A fresh start

Saturday, March 17, 2007

CHICAGO – Getting Sherron Collins’ attention this week was not easy.

Playing less than a mile from where he grew up, the freshman guard made an extra effort to be unapproachable, so he could keep his focus on the game.

He put his uncle in charge of distributing his tickets, turned off his phone and tried not to look into the stands at any point during warm-ups.

He may not have seen the people he knows, but they all saw him. Collins took over the game in the first half and threw the first punches in Kansas’ 107-67 knockout of Niagara. The Jayhawks face the Kentucky Wildcats on Sunday afternoon.

Photo Gallery

Kansas Basketball vs. Niagra

While Collins dazzled the hometown crowd, Julian Wright, the team’s other Chicago native, came out with too much energy, causing him to miss several easy plays early.

“I’m not going to lie. I was definitely nervous,” he said.

Coach Bill Self agreed with that, and said the key to him getting back in the game was when he started to make simple plays.

“He was trying to make great plays instead of easy ones,” the coach said. “When guys are too amped up, they just need to make an easy play.”

Wright’s early miscues weren’t critical, as the 40-point victory ranked as the second-largest in the team’s postseason history.

Niagara, a team that is heavily dependent on the three-point shot, went just 2-of-19 from behind the arc.

No matter what the Purple Eagles tried to do, the Jayhawks had an answer defensively. On the other side of the court, Kansas managed to score 107 points without any players getting 20. Sophomore guard Mario Chalmers led the scoring with 19.

While each of the Jayhawks took their turns making a highlight-reel play, the loudest applause from the crowd went to Collins, who finished with 15 points and 6 assists.

“He’s probably the fastest guy I know with the ball,” sophomore guard Brandon Rush said. “He was just hyped to be back home, and most of his family came to watch him play.”

View from press row:

—Sasha Kaun said he felt a little sore after the game from dealing with a large bruise on his back. His string of medical bad luck continued, as he got cut in the right arm midway through the first half. He had to leave the game briefly, and also had to change his shorts because some of the blood dripped onto them.

—Freshman guard Brennan Bechard was the only player to not score a point during Friday’s game. Junior walk-on Brad Witherspoon recorded three minutes of action, and made the first of two free throws. “I was nervous at first,” he said. “But a free throw is just a free throw. I’ve made free throws in practice.”

—While the game was officially a sellout, the United Center was no more than half-full for the Kansas game. Most of the tickets have been sold to Wisconsin fans, who did not stick around to watch the game.

—It may be the arena that Michael Jordan made famous, but the NCAA has scrubbed the arena of all references to the Chicago Bulls, which is a shame, because I was looking forward to seeing all the championship banners.

—Coach Bill Self said the team seemed to be loose Friday. One of the things he had attributed last year’s loss to was nervousness, but he picked a different word to describe the group’s attitude on Friday. “They were anxious, I thought,” he said. “I can never tell, but they seemed focused today.”

Season considered success despite loss

The Jayhawks ended their season prematurely with a 68-55 loss to the ...

/news/2007/mar/26/basketball/

Players stay focused, humble

Russell Robinson set his cell phone on vibrate and Julian Wright said ...

/news/2007/mar/15/mbb/

Wright, Collins headed home to Chicago

Julian Wright and Sherron Collins will return to their native Chicago when ...

/news/2007/mar/14/mbb/

Living the Wright life

Wright left Kansas for the NBA last year. His life outside of ...

/news/2008/apr/17/julian/

Sherron Collins fills big shoes

Subbing for injured Russell Robinson, Collins plays a strong game. His nervousness ...

/news/2007/feb/26/mbb_sider/

Morris ready for Flyers' Wright

Kansas prepares for its second round game against Dayton and Chris Wright ...

/news/2009/mar/21/morris_ready_flyers_wright/

Historic rally seals conference title

After falling behind by 22 points, the Jayhawks came back to win ...

/news/2007/mar/12/mbb/

What a difference a season can make

With a look ahead to the tournaments, here is a look back ...

/news/2007/mar/08/mbb/

Taking care of business

After a grueling day at the basketball factory, Sherron Collins and Julian ...

/news/2007/mar/19/taking_care_business/

Collins secures victory against Baylor

Junior guard steps up in the final minutes and breaks school record ...

/news/2009/feb/03/collins_baylor/

Sherron's story

Collins has come a long way from the inner-city streets of Chicago.

/news/2010/mar/02/sherrons-story/

Collins takes his place as a leader ...

