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Author: Dave Riggert

No. 12 Kansas holds on to beat Kansas State 73-72

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LAWRENCE, Kan. (AP) — Kansas coach Bill Self insists he hasn’t spent any additional time this season working on late-game situations, those pressure-packed moments that are often the difference between victory and defeat.

Perhaps he should.

The No. 12 Jayhawks were in another back-and-forth affair on Saturday, this time with their biggest league rival. It took 23 points from Devonte Graham, two go-ahead free throws from Malik Newman with 15 seconds left, and some salty defense on the final possession to hold off the Wildcats, 73-72.

It was the Jayhawks’ third Big 12 win by a combined 10 points.

“We don’t have the same teams we’ve had in the past where you can pull away from folks,” Self said. “When you play better competition, any win is a good win, and we have to understand that.”

Udoka Azubuike added 18 points and eight rebounds for the Jayhawks (14-3, 4-1), who beat their Interstate 70 rival for the sixth straight time and 12th in a row at Allen Fieldhouse.

“We’ve got that confidence that in crunch time we can get that last stop or execute that last play on offense,” Graham said. “That just translates to a real game.”

Kansas State (12-5, 2-3) led 67-64 with 3 minutes left when Lagerald Vick knocked down a 3-pointer in front of the Jayhawks’ bench and Newman scored on a put-back to give Kansas the lead.

It was the first of five lead changes in the final 2:18.

Xavier Sneed gave the Wildcats the lead with 30.2 seconds left when he made two free throws, but Newman got to the line at the other end and the 86-percent foul shooter converted both. That gave Kansas State the last shot, but Barry Brown’s rushed 3-pointer from well beyond the arc was no good.

“It felt like a shot I’ve shot before, and I shot it with confidence,” Brown said of the final play, which was designed to go to teammate Dean Wade on a pick-and-pop. “Just tried to make a play.”

Wade had 22 points to lead the Wildcats. Cartier Diarra added a career-high 18, though he was also whistled for a crucial technical foul, while Brown had 12 points, six assists and five rebounds.

“Pretty frustrated,” Wade said. “Pretty disappointed.”

The Jayhawks raced to a 13-4 lead before the Wildcats ratcheted up the defensive intensity. Kansas struggled to get the ball inside and eventually went nearly 10 minutes with just one field goal.

The Wildcats slowly pulled ahead during a 14-3 run, but back-to-back 3s by Svi Mykhailiuk — the last from about 25 feet at the buzzer — knotted the game 34-all at the break.

That’s when Azubuike and Graham went to work.

The big fella scored the first two baskets of the second half, then Graham knocked down a 3, as the pair got an inside-outside game going. They combined for all the Jayhawks’ points during a 15-2 run that turned a 36-34 deficit into a 49-38 lead with about 13 minutes left in the game.

Diarra clawed the Wildcats back once more, at one point scoring 11 straight for them, and the game was tied at 64 at the under-4 media timeout to set up a frantic race to the finish.

“We’re going to be fine. Just a tough loss,” Brown said. “We’re going to bounce back after this, like our last loss. Get back in the gym and focus on our next game.”

BRUCE’S BEEF

Kansas State coach Bruce Weber took umbrage with Diarra’s late technical for trash-talking, and he said several other calls were questionable. But asked for specifics, he replied: “I want to keep my job. I don’t want to get fined. I’ve worked too hard for it.”

DE SOUZA CLEARED

Silvio De Souza, a 6-foot-9 forward from Angola, was cleared by the NCAA before tip to play for Kansas. The five-star prospect graduated high school last month and played 4 minutes on Saturday.

PRESTON STILL WAITS

Another five-star prospect, Billy Preston, remains sidelined while Kansas looks into the ownership of a car he was driving during an accident last fall. The freshman has not played this season.

STOKES IN A BOOT

Kansas State guard Kamau Stokes, the Wildcats’ third-leading scorer, missed his second straight game with a left foot injury. He was wearing a walking boot and it remains unclear when he will be back.

BIG PICTURE

Kansas State has lost nail-biters in its last two trips to the Phog. Last year, it was a missed traveling call on the Jayhawks’ Mykhailiuk that cost them a win over the Wildcats’ biggest rival.

