Friday, February 6, 2009
Sherron Collins tells his teammates the same thing before every game in Allen Fieldhouse.
More specifically, he yells the same thing. After Collins’ name is announced, he runs through the tunnel and the rest of the Jayhawks circle around him. They ignore the deafening noise of the home crowd and listen to the message they know is coming.
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Sherron Collins is a finalist for the Bob Cousy Award.
The award, which recognizes the nation’s top point guard, released its list of 17 finalists Thursday and included Collins. He was the only finalist from the Big 12 Conference. But the winner has come from the Big 12 the past two seasons. Texas’ D.J. Augustin won it last season and Texas A&M’s Acie Law IV took it in 2007 — when Kansas’ Russell Robinson was a finalist.
Fans can vote for whom they want to win the award at www.cousyaward.com. The fan’s collective pick will receive one vote. The other voters include coaches, media members and college basketball experts.
“I just tell them it’s our house,” Collins, a junior guard, said. “And we don’t lose at home.”
Kansas hasn’t lost in Allen Fieldhouse in two years. The Jayhawks will be attempting to win their 37th consecutive home game Saturday when they play the Oklahoma State Cowboys at 2:30.
The Jayhawks currently hold the nation’s longest home winning streak at 36 games. Kansas last lost in Lawrence on Feb. 3, 2007 against Texas A&M, 69-66.
That’s one of only two home losses — the other was a 78-71 loss to Oral Roberts on Nov. 15, 2006 — Collins and sophomore guard Brady Morningstar have experienced since coming to Kansas. The other six rotation players have never lost on Naismith Court.
“That’s something the players should obviously take great pride in,” Kansas coach Bill Self said. “Not because it’s the longest in America now, but because there’s a lot of guys that spent a lot of hours to get it to that length.”
This is coming from Self, who doesn’t care much about streaks. Self says he never brings up individual streaks — like Sherron Collins’ record 35 consecutive free throws — to the players.
But this is different. The home winning streak is already the third longest in school history. The Jayhawks won 62 in a row at Allen Fieldhouse from 1994-1998 and 55 consecutively from 1984-1988.
If Kansas kept winning, it likely wouldn’t have a chance to break the record until the 2010-2011 season. But that’s irrelevant. What matters to Self and Collins is that the young Jayhawks are beginning to understand the importance of winning at home.
“It’s tough to beat us in here once the fans get into the game,” freshman forward Marcus Morris said. “It gets loud. It gets tough to concentrate.”
Even for Morris. Self said it could get so loud at the end of a close game that the Jayhawks could feel more pressure than the away team because they don’t want to let the fans down.
Collins remembers that sensation from when he was a youngster in the Kansas lineup two years ago. But he also remembers the pre-game huddles he found solace in.
“It was the same way,” Collins said. “I wasn’t the one talking in the huddle, but it was a home game and we didn’t lose at home.”
Perhaps someday, Morris will be the one delivering the inspiration before the game. For now, he’s focused on prolonging the streak.
“It’s tough to beat us in the Fieldhouse because we bring our A-game,” Morris said. “It’s a great feeling to have that winning streak.”
— — Edited By Sam Speer
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36 consecutive home court advantage
Note to Morris: You don't have that streak -- AFH does. What you have is the opportunity to live up to it. So far, so good. Keep it coming.
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