Basketball preseason numbers looking good

Friday, October 30, 2009

The ESPN/USA Today Preseason Coaches’ Poll voted Kansas No. 1 for the first time since 2004-05 while the Jayhawks also received the top spot in The Associated Press’ first preseason Top 25.

In the polls released Thursday, Kansas received 27 out of 31 first-place votes in the coaches’ poll and 55 out of 65 in the Associated Press poll. Michigan State was second with three first-place votes and Texas was third in both polls with the only difference being five first-place votes for Michigan State and one for Texas in the Assocated Press poll. This marks the third time in school history Kansas is atop the preseason poll (1996-97).

Photo by Weston White

Junior guard Sherron Collins claps his hands as he walks off the court during a timeout last year. Collins was sited on the Naismith Trophy Preseason Watch List.

“I’m not really surprised because a lot of people have said all along we would be here,” head coach Bill Self said in a prepared statement Thursday. “This is a reflection of last year’s performance, who you return and who you recruited from a projection standpoint.”

He said he hopes his team does not put too much into a preseason poll, but still wishes for them to live up to expectations.

“I can see us being rated that high,” Self said, “but I hope our guys understand preseason rankings do not mean a lot and it should be our effort to try and play to that ranking each and every day we come out to practice.”

The Jayhawks return their top nine scorers, 12 letter winners and 94 percent of every statistical category from last season’s 27-8 team. Eight out of the past 10 years have the coaches ranked Kansas seventh or higher in the preseason.

Self believes this is the kind of pressure the team needs to stay on top of their game throughout the season.

“I almost hope there is pressure,” he said, “because I hope they realize that if they are not their best every day and try to get better each and every day, someone else has our game circled on their schedule. I hope we don’t have to be taught a lot of valuable lessons.”

Practice Progress

The team started practice Oct. 16 and Self said the team is not the same as last year’s. The youth is going through a maturing process and needs to improve practicing at a consistently high level.

“I think this team feels they can turn it on when they want to and that obviously is not the case,” Self said, “and that will be a tough lesson to learn if we don’t pick it up from an intensity standpoint.”

Three Jayhawks on Naismith watch list

The 50 players on the Naismith Trophy Preseason Watch List were released Thursday.

Three Jayhawks, Cole Aldrich, Sherron Collins and Xavier Henry, were on the list. The Naismith Trophy has been awarded to the season’s most outstanding men’s basketball player since 1969 and the most outstanding women’s player since 1983.

“Like the Wooden (Award), this is really cool for Cole and Xavier,” Collins said. “But this is preseason and as a leader, I have to get my team better day-in and day-out.”

Henry is only one of five freshmen on the list and it took him by surprise.

“I sure didn’t expect this, but did expect it for Sherron and Cole. It is a great honor,” he said. “Right now we are just trying to work hard as a team in practice and listen to our coaches and learn.”

— Edited by Megan Morriss

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