Kansas also got 11 points from Mykhailiuk and 10 from Vick, and that balanced scoring was important as the Jayhawks played with essentially a six-man rotation. Three others combined for 12 minutes.

UP NEXT

Kansas State faces No. 9 Oklahoma on Tuesday night.

Kansas visits No. 2 West Virginia on Monday night.

— Associated Press —

Northwest women blow 4th quarter lead, lose to Southwest Baptist

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The Northwest Missouri State University women’s basketball team fell to Southwest Baptist, 75-70, on Saturday at Bearcat Arena in Maryville, Mo.

– Northwest falls to 1-14 overall and 0-7 in MIAA play. Southwest Baptist improves to 9-6 overall and 1-5 in conference play.

– Mallory McAndrews hit six three pointers and finished the day with 18 points and two rebounds.

Key Northwest Statistics
– Northwest shot 45.5 percent from the field (25-55) and were 12-for-23 from beyond the arc (52.2 percent).

– Northwest held a 39-32 lead at halftime and led by as many as 13 points in the third quarter.

– Tanya Meyer had 14 points, five rebounds and two assists.

– Jaelyn Haggard had 12 points with four assists, three steals and two rebounds.

– Kylie Coleman came up one point short of her career high, scoring 10 points on 4-of-7 shooting. She added two rebounds and hit two three pointers.

– Zoie Hayward had seven points with five rebounds and two assists.

Up Next
– Northwest will host Central Missouri in a rescheduled game on Monday, Jan. 15, at 1:30 p.m. at Bearcat Arena.

— Northwest Athletics —

Six Griffons break records during first day of Graduate Classic at Nebraska

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LINCOLN, Neb. – Missouri Western track and field athletes broke six program records and set a new one on the first day of competition at the Graduate Classic hosted by the University of Nebraska.

Megan Gillen broke the school record in the 800m, finishing 5th with a 2:24.70. Claire Reedy finished sixth (2:25.36) and Alison Nutt (2:29.11) was eighth in the 800m. After Nate Jelinek (2:04.43) broke the men’s 800m record in the first heat, Chris Stanley (2:01.34) broke it again in the second, finishing eighth. Phil Thompson broke his long jump record (6.45m/21-02.00), finishing 16th. Mariah Smith set the mark in the women’s 1,000m with a 16th place finish (3:37.31). Jordan Garr improved on his school record weight throw to finish 17th (13.63m/44-08.75). Christian Arbuthnot improved on the MWSU men’s 3,000m record, finishing 13th with an 8:58.51. Peyton Moore (9.93) advanced to the next round in the women’s 60m hurdles.

Competition continues Saturday with more events and finals for some events that completed heats and qualifying on Friday.

For complete results from Friday’s action and startlists for Saturday’s competition, click here.

— MWSU Athletics —

Huskers lose at Penn State in OT 76-74

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UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — Tony Carr has had some nice second-half efforts lately. Penn State’s top shooter saved most of his best stuff for overtime on Friday.

Carr scored nine of his 17 points, including a game-winning long jumper with three seconds left in overtime, and Penn State beat Nebraska 76-74 and secure Pat Chambers’ 100th win as Penn State’s coach on Friday night.

Lamar Stevens scored 26 points and Mike Watkins added 20 and grabbed 15 rebounds for the Nittany Lions (13-6, 3-3 Big Ten), who led by as many as 16 in the second half.

But it was Carr, who notched 18 of 28 in the second half at Indiana on Tuesday, who wrestled control back with tough makes through crowds of defenders in the final five minutes.

“Tony had the guts to come out and hit some big shots for us when he didn’t have the best shooting night,” Chambers said.

When Carr was working to find his shot, Stevens was taking over in a fashion that’s become typical for him of late. The hybrid forward entered the game averaging 22 points over the last three.

He quickly kept at it with 10 of Penn State’s first 19 points and Penn State closed out the first half on a 21-9 run and led 33-24. Nebraska made just five of its final 14 field goals in that span and finished the first half 9-for-32 from the floor.

“You can’t just get blasted in the first half like that,” Nebraska coach Tim Miles said. “We have to be more prepared to battle with a guy who’s a warrior like that because he just attacks the rim.”

Glynn Watson Jr. and Isaac Copeland scored 21 points apiece while Isaiah Roby and Anton Gill scored 12 and 10, respectively, for the Cornhuskers (12-7, 3-3).

