Kansas to Face South Carolina in Men's Basketball

Dec. 15, 2004

Kansas welcomes South Carolina to Allen Fieldhouse for the first meeting between the schools in men’s basketball. The game marks the seventh straight home contest for the Jayhawks. Kansas enters the game 6-0, while South Carolina is 5-1 after its 72-70 win against South Florida Tuesday. Entering the week, KU is one of only 18 teams in NCAA Division I that is undefeated. Since shooting 38.2 percent in the season opener against Vermont, Kansas is shooting 54.3 percent as a team in its last five games. In that span, the Jayhawks have scored 81 or more points in every outing. Over the last three seasons, South Carolina has opended the season 6-0, 6-0 and 5-1 under head coach Dave Odom. The Gamecocks average 16.2 assists and 11.3 steals per game in 2004-05.

About South Carolina

South Carolina enters the Kansas game 5-1 after its 72-70 win against South Florida Tuesday. The lone loss for USC was to state rival Clemson 63-62 in overtime. The Gamecocks average 72.3 points per contest and are giving up 58.2 per game. Senior forward Carlos Powell leads USC in scoring at 16 points per game. His 5.5 rebounds per contest are second best on the team. Powell has scored 20 or more points in three of USC’s six games this season. Sophomore guard Tre’ Kelley is next in scoring at 11.7 ppg, while junior guard Tarence Kinsey is at 9.7 ppg. Sophomore forward Renaldo Balkman is USC’s leading rebounder at 5.7 rpg to go along with his 8.3 ppg.

South Carolina Coach Dave Odom

Head coach Dave Odom is in his fourth season at USC with a 62-43 record. He has guided the Gamecocks to two postseason appearances including the NCAA Tournament last season and the NIT championship game in 2002. Odom is 340-217 in his 19th season overall. Prior to USC, Odom guided Wake Forest to eight NCAA tournament berths and three NIT appearances, which included the 2000 NIT title. Odom is 1-1 against the Jayhawks. His win came at Wake Forest on Dec. 7, 2000 when he led the Demon Deacons to a 84-53 victory against KU. The loss occurred in the 1994 NCAA Tournament Second Round, when Kansas handed Wake a 69-58 loss in Lexington, Ky.

About Kansas

Kansas enters the week ranked in the top two nationally for the sixth time this season. KU is 6-0 for the first time since the 2000-01 team opened the season 7-0. KU features a trio of seniors who have been leading the charge. Preseason Big 12 Player of the Year Wayne Simien has posted five double-doubles in six outings this year. The forward leads the team with 17 points per contest and leads the Big 12 with 12.2 rebounds per game. Guard Keith Langford is shooting 61.1 percent from the field and averaging 20.7 points in his last three games. Since starting the season shooting 0-for-8, senior Aaron Miles has gone 19-of-25 (76 percent) from the field, which includes 6-for-7 from three-point range. Miles leads the Big 12 with 7.5 assists per contest.

Kansas Head Coach Bill Self

Kansas coach Bill Self (Oklahoma State, 1985) is in his second season at Kansas and is 30-9 with the Jayhawks. Self has yet to face South Carolina as a head coach. 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. Self is in his 12th season as a coach overall and is 237-114. 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.

Last Game – Kansas 96, Louisiana-Lafayette 51

Kansas improved to 6-0 on the season after defeating Louisiana-Lafayette 96-51 Dec. 11 at Allen Fieldhouse. The Jayhawks put 11 players in the scoring column for the win. In the first half, senior Keith Langford and sophomore J.R. Giddens stole the show. The duo combined for 33 points, with Langford scoring 19 and Giddens adding 14, on 12-of-16 shooting in the half. At the break, the Jayhawks led 54-22. Langford led all scorers with 24 points, while Giddens ended with 16 points. Senior Wayne Simien added his fifth double-double of the season with 11 points and 12 rebounds. The KU bench also had a good effort with extended play, outscoring the Ragin Cajun bench 36-15. Freshman Alex Galindo hit three-of-three from behind the arc for nine points, while junior Jeff Hawkins and freshman Darnell Jackson added six points each. The Jayhawks shot 58 percent from the field and connected on 12-of-23 three point attempts in the game.