After brushes with injury, readiness and the law, the junior guard is ...

/news/2008/nov/20/collins_takes_his_place_leader_court/

Men's Basketball: The season in review

Beginning with Boot Camp and ending at the Elite Eight in San ...

/news/2007/apr/04/mbb/

On to Vegas

Kansas heads into its weekend games with a boost after defeating Tennessee ...

/news/2006/nov/21/vegas/

Kansas set for tournament matchup with Niagara

It's hard to believe, but Kansas hasn't won a tournament game in ...

/news/2007/mar/16/mbb/

Living the dream

Kansas’ seven newcomers fulfill goals of playing in the NCAA tournament

/news/2009/mar/24/mens_basketball/

Hornets "extremely happy" to have Wright

Former Jayhawk Julian Wright was drafted by the New Orleans Hornets on ...

/news/2007/jun/28/where_wright_headed/

Thomas was recruited to rebound, but thinks ...

Coach Bill Self recruited freshman forward Quintrell Thomas to dominate under the ...

/news/2008/nov/11/thomas/

Davison: 'Collins in a nutshell'

Sherron Collins should be a starter, but he is hesitant to break ...

/news/2007/feb/23/Davison/

Jayhawks overcome scrappy Golden Flashes to win ...

Aggressive play dominates Kansas victory against Kent State.

/news/2008/dec/02/jayhawks/

Alley-oop turns into an art form

Jayhawk guard toss some mean alley-oop passes that have led to some ...

/news/2007/feb/16/alleyoop/

Free throws secure victory

Kansas still has no definitive leader, but this year’s balanced team is ...

/news/2007/feb/27/mbb_sider/

Wright headed to New Orleans

Hornets take former Jayhawk with 13th pick in Thursday's NBA Draft

/news/2007/jun/29/wright_headed_new_orleans/

Vernon: Sherron, Jayhawks keep their cool

If you felt nervous during Friday's game against North Carolina State, know ...

/news/2012/mar/24/vernon-sherron-jayhawks-keep-their-cool/

Gameday: Kansas vs. Niagara

Kansas plays Niagara in its first round NCAA tournament game. Both teams ...

/news/2007/mar/15/gameday/

Collins reasserts himself in Kansas lineup

Sophomore guard Sherron Collins, now averaging 14.7 points per game, has made ...

/news/2008/mar/14/collins/

Robinson steps up his game at the ...

Thomas Robinson struggled his first two years at the charity stripe, but ...

/news/2011/dec/01/robinson-steps-his-game/

Kansas denies Dayton 60-43

Cole Aldrich recorded Kansas' first ever triple-double with 13 points, 20 rebounds ...

/news/2009/mar/22/game_blog_kansas_vs_dayton/

Collins returns in DePaul victory & Basketball ...

Sherron Collins wasn't scheduled to come back from a foot injury until ...

/news/2007/dec/08/collins_returns_depaul_victory_basketball_notes/

Jayhawks throw away free throws

Basketball team fails at the line, making only 14 of 30 in ...

/news/2010/feb/04/throw-away-free-throws/

Hawks lack ‘killer instinct’ against Kangaroos

Coach Bill Self was both pleased and displeased with his men’s basketball ...

/news/2007/nov/12/basketball/

Key Plays: Kansas at Iowa State

/news/2006/jan/30/keyplays/

Pressure pushes Jayhawks to close victory

A ‘timid’ second half is led by Rush’s weak performance. Teammates rely ...

/news/2007/feb/27/mbb_gamer/

Four home games to go for Collins ...

The end of the season also brings the end of the senior ...

/news/2010/feb/12/four-home-games-go-collins-ku/

Jaybowl, fans sad to see Wright leave

Until last week, students could see Wright rolling a ball down the ...

/news/2007/apr/10/fans/

Hero-less 'Hawks victorious

Kansas wins the Big 12 Tournament for the second straight year, but ...

/news/2007/mar/12/mbb_gamer/

Jayhawks ready for anyone

Kansas prepared for all takers for today's game against Oklahoma, who defeated ...

/news/2007/mar/09/mbb/

Fans get first glance at basketball team

Allen Fieldhouse played host to 25th Late Night with the Phog with ...

/news/2009/oct/19/first-glance/

Morris shows he's most improved player as ...

Morris ups his game, while Aldrich struggles.

/news/2010/jan/21/morris/

Keefer: Russell Robinson’s performance overshadows Sherron Collins

Sherron Collins’ performance against Iowa State on Wednesday night proved disappointing, while ...