Shep Garner made a 3-pointer to give Penn State its largest lead at 42-26 just over two minutes into the second half.

But the Huskers fought back from there and switched to a press look to slow Penn State’s offense.

They put together a 39-23 run that included back-to-back 3-pointers from Copeland and Watson that made it a two-point game with 3:28 to play. They combined for four free throws and Watson hit the final shot of regulation moments later to send it to overtime 65-65.

THE BIG PICTURE

Nebraska: The Cornhuskers were on a good stretch with five wins in six tries before Friday’s game. Runs like that could come more often if they shoot better. Nebraska entered the Bryce Jordan Center shooting just 43 percent from the floor and 36 percent from 3-point range for the season.

Penn State: All three of Penn State’s conference losses have come by six or fewer points and although they played a poor-shooting team in this one, the Nittany Lions have enough talent committed to playing defense to keep even good offenses at bay. Whether they can outscore those teams, or hold on to big leads, remains to be seen.

NO REAVES

Penn State was again without its top defender as Josh Reaves sat out a second straight game for academic reasons. Reaves leads the team and is 15th nationally with 2.47 steals per game. He’s chipped in 10.8 points per game, too.

AWAITING WORD ON TSHIMANGA

Nebraska was without starting center Jordy Tshimanga, who did not make the trip to Penn State as he mulls whether to transfer. Multiple outlets reported Tshimanga’s frustration with the way his season has unfolded.

The 6-foot-11 sophomore started all 18 games previously and was averaging 3.5 points and 5.1 rebounds over 15.2 minutes per game.

Miles said he couldn’t offer an update yet on Tshimanga’s status.

“I won’t know until I get home,” he said.

UP NEXT

Nebraska hosts Illinois (10-8, 0-5) on Monday.

Penn State hosts Minnesota (13-5, 2-3) on Monday.

— Associated Press —

Chiefs hire Deland McCullough as running backs coach

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KANSAS CITY, Mo. – The Kansas City Chiefs announced on Friday that the club has hired Deland McCullough as Running Backs Coach. McCullough joins the Chiefs from USC where he coached the Trojans running backs.

“Deland has a track record of success teaching young running backs and he’s also played in this league,” Chiefs Head Coach Andy Reid said. “I enjoyed the time I spent getting to know him and believe he will be a very good addition to our coaching staff.”

McCullough joins the Chiefs after spending the 2017 season at USC as the Trojans Running Backs/Running Game Coordinator. Prior to his stint at USC he spent six years coaching the running backs at Indiana University. He also served as the Hoosiers’ Special Teams Coordinator-Return Units Coach in 2016.

At Indiana, he mentored three future NFL running backs in Stephen Houston, Tevin Coleman and Jordan Howard. Prior to his stint at Indiana he worked as an offensive and special teams intern with Miami (Ohio) where he played running back as an undergrad. He played in the NFL with the Cincinnati Bengals (1996-97) and Philadelphia Eagles (1997). He also played professionally with the CFL’s Winnipeg Blue Bombers (1998-99) and the XFL’s Chicago Enforcers (2001).

— Chiefs Communications —

Kansas football coach David Beatty announces coaching staff changes

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LAWRENCE, Kan. – Kansas football head coach David Beaty announced Friday the promotion of Justin Johnson to an on-field assistant coaching position, where he will work on the offensive side of the ball. Johnson, who joined the KU staff in the spring of 2016, spent the past two seasons as an offensive analyst for the Jayhawks and will fill the newly created 10th assistant coaching position.

“Justin is known around our building as ‘Juice’-because energy is something he definitely brings to the table,” said Beaty. “He is well-versed in not only how we want to run our program, but also the nuances to how we want to run our offense. He has worked hard during his time at KU to establish himself as a mentor with our players and that will help him greatly as he moves into his new role.

“Juice has a knack for building relationships,” added Beaty. “Because of his skill in that area, he will also play a vital role for us in recruiting in his elevated position.”

Additionally, Beaty announced that special teams coordinator Joe DeForest and offensive line coach Zach Yenser will no longer be members of the Jayhawk staff moving forward.

“We have mutually agreed to part ways as Joe and Zach will step away from our program and pursue other opportunities,” said Beaty. “I appreciate the hard work they both put in during their time with us and wish the best for them and their families moving forward.”