Kansas-Louisiana-Lafayette Leftovers

Kansas’ 45-point victory was its second 40+ win of the season and its largest margin of victory since — a 54 point win (100-46) over UMKC on Jan. 4, 2003…Keith Langford’s 19 points in the first half were the most by a KU player since Kirk Hinrich dropped 19 points in a home game against Nebraska on Jan. 11, 2003…Kansas’ 54 points in the first half were the most by the Jayhawks in a half this season…Sophomore J.R. Giddens’ 16 points and four three-pointers were season-highs…His eight three-point attempts tied a season-high…Senior Wayne Simien (11 points, 12 rebounds) recorded his fifth double-double of the season and the 27th of his career…He passed Milt Newton for 30th on the all-time scoring list with 1,167 points…Simien also recorded his 28th double-figure rebound game of his career tying him with Paul Mokeski for sixth all-time…Freshman Alex Galindo’s nine points (3-for-3 from three-point land) were a career-high…Kansas’ 96 points were the most scored by the Jayhawks this season…KU’s 22 assists were a season-high, passing the 21 the Jayhawks dished out against Saint Joseph’s…Junior Stephen Vinson saw his first action of the season…His two assists were a career-high…Sophomore Nick Bahe recorded career-highs with four rebounds and two assists in 12 minutes…Junior Christian Moody recorded a career-high three steals.

The Series

Kansas and South Carolina are meeting for the first time in men’s basketball. USC will be the first of two teams from the Southeastern Conference KU will face this season. The other being at Kentucky on Jan. 9. Kansas is 22-28 against SEC schools.

KU-USC Connections

–Two South Carolina assistant coaches have Big 12 connections. Barry Sanderson served as an graduate assistant at Texas A&M during the 1991 season, while Ricky Stokes was the associate head coach at Texas from 1998-99.

–Both teams feature a player from Kansas City, Kan., on its roster. For the Jayhawks, Jeff Hawkins attended Sumner Academy, while the Gamecocks’ Antoine Tisby attended F.L. Schlagle High School.

A Kansas Win Would…

Make Kansas 7-0 for the first time since the 2000-01 season when KU also opened the year 7-0… Mark Kansas’ first win against South Carolina in the first meeting between the two schools… Be KU’s 14th straight home win… Make Kansas coach Bill Self 31-9 at KU, 238-114 overall and mark his first win versus South Carolina… Give KU a 16-3 record in its last 19 games… Make KU 1,831-762 all-time and 558-101 in Allen Fieldhouse.

A Kansas Loss Would…

Make Kansas 6-1 for the second straight season… Give South Carolina its first win against Kansas and make the series 1-0 in favor of the Gamecocks… Break Kansas’ 13-game home court winning streak, marking KU’s first loss in Allen Fieldhouse since the team fell to Richmond 69-68 on Jan. 22, 2004… Make Bill Self 30-10 at KU, 237-115 overall and 0-1 versus USC… Make Kansas 1,830-763 all-time and 557-102 in Allen Fieldhouse.

Miles Perfect in Last Two Games

Kansas senior Aaron Miles can’t shoot the ball enough. In his last two outings, the Portland, Ore., native is 5-for-5 from the field and 5-for-5 from the free throw line. Since starting the year 0-for-8, Miles is 19-for-25 (76 percent) from the field and 6-for-7 (85.7 percent) from three-point range. Miles is known for his assists as he has had seven or more in five of six games this season. He leads the Big 12 and ranks fourth in NCAA Division I with 7.5 assists per game. Miles has started 113 of 114 games played at KU. He has 783 career assists and is 10 shy of the Big 12 mark of 793 held by Doug Gottlieb of Oklahoma State and 21 assists behind former KU great Jacque Vaughn at 804. Miles holds three of the top five single-season assists records at KU. He is also only 217 assists from becoming only the fourth player in NCAA Division I history to amass 1,000 for his career.

Langford on a Roll

Senior Keith Langford is averaging 20.7 points in his last three games and is shooting 61.1 percent (22-for-36) from the field in that span. In his last outing, the Fort Worth, Texas, guard recorded a season high 24 points in 23 minutes against ULL. 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. Against ULL he passed Tony Guy and Bud Stallworth for 16th on KU’s all-time scoring list with 1,498 points. Langford is 10 points away from catching Ron Kellogg for 15th place.

