Monday, April 25, 2011
While the Jayhawks might not be a No. 1 seed in the 2012 NCAA Tournament, they will certainly have plenty of battle scars to show off beforehand.
And that’s not even counting the Big 12 portion of their schedule.
The non-conference schedule Kansas released on Sunday is absurd, to say the least. And it is by far the most competitive the school has had in a number of years.
It includes Ohio State, Kentucky and USC with potential matchups with Arizona, Duke, Georgetown, Memphis, Michigan, Tennessee and UCLA in the Maui Invitational. If North Carolina and Indiana were a part of the schedule, then Kansas would have played all of the greatest programs in one season.
There are going to be losses, there is no doubt. The young team that Kansas has for next year isn’t going to be able to consistently defeat perennial programs, so a two-loss regular season is not going to happen. But that’s a good thing.
The Jayhawks have thrived off of a multitude of talent over the years, but that’s not going to fly next year. Four of the main starters from the 2010-2011 season are gone. More importantly, the leadership of those four – Brady Morningstar, Tyrel Reed and the Morris twins – are gone.
Tyshawn Taylor still needs to prove he can lead the team, but he always seems to find himself in trouble. It has trickled down to the recent event involving Thomas Robinson. There isn’t a good role model to steer them in the right direction now.
But a 15-point thumping by Jared Sullinger’s Buckeyes when they come to Allen Fieldhouse on Dec. 10 could add some perspective on how the young Kansas team perceives college basketball.
Kansas usually ranks high in its strength of schedule, but that just shows how good the Big 12 is. But waiting until the conference season for these tough matches may be a little too late.
For too long Kansas has feasted on relatively easy non-conference opponents, only to fall short of expectations in the NCAA tournament. You could tell the players had big heads in the tournament and looked silly against Virginia Commonwealth when their performance didn’t match their verbal jabs.
Having seven consecutive Big 12 titles deserves a lot of recognition, of course. But getting some out-of-conference experience from the likes of Duke, Kentucky and Ohio State is invaluable.
Getting punched in the mouth early in the season will do wonders to help mature a young Kansas team next year. No. 1 seed just gives you a sense of entitlement, like you’re supposed to be the best. But even something as high as two or three seed can humble you. The 2008 team probably understood this.
— Edited by Marla Daniels
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