Johnson previously worked under Beaty at Texas A&M, serving as an offensive graduate assistant for the Aggies in 2013, while Beaty was the wide receivers coach and recruiting coordinator.

A Houston alum, Johnson worked at his alma mater in 2012 in an offensive quality control position. In that role, he assisted all offensive coaches with administrative duties.

Johnson was a four-year letterwinner at UH from 2008 to 2011. As a senior, he helped lead the Cougars to a record-setting 13-1 overall mark and a dominating win against No. 23 Penn State during the TicketCity Bowl.

The Richardson, Texas, native finished second on the team with 1,229 receiving yards and 12 touchdowns on 87 receptions on the way to earning All-Conference USA First-Team accolades.

Johnson was a versatile student-athlete during his collegiate playing days with the Cougars, competing on special teams and as a running back at various times. During his career, he competed in three bowl games and two Conference USA Championship games. Off the field, Johnson was a member of Student-Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC) and was selected to participate in and graduated from UH’s Athletics Leadership Academy. He was awarded the UH Committed Cougar Award twice.

— KU Athletics —

No. 12 Missouri women roll to road win at Vanderbilt

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NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Jordan Chavis scored a career-high 18 points on 6-of-8 shooting from 3-point range and No. 12 Missouri defeated Vanderbilt 81-70 on Thursday night.

Amber Smith also scored 18 points for the Tigers (15-2, 3-1 Southeastern Conference), who had no letdown after defeating No. 4 South Carolina on Sunday.

Smith had back-to-back 3-pointers to start a 16-2 run and her 10th point of the run made it 18-7 with 2:49 to play in the first quarter. Chavis had three 3-pointers in a 14-1 run in the second quarter before the Commodores closed with a 15-3 surge to trail 48-37 at the half.

Jordan Frericks had eight points in a 16-0 run midway through the third quarter that helped Missouri get to a 25-point lead entering the fourth quarter. The lead was 28 when Chavis’ last 3 opened the scoring but Vandy followed with an 11-0 run and closed the game with a 10-0 run.

Cierra Walker scored 17 points for the Commodores (4-14, 0-4), who have lost eight of nine. Erin Whalen added 15 points.

Missouri did its damage with just five points from Sophie Cunningham, who averages 18.8 and shoots better than 50 percent from 3-point range, second in the nation. She was 1 of 6 from behind the arc.

— Associated Press —

Mizzou uses big second half to rally past Georgia 68-56

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COLUMBIA, Mo. (AP) — Jontay Porter had 15 points and 10 rebounds in his first career start, and Missouri overcame a sluggish start to defeat Georgia 68-56 on Wednesday night.

Georgia cut a second half, 10-point deficit to two on Rayshaun Hammonds’ 3-pointer, but the Tigers went on a 7-0 run thanks to 3-pointers from Kassius Robertson and Kevin Puryear with six minutes left, and Missouri (12-4, 2-1 Southeastern Conference) widened its lead to 15 before sealing the victory.

Robertson added 15 points for the Tigers. Jeremiah Tilmon and Jordan Geist chipped in 10 points apiece and Puryear finished with nine.

William Jackson III and Tyree Crump each had 10 points to lead Georgia (11-4, 2-2).

Missouri shot 2 of 8 and Georgia 3 for 7 in the first five minutes. The Bulldogs hung on to a 7-4 early lead off a 3-pointer from Jackson.

Stagnant play continued for both teams, though Georgia held the lead through halftime. It took the Tigers 11 minutes to make a jump shot, as Robertson drilled a corner 3 that tied the game at 11.

The Bulldogs were only shooting 30 percent midway through the first half. With less than three minutes left before intermission, the teams were a combined for 12-of-49 shooting from the field.

An entirely different Missouri team showed up in the second half.

First, the Tigers started scoring. Two dunks from Tilmon tied the game, and an up-and-under layup from Porter gave Missouri the lead.

Then, the Tigers shut down Georgia with a 13-2 run to open the second half, and Porter held Georgia’s 6-foot-8 forward, Yante Maten, to 1 of 5 field goals midway through the second half. Maten finished with nine points.

BIG PICTURE

Georgia: Georgia showed its shooting could hang on in the SEC in the first half, but as soon as Missouri increased the tempo, the Bulldogs ran dry and ceased to compete.

