Aaron Miles and freshman Alex Galindo chipped in with eight apiece.
KU-Nebraska Leftovers
KU’s 21 first half points tied a season low for points in a half, also done in the first half at Kentucky on Jan. 9… Senior Aaron Miles collected eight assists to move his career total to 837, which moves him past Pooh Richardson of UCLA for 19th place on the NCAA all-time list. Miles needs 18 more dimes to catch Anthony Manuel of Bradley for a share of 18th place (855 assists)… The Jayhawks have held their opponents under 100 points for 98 straight games. The last team to score 100 points on KU was Texas on Feb. 11, 2002… KU has hit at least one three-pointer in 160 straight games. Kansas last failed to hit a long ball in a loss to Texas in 2000… Senior guard Keith Langford has played and scored in all of his 122 games at Kansas… Langford became the 11th player in KU history to reach 1,600 career points. With nine points, he moved his career total to 1,608… The Jayhawks’ 59 points in the game marked a season low… Kansas’ 59 points were its fewest points scored at home since the Jayhawks scored 53 points against Oklahoma on Feb. 20, 2000. KU won that game 53-50… Nebraska’s 57 points marked a KU opponent season-low in Big 12 play. KU is holding league opponents to an average of 61.0 points per game… Sophomore J.R. Giddens tied a season-high seven rebounds, also done in the season-opener versus Vermont on Nov. 19… Freshman Sasha Kaun tied a career-high with three blocked shots, also done versus Saint Joseph’s on Nov. 23… Kaun set a new career-high with 18 minutes played. He has played double-figure minutes in three of the last four games… Miles scored eight points to move past David Magley and Cedric Hunter for 44th place on the all-time scoring list. His career total is now 1,025 points… KU has held all 14 opponents this season under 50 percent shooting.
About Villanova
Villnova enters the Kansas game with a 9-4 record and its longest losing streak of the season at two games. The Wildcats are 2-3 in the Big East Conference after their 67-66 loss at No. 9 Boston College on Wednesday. Villanova averages 70.8 points per game and is yielding 59 points per contest. Its four losses have been by a total of 10 points with no loss more than six. The Wildcats are led by junior Allen Ray who averages 16.5 points per game. The guard leads Villanova with 31 three-point field goals this season. Junior forward Curtis Sumpter is right behind Ray in scoring with 16.1 ppg and he leads the team in rebounding with an 8.3 average. Junior guard Randy Foye is also scoring in double figures at 14.7 ppg.
Villanova Head Coach
Jay Wright Villanova head coach Jay Wright is in his fourth season with the Wildcats and has a 61-50 record. Wright is in his 11th overall season with a 183-135 record. Wright has guided Villanova to the past three postseason NITs. Prior to Villanova, he coached seven seasons at Hofstra University where his teams advanced to the NCAA Tournament twice in 2000 and 2001 and the NIT in 1999.
Series History
Kansas leads the all-time series with Villanova, 2-0… Last season, KU handed Villanova an 86-79 loss at Allen Fieldhouse on Jan. 2… In the first meeting in the series, the Jayhawks defeated the Wildcats, 55-49, on March 18, 1968, in New York at the Postseason National Invitation Tournament… KU coach Bill Self is 1-1 versus Villanova… Wildcat head coach Jay Wright is 0-1 versus Kansas… The Jayhawks are 24-22 all-time versus teams from the Big East Conference.
Connections
–Kansas’ Bill Self faced Villanova once while he was the head coach at Oral Roberts. His team fell, 64-46, to the Wildcats at the Pavilion in Philadelphia on Jan. 8, 1997.
–Wildcat head coach Jay Wright is 0-3 all-time against teams from the Big 12 Conference. In addition to Kansas last year, he has lost to Colorado and Oklahoma State.
–Villanova assistant coach Ed Pinckney and KU first-year director of student-athlete development Danny Manning have each returned to their alma maters. Both were named the Final Four Most Outstanding Player in their respective NCAA championship seasons – Pinckney in 1985 and Manning in 1988. Each played for the Phoenix Suns and the Milwaukee Bucks during their NBA careers. Pinckney was drafted by the Suns in 1985 and played two seasons in Phoenix. Manning was with the Suns from 1994-99, where he was the winner of the NBA’s Sixth Man award in 1997-98. They both spent only one season with the Bucks.
The Last Meeting
No. 13 Kansas defeated Villanova, 86-79, on Jan. 2, 2004, at Allen Fieldhouse. After battling to a 38-38 tie at intermission, KU was able to outscore Villanova by seven in the second half to pull away with the win. KU had four players score in double-digits and were led by Keith Langford’s game-high 24 points. Junior Wayne Simien also chipped in with 23 points of his own. Villanova was led in scoring by sophomore Allen Ray with 22 points.
Nail Biters
Kansas started the season dominating its opponents having won its first six games by an average of 26 points. Since then, the Jayhawks have gone 8-0 with six of those games being decided by six points or less. KU’s average margin of victory in its last eight games is 6.3 points. Under Bill Self KU is 15-6 in games decided by 10 points or less including the 8-0 in 2004-05.