Simien Showing Hot Hand

Senior Wayne Simien was 5-for-6 from the field in posting his fifth double-double of the season with 11 points and 12 rebounds in 21 minutes in the 96-51 win against Louisiana-Lafayette. Simien has shot 50 percent or better in five of six games this season and is making 70 percent of his shots (14-for-20) in his last two games. The Leavenworth, Kan., forward has three games with 20 points or more this year. In his first two games this season, Simien 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. Simien has 27 career double-doubles, which is fifth on the KU career chart and 10th on the Big 12 all-time list.

Simien Moving Up Rebound Career List

Senior Wayne Simien is etching his name up the KU career charts every game. He pulled down his 600th career rebound in the season opener against Vermont. In his last outing, Simien moved into 15th on the KU career rebound list, and is currently at 670. Last year, Simien was second in the Big 12 with 9.3 rebounds per game. Should he keep that pace, he could become only the seventh player in school history to record 900 career rebounds. Last week he moved into 30th on KU’s all-time scoring list (1,167 points).

Moody Making Mark

Junior walk-on Christian Moody has been in the starting line up since the first game of the season. Against TCU, Moody produced his first double-double with career-highs in points (10) and rebounds (10). He also matched his personal best with two assists. His second assist was a blind kick out to a J.R. Giddens three-pointer that ended up on ESPN SportsCenter’s Top 10 list. Moody has pulled down six or more rebounds in each of his last two games and three times this season. Moody is averaging 19.2 minutes, six points and is second on the team with 4.8 rebounds per game in 2004-05. Last year, he averaged seven minutes, 1.4 points and one rebound in 25 games for KU.

J.R. Finding Touch

Sophomore J.R. Giddens is finding his touch. In the last two games, the Oklahoma City guard is 7-for-16 (43.8 percent) from three-point range. Giddens has made three or more three-pointers in four games this season. Last year he turned that trick 14 times. In only his second season, Giddens is 37 three-pointers from cracking the KU career Top 10 list. Giddens is also performing well on both ends as he has nine steals this season with eight of those in his last three games.

Kansas Quick Hits

–Kansas has registered 10 or more steals in each of the last five games including a season-high 14 versus Pacific. Last year, KU had seven games with 10-plus steals.

–Kansas is 127-7 (94.8 percent) in Allen Fieldhouse over the past 11 seasons. Included in that run are five undefeated seasons – 14-0 in 1994-95; 13-0 in 1995-96; 15-0 in 1996-97; 16-0 in 1997-98; and 13-0 in 2001-02.

–KU has held all six opponents to under 50 percent shooting this season. Additionally, the Jayhawks have out shot each opponent in 2004-05.

–Kansas’ biggest deficit this season has been six points in the season opener against Vermont when the Catamounts held a 14-8 lead.

–KU’s bench is outscoring its opponents’ bench 174-83 this season. Against Louisiana-Lafayette’ the Jayhawk bench scored 36 points to ULL’s 15.

–Kansas has won all six tips this season. Junior Christian Moody has jumped in all six games for KU.

–Senior Aaron Miles has 783 career assists and is 10 assists shy of the Big 12 career record of Doug Gottlieb of Oklahoma State who had 793 from 1998-2000 and 21 from the KU career mark of 804 held by Jacque Vaughn from 1994-97.

–Last season, Kansas was 0-8 when trailing with 5:00 remaining. The Jayhawks have already bucked that trend as Vermont held a 58-56 lead at the 5:00 mark in KU’s 68-61 season-opening win.

–The Jayhawks’ 13 three-point field goals and 23 three-point attempts against Louisiana-Lafayette were the most by the Jayhawks since KU hit 13 three-pointers against Colorado on Feb. 15, 1997.

–KU went 5-for-5 from three-point range in the first half against Saint Joseph’s. The last time KU was perfect from way out in a first half was in the against North Carolina State on Dec. 10, 1994.

