Friday, January 16, 2009
Late in the first half against Missouri on Wednesday, coach Bonnie Henrickson pleaded with point guard Ivana Catic to take a glance near the basket, where Kansas’ 6-foot-5 center Krysten Boogaard staked her ground.
“Look inside,” Henrickson said. “Throw it inside!”
It’s not that Catic was being selfish — she took zero shots in the game, while finishing with a team-high six assists. But Henrickson wanted to make certain that Boogaard, the Jayhawks’ best threat to score inside, at least got her hands on the ball.
Sophomore center Krysten Boogard defends against a New Mexico State drive during a game in early January in Allen Fieldhouse. Boogaard is credited with being the Jayhawks' sole inside presence. Coach Bonnie Henrickson has said the team needs to be feeding Boogaard more opportunities to score inside the paint.
To some degree, that’s been a problem for Kansas since Boogaard returned to the lineup on Dec. 10 after missing four games with a stress reaction in her leg. And it should be noted that Henrickson said Boogaard isn’t “completely back to playing with the balance and strength” she had before the injury
“We always need to look inside in transition,” Henrickson said. “Right now, my frustration is we don’t often do that, or often enough. And a lot of times that’s just an easy play.”
If the Jayhawks want to be successful against Big 12 opponents, such as Texas Tech, which Kansas plays host to on Saturday, Henrickson said they must find Boogaard inside.
Much of the problem deals with entry passes. With defenses sagging and constantly trying to disrupt passing lanes into the post, Kansas has struggled with consistently feeding Boogaard the ball.
In Kansas’ past two games, Boogaard has made 50 percent of her attempts yet taken only 10 shots. Both Kansas State and Missouri played high-side defense against Kansas, meaning defenders played in front of Boogaard, forcing perimeter players to throw lob passes over her head. And both teams exposed a rather noticeable flaw in the Jayhawks’ offense.
“We shoot a ball in a rim that’s really pretty small, but we can’t make a pass with six feet room for error,” Henrickson said. “There’s just no excuse for that.”
The Jayhawks appeared slightly more at ease against Missouri Wednesday, but guards often failed to recognize Boogaard open inside. And as much as Kansas relies on scoring from perimeter players, the Jayhawks must balance that with low-post points, too.
“What’s good for one is really good for the other,” Henrickson said. “You have to have perimeter and post balance.”
Not only is Boogaard Kansas’ most productive interior player — she’s averaging 10.8 points and 6.2 rebounds per game — but her ability to score inside also creates scoring opportunities for Kansas’ other players.
When Boogaard scores and gets touches in the post, defenses must sag inside. That means more space for perimeter players to work.
“That allows us to attack the defense at the core in the paint,” Henrickson said, “and that’s always been important for us.”
Henrickson said Kansas would see an assortment of defenses against Texas Tech on Saturday. Still, regardless of the defense the Red Raiders employ, the Jayhawks need to continue to look inside.
“We shouldn’t miss her,” Henrickson said. “If she’s there, we have to be able to throw it to her. And we’re not being very efficient on the number of times she’s open and available and we don’t let go of it. It’s not a selfish thing, we just don’t see it.”
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