Missouri: The Tigers showed an epic second-half turnaround, scoring 48 points against the Bulldogs, who lead the SEC in scoring defense and field goal defense. Now all Missouri needs to do is find that scoring in the first half.

UP NEXT

Georgia hosts South Carolina on Saturday.

Missouri travels to face Arkansas on Saturday.

— Associated Press —

Kansas State hangs on to defeat Oklahoma State 86-82

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MANHATTAN, Kan. (AP) — Barry Brown wanted to get right back in the gym after Kansas State’s loss to Texas Tech over the weekend, but coach Bruce Weber told him NCAA rules limited how much the team could practice.

So, Brown organized his own workout.

He gathered the whole team Sunday without any of their coaches, running up and down the floor in an otherwise empty gym. It was a reset for a team with NCAA Tournament expectations that had just lost its third-leading scorer, Kamau Stokes, for quite a while with a foot injury.

“That,” Weber said, “just showed great leadership on his part.”

So did Brown’s performance Wednesday night.

He poured in a career-high 38 points, picked up six steals and held in check Oklahoma State star Jeffrey Carroll in an 86-82 victory that should provide the Wildcats some positive momentum.

“We jumped on Barry’s back,” Weber said, “and he played a special game.”

Cartier Diarra started in place of Stokes and had a career-high 17 points for the Wildcats (12-4, 2-2 Big 12), while Xavier Sneed added 11 points and 12 rebounds.

“My mindset was for everyone to pick it up a bit, turn it up a notch,” Brown said. “We did that.”

Brandon Averette scored 22 points and Jeffrey Carroll had 20 for the Cowboys (11-5, 1-3), who led late in the second half before the Wildcats went on a game-changing run to take a 74-62 lead.

The Cowboys kept fighting, and Averette’s 3-point play with 40 seconds left got them within 81-76. But Dean Wade answered with two free throws and, after Carroll scored at the other end, Brown tacked on the second of two more foul shots to put the game away.

“To be honest, that was a pretty gutless performance by my team. I’ve never been more disappointed than I am today,” Cowboys coach Mike Boynton said. “Our fans deserve better. They’ll get better.”

The Wildcats played with the lead most of the way, even pushing their advantage to 27-18 late in the first half, before the Cowboys took a spurt of momentum into halftime.

Carroll provided the spark with a 3-point play and a couple more free throws.

Kansas State regained the lead early in the second half, but neither team was able to shake free until the Wildcats strung together five solid possessions beginning with six minutes to go.

Little-used guard Brian Patrick began the run with a 3-pointer to break a 58-all tie. Wade made four quick free throws. Sneed added a pair of his own. And a 3-pointer by Diarra from right in front of his own bench ignited a sparse but vocal home crowd.

Sneed’s turnaround jumper out of a timeout pushed the Wildcats’ lead to 72-62, their biggest of the game to that point, and Weber’s team held on the rest of the way.

“We played lifeless,” Boynton said. “People talk about atmosphere, whether the students are here, the energy. It was nothing to do with it. When you’re an athlete you go out and play with a sense of pride. We didn’t do that today.”

BIG PICTURE

Oklahoma State had won three out of four games decided by two possessions or less. But even though they kept the pressure on the Wildcats by scoring down the stretch, they were unable to make up enough ground for back-to-back wins at Bramlage Coliseum.

Kansas State showed impressive poise whenever the Cowboys made a run, and again in the closing minutes, when they kept making shots to stay alive. Brown and Co. answered with a parade of free throws that kept the Cowboys from ever feeling as if they would make it all the way back.

INJURY UPHEAVEL

The Wildcats could be without Stokes for a while after he hurt his foot in a loss to Texas Tech last weekend. Diarra started in his place, and fellow freshman Mike McGuirl made his college debut in the first half. McGuirl missed the first 12 games this season with an injury.

SPEAKING OF INJURIES

Cowboys guard Tavarius Shine, their second-leading scorer at 11.8 points per game, did not play while nursing a sprained wrist. Shine got hurt in their win over Iowa State.

UP NEXT

Oklahoma State returns home to face Texas on Saturday.

Kansas State hits Interstate 70 to play No. 12 Kansas on Saturday.

— Associated Press —

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