Four Undefeated Teams Left
Heading into the weekend there are only four undefeated teams in NCAA Division I. Illinois heads the list at 19-0 followed by Boston College at 15-0. KANSAS and Duke are each 14-0 on the season.
Bucking the Trend
Last season, Kansas was 0-8 when trailing with 5:00 remaining. The Jayhawks have already bucked that trend twice this season as Vermont held a 58-56 lead at the 5:00 mark in KU’s 68-61 season-opening win and Georgia Tech was up 57-51 in the Jayhawks’ 70-68 overtime victory. Kansas has actually been down five times in the final five minutes. Including Vermont and Tech, South Carolina was up 58-57 with 2:14 remaining, Texas A&M held a 52-51 lead with 4:04 to play and Kentucky was winning 54-53 at the 3:35 mark.
KU Dominant in Big 12 Play
Since the inception of the Big 12 Conference in the 1996-97 season, Kansas has been the dominating force in the league. KU is the only league team to have won more than 100 games in regular season play. The Jayhawks are 110-22, which is 18 more wins than the next team on that list, Texas (92-40). In addition, the Jayhawks have won four of the eight regular-season Big 12 titles and KU won the first three Big 12 Tournament crowns.
KU Seniors’ Headlines
Here are some headlines of the current Kansas senior class – Keith Langford, Michael Lee, Aaron Miles, Wayne Simien:
–Kansas’ record 101-21 (82.8 winning percentage) ® Two Final Four appearances (2002, 2003)
–NCAA Runner-Up in 2003 ® Three NCAA Tournament Elite Eights (2002, 2003, 2004)
–Two Big 12 Championships (2002 – 16-0, 2003 – 14-2)
–Kansas has been ranked in the Top 10 of the Associated Press poll 45 times, including No. 1 on seven occasions, and in the top five 33 times.
Aaron Miles’ Assists Notes
Every time senior Aaron Miles garners an assist, he adds to his conference and school career record, which is currently at 837. In three straight games this season, Miles set three career assist records. Against Wisconsin-Milwaukee on Dec. 22, Miles became the Big 12 career assists leader, surpassing Oklahoma State’s Doug Gottlieb (793). The following game against Georgia Tech, he became the school’s all-time assists leader, passing Jacque Vaughn’s (1994-97) 804. In the win against Texas A&M, Miles dished five assists to become the league’s all-time conference games only assists leader, currently at 374, passing Gottlieb who was at 354. Miles has had seven or more assists in nine of 14 games this season. His season high was 10 against Nevada and he leads the Big 12 with 7.1 assists per game. He needs 163 assists to become the fourth player in NCAA Division I history to amass 1,000 for his career and his 837 assists currently ranks 19th all-time. He also leads the team in steals with 29 on the year.
Other Aaron Miles(tones)
–Last week Miles was named one of 18 finalists for the Bob Cousy Award for the nation’s top point guard.
–Against Texas A&M, Miles became the 48th player in Kansas history to score 1,000 points. His two game-sealing free throws with 1.6 seconds remaining in the 65-60 win against the Aggies gave Miles his 1,000th and 1,001st points. Miles is 46th on the KU all-time scoring list with 1,017 points.
–Miles is third in KU career steals – currently at 243. He is seven shy of KU great and current Director of Basketball Operations Danny Manning’s 250 for second place.
–Miles has 121 starts, which is seventh on Kansas’ all-time career list.
–Miles cracked the top 10 on the KU minutes played list and is currently ninth with 3,743.
Simien’s Solid Return
After missing four games with an injury, senior Wayne Simien has averaged 16 points and 11 rebounds in his three games back. He was KU’s leading scorer with 12 points against Nebraska and at Colorado, the Leavenworth, Kan., forward tied his career high with 17 rebounds to go along with 23 points. On Monday he was named the Big 12 Player of the Week for the second time this season and fourth time in his career. Simien has shot 50 percent or better in nine of his 10 games this season. He has five games with 20 points or more this year and is tied for the Big 12 lead with seven double-doubles. Three times this season Simien has recorded a double-double in each of the first halves. Against Vermont, he had 10 points and 11 rebounds in the first 20 minutes. His 25 points and 14 rebounds for the game earned Simien Big 12 Player of the Week honors. Against Saint Joseph’s, Simien had 14 points and 11 rebounds in the opening half. At Colorado he had 11 points and 10 rebounds in the first 20 minutes. Simien has 29 career double-doubles, which is fifth on the KU career chart and ninth on the Big 12 all-time list.
Langford Still Rolling
Senior Keith Langford is second on the team in scoring with a 14.3 ppg. The Fort Worth, Texas, guard was the go-to guy against Georgia Tech as he scored 16 of his 18 points in the second half and overtime, posted 10 points in the final 2:46 of regulation and overtime and drained the game-winner with 3.3 seconds remaining in OT. For his efforts, Langford was named the ESPN.com National Player of the Week and the co-Big 12 Player of the Week with Texas’ P.J. Tucker. Langford has three games with 20 or more points, including 21 against UW-Milwaukee. He had a season-high 24 points in 23 minutes versus Louisiana-Lafayette. In the TCU win, Langford had 17 points on 6-of-9 shooting. A preseason Wooden and Naismith awards watch lists selection, Langford had 21 points versus Pacific with career-high seven assists and led KU with 18 at Iowa State on Jan. 12.
