Archive - Nov 2011

Player of the Week

Thomas Robinson, Kansas

Thomas RobinsonThe Kansas big man is continuing his breakout junior season. He has not notched his fifth double-double after amassing 16 points and 15 rebounds against the Duke Blue Devils, in a loss. He is proving to be a more dominant big man than the Jayhawks have had in quite some time. Plain and simply, he is playing like a man on a mission this year, and NBA scouts are definitely taking notice. On the season, he is now averaging 16.0 points, 12.0 rebounds, 1.8 assists, and 1.0 blocks per game. He will almost surely head into conference play as the choice for Big 12 Player of the Year.

Who's Hot

The Missouri Tigers

So far this season, the Missouri Tigers are 5-0. That statistic isn't so special, but what is special is just how the Tigers have won those five games. They have been absolutely destroying their opponents. They have beaten Southeast Missouri State by 15 points, Mercer by 18 points, Niagara by 31 points, Notre Dame by 29 points, and California by a whopping 39 points. The victory over the nationally ranked Golden Bears was Missouri's largest over a ranked opponent since at least 1949. They are doing it with terrific balance, with at least four players having double-figure scoring efforts in every game this season. As of right now, they are looking like the team that could snap KU's string of consecutive Big 12 Championships.

Honorable Mention

Quincy Miller, Baylor- 17 points, 11 rebounds, and 6 assists in a 75-65 win over Texas-Arlington
Elijah Johnson, Kansas- Has scored 33 points in the past two games for the Jayhawks, against UCLA and Duke. Looks like he may be starting to play up to his tremendous abilities.
Marcus Denmon, Missouri- 18 points, 6 assists, and 4 steals in the Tigers 39 point thrashing of California.

Who's Cold

Tyshawn Taylor, Kansas

Though his scoring and assist numbers would suggest otherwise, the enigmatic Taylor is in a cold spell right now. He is turning the ball over at an alarming rate for the Jayhawks. In a win against UCLA, he had 4 turnovers, while in their crushing defeat to Duke, he turned the ball over an amazing 11 times! What is even worse about this is that one of them came in the final minute of the game. For Kansas to be as good as they can possibly be this season, he needs to get this problem under control. On a more positive note, in the Duke game in Maui he became the 54th player in Jayhawk history to reach the 1,000 point plateau.

Two out of the last three Maui Invitational winners have gone on to win the National Championship (North Carolina in 2009 and UConn last season). This year's Maui Invitational lacked the star power of past events and some speculated there wasn't a true Final Foul level team in the field. Of course, Duke begs to differ. The Blue Devils impressed with their swarming defense and offensive execution. Duke had never lost in Maui and the NCAA's all time winningest coach remained perfect (15-0) in the event.