In the Rankings

Kansas is No. 2 for the fourth straight week in the Associated Press and ESPN/USA Today Coaches’ polls. The Jayhawks entered the season No. 1 in both outlets which was the first time since 1956-57 in AP and since 1996-97 in the coaches’ poll. Under Bill Self, KU has appeared in the AP top 10 on 12 occasions and the coaches’ poll 11 times. KU concluded the 2003-04 season No. 9 in the coaches’ poll (No. 16 by AP whose poll concludes prior to the NCAA Tournament).

Records, Milestones, Streaks to Watch

–The Jayhawks have held their opponents under 100 points for 90 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 152 straight games. Kansas last failed to hit a long ball in a loss to Texas in 2000.

–Aaron Miles has 45 assists this season and 783 for his career. Miles needs 11 to become the Big 12’s career assists leader and 21 to become KU’s all-time leader.

–Miles is 10th on the all-time games started list at KU with 113. He is one start shy from moving into the ninth spot.

–Miles’ next 10-assist game will pass Jacque Vaughn for the most career double-figure assist games at KU. Both stand atop the KU list with 18 games.

–Wayne Simien ranks 15th on the KU career rebound list at 670. Simien is six shy of the 14th spot.

–Keith Langford has played and scored in all of his 114 games while at Kansas.

Streak Stuff

Kansas enters the 2004-05 campaign with an impressive number of streaks intact:

–KU has claimed 13 straight wins in conference-openers. The Jayhawks’ last loss in a league-opener was to Oklahoma on Jan. 8, 1991.

–Kansas boasts a 21-game win streak on Senior Day. The last time KU lost its last home game of the season was a 60-58 defeat to Nebraska in 1983.

–KU, which went 24-9 last season, has won at least 20 games for 15 straight years.

–The Jayhawks have made 15 straight appearances in the NCAA Tournament. The last time KU failed to participate in the Big Dance was in 1989 due to probation.

–Kansas has had success in the early stages of the NCAA Tournament, having won 21 straight first-round games. UCLA in 1978 is the last team to knock off the Jayhawks in the first round.

–Kansas has been to two NCAA Final Fours and won two Big 12 regular-season championships in the last three seasons.

Sophomore Jeremy Case to Redshirt the 2004-05 Season

On Dec. 3, it was announced that Kansas’ Jeremy Case will redshirt the 2004-05 season. Case saw limited practice during the fall due to a groin injury. As a freshman, Case played 21 games and averaged 3.9 minutes and 1.2 points per game. He scored eight points in the win against Fort Hays State and five points in a KU victory versus Oklahoma. Case joins freshman walk-on Matt Kleinmann as a redshirt for the 2004-05 season.

Walt Wesley to Have His Jersey Retired

Former KU great Walt Wesley will have his jersey retired at halftime. Wesley was a 6-11 center who was named All-American following the 1964-65 and 1965-66 seasons. A two-time All-Big Eight Conference selection his junior and senior seasons, Wesley’s 19.3 career scoring average ranks in the top 10 on the KU list. He averaged more than 20 points per contest in both his junior and senior seasons. A native of Fort Myers, Fla., Wesley played for Ted Owens at Kansas. Wesley and Wilt Chamberlain, who had his jersey retired in 1998, both wore jersey No. 13 at KU. The game will mark the second jersey retirement of the season as Bill Bridges was honored against TCU Dec. 11.

Home Stretch

Tonight marks the last of Kansas’ seven straight home games at Allen Fieldhouse to open the season. The Yellow Book Shootout on Dec. 22 at Kemper Arena in Kansas City, Mo., is a home game for KU season ticket holders but it is a neutral site. The last time Kansas opened the season with seven straight home games was 1977-78 under head coach Ted Owens. KU’s longest homestand to open the season is 10 games which dates back to the 1917-18 season under head coach William O. Hamilton.

Did You Know?

Entering the week, there were 18 undefeated teams left in the country. Four of those – KANSAS, Kansas State, Oklahoma State and Texas A&M – are from the Big 12 Conference, which is more than any other league.

Up Next

Kansas heads east to Kansas City for the Yellow Book Shootout at Kemper Arena in Kansas City, Mo. The Jayhawks will take on Wisconsin-Milwaukee with a 7 p.m. tip. The game will air on Jayhawk TV.

Upcoming KU Jersey Retirement Dates

Darnell Valentine – January 1

Bud Stallworth – January 31

Dave Robisch – February 27