Langford Climbing Charts
Wednesday Langford became only the 11th player in KU history to record 1,600 career points. Langford currently stands 11th on the KU scoring list with 1,608 points. He is 19 points shy of cracking the top 10. His 1,608 points are 13th on the Big 12’s career list which started in 1996-97. Additionally, Langford has played and scored in all 122 games played at Kansas.
Moody Making Mark
Named the “greatest walk on in the history of college basketball” by CBS’ Billy Packer in KU’s win at Kentucky, junior Christian Moody started the first 11 games of the season before being sidelined with an injury which caused him to sit out the Iowa State game. He started the second half against Nebraska which indicates he is back. At Kentucky, the walk-on from Asheville, N.C., scored a career-high 11 points and was named Kansas’ Chevrolet Player of the Game by CBS. Moody is shooting 60 percent from the field on the season and has pulled down a career-high 10 rebounds twice, including against then-No. 9 Georgia Tech. Against TCU, he produced his first double-double with 10 points and a career-high 10 rebounds. His second assist of the game was a blind kick out to a J.R. Giddens’ three-pointer that ended up on ESPN SportsCenter’s Top 10 plays list. Moody has pulled down six or more rebounds six times this season. He is averaging 21 minutes, 6.5 points and is second on the team with 5.1 rebounds per game. Last year, he averaged seven minutes, 1.4 points and one rebound in 25 games for KU.
Lee Showing Leadership
Senior Michael Lee has scored seven or more points in three of his last five games. Against Nebraska he went 2-for-3 from the field and had two steals and two assists in the win. Lee is averaging 4.1 points on the season but has stepped that up to seven points per game in his last five contests. Against Texas A&M, the Portland, Ore., guard scored a season-high 10 points on 3-for-6 shooting. In the win at Kentucky, he scored seven points and made a clutch three-pointer with 40 seconds remaining.
Giddens Makes 100th Three-Pointer
Sophomore J.R. Giddens proved he still has the three-point touch in the first half at Iowa State. Giddens drained his first three attempts and was 3-for-4 for the game. At Colorado, he made three more from way out in scoring 11 points. After not scoring against Texas A&M, Giddens registered his seventh double-figure scoring game of the season with 10 points at Kentucky on Jan. 9. The Oklahoma City guard has made three or more three-pointers in eight games this season, including four against Georgia Tech. Last year, he posted three or more treys 14 times. Giddens leads KU with 30 three-pointers this season and his 2.1 trey average is fifth in the Big 12. In only his second season, he has 104 career threes and is already 22 away from cracking the KU career Top 10 list.
KU Freshmen Quick Hits
–Freshman C.J. Giles has started four of the last five games for Kansas. Included in that stretch was a 10-point performance at Kentucky and two six-rebound efforts at Kentucky and at Iowa State.
–Freshman Alex Galindo has scored eight points in three of his last five games including eight against Nebraska on Wednesday. He started the first game of his career at Colorado last Saturday. At Kentucky, he had five points and four blocked shots. Against Georgia Tech, Galindo was 1-for-7 when he drained a three-pointer to cut Tech’s lead to 65-64 in overtime. Against Texas A&M, he broke a 58-58 tie with a three-pointer with 40 seconds remaining. Against Wisconsin-Milwaukee and Georgia Tech, he set career-highs with seven rebounds.
–Freshman Sasha Kaun played a season-high 18 minutes and pulled down four rebounds in the win against Nebraska on Wednesday. The center has registered four or more rebounds four times this season. His seven blocked shots are third most on the team. Kaun scored a season-high eight points at Colorado last Saturday.
–Freshman Russell Robinson has played key minutes in a back-up role at the guard spot. Mainly used at point, Robinson has played 12 or more minutes in 10 games this season. He was a clutch performer against South Carolina as he made his lone field goal and two free throws in the final 38 seconds in the 64-60 win. He earned ESPN.com Freshman of the Week honors for his efforts against USC. Robinson is averaging 5.9 points on the season.
–Freshman Darnell Jackson started the first game of his career against Wisconsin-Milwaukee Dec. 22.
Up Next
Kansas concludes its five of six road games at Big 12 foe Baylor on Wednesday. The game is set for 6:30 p.m. (Central) and can be seen on Jayhawk TV and ESPN Full Court. KU returns home Saturday, Jan. 29 against Texas on ESPN2 with an 8 p.m. tip. ESPN Gameday will originate from Allen Fieldhouse with one-hour shows at 10 a.m., 7 p.m. and immediately following the game. All times are Central.
Did you know?
Since 1997, Kansas is 29-3 (90.6 percent) in Big 12 regular season play against the league schools from the state of Texas – 7-1 vs. Baylor; 6-2 vs. Texas; 9-0 vs. Texas A&M; and 7-1 vs. Texas Tech. Counting the Big 12 Tournament, KU is 30-5 against the Lone Star Big 12 members.
