2008-09
OVERALL HOME AWAY NEUTRAL CONFERENCE PLACE CONF. TOURNEY POST-SEASON
27-8 18-1 6-4 3-3 14-2 1st 0-1 2-1

ROSTER:

NO. POS. NAME CLASS HGT. WGT. Hometown (Previous School)
    RETURNEES:        
54 C Matt Kleinmann ***# Sr. 6'10 250 Overland Park, KS (Blue Valley West HS)
10 G Brennan Bechard **# Sr 6'0 185 Lawrence, KS (Lawrence HS) Transfer from Barton Co. CC
4 G Sherron Collins ** Jr. 5'11 200 Chicago, IL (Crane HS)
12 G Brady Morningstar * Jr. 6'3 187 Lawrence, KS (Free State HS)/New Hampton Prep
2 G Conner Teahan *# So. 6'5 215 Leawood, KS (Rockhurst HS)
14 G Tyrel Reed * So. 6'3 185 Burlington, KS (Burlington HS)
41 G Chase Buford *# So. 6'3 210 San Antonio, TX (Alamo Heights HS)
45 C Cole Aldrich * So. 6'11 245 Bloomington, MN (Jefferson HS)
    NEW FACES:        
21 C Markieff Morris Fr. 6'9 232 Philadelphia (PA), (Prep Charter HS)/APEX Academies 
22 F Marcus Morris Fr. 6'8 225 Philadelphia (PA), (Prep Charter HS)/APEX Academies 
11 F Quintrell Thomas Fr. 6'7 240 Newark, NJ (St. Patrick HS)
24 G Travis Releford Fr. 6'5 200 Roeland Park, KS (Bishop Miege HS)
23 G Mario Little Jr. 6'5 210 Chicago, IL (Washington HS), Chipola Community College
32 G Tyrone Appleton Jr. 6'2 203 Gary.IN (Harmony Community HS), Midland (TX) College
15 G Tyshawn Taylor Fr. 6'3 180 Jersey City, NJ (St. Anthony HS)
40 G Jordan Juenemann Fr. 6'4 195 Hays, KS (Hays HS)
    REDSHIRT/TRANSFER:        
  C Jeff Withey Fr. 6'10 220 San Diego, CA (Horizon HS)

          * Varsity letter     Cpt. = Captain    # = Walk-on     % = Nonletterman

COACHES:

HEAD COACH

Bill Self, 6th Year

 

 

Asst. Coaches
Kurtis Townsend, Asst. Coach, 4thYear

Joe Dooley, Asst. Coach, 4th Year

Danny Manning, Asst Coach, 2nd year

Staff:

Brett Ballard, Director of Operations

Barry Hinson, Director of External Relations

Kyle Keller, Video Coordinator

LOSSES FROM LAST YEAR (' stats):

PLAYER LOSSES Class Hgt. POS. G/GS PTS PPG RBS RPG PPts STATUS
Sasha Kaun Sr. 6'11 C 40/6 284 7.1 154 3.9 9.03 Graduated
Russell Robinson Sr. 6'1 G 40/40 291 7.3 113 2.8 10.98 Graduated
Darnell Jackson Sr. 6'8 F 40/35 447 11.2 267 6.7 15.20 Graduated
Jeremy Case Sr. 6'1 G 30/1 47 1.6 10 0.3 1.93 Graduated
Roderick Stewart Sr. 6'4 G/F 33/8 92 2.8 74 2.2 4.67 Graduated
Brad Witherspoon Sr. 6'1 G 12/0 2 0.2 3 0.3 0.00 Graduated
Brandon Rush Jr. 6'6 G/F 38/30 498 12.8 120 3.1 13.82 To NBA
Darrell Arthur So. 6'9 F 40/39 510 12.8 250 6.3 14.43 To NBA
Mario Chalmers Sr. 6'1 G 39/38 498 12.8 120 3.1 16.54 To NBA
     TOTALS         2,669 66.7 1,111 27.8 86.60  

 

PRESEASON OUTLOOK:
The player losses from the 2008 squad, including all five starters, obviously puts the Jayhawks in a precarious position for the 2009 campaign.  Fortunately, Cole Aldrich and Sherron Collins, who would have likely been starters on any other team in the country last year, are back to headline another shot at the national championship.  Brady Morningstar is back from a redshirt year, and Tyrel Reed and Conner Teahan are promising sophomores.  Coach Self has brought in seven highly-rated recruits, all of whom should see alot of playing time.  Thus, the 2009 squad will be very talented, but also very green.

Luckily, as was the case with the very young 2006 team, this year's group also had the opportunity to practice early and get in three exhibition wins in Canada before the official start of the season.  Unfortunately, the NCAA did not clear the Morris twins (Markieff and Marcus) in time for them to go along.

Starting over: KU's young team has high standards to meet: http://www2.kusports.com/videos/2008/nov/13/23662/

Rocky nonconference season challenges young Jayhawks: http://www2.kusports.com/videos/2009/jan/05/23664/

 

SEASON SUMMARY:
Rock shock Jayhawks: KU earns outright Big 12 title: http://www2.kusports.com/videos/2009/mar/11/23663/

Kansas season in review

By J. BRADY McCOLLOUGH | THE KANSAS CITY STAR, Mar. 28, 2009

The greatest accomplishment for the 2008-09 Kansas Jayhawks was that they put themselves in a position to make their biggest dreams come true. KU returned no starters from last year’s national championship team, and it would have shocked no one for them to have finished third or fourth in the Big 12 and bow out early in the NCAA Tournament.

Heck, when the Jayhawks were 11-4 entering league play, there were probably some who wondered if they would even make the tournament. But KU won its fifth straight Big 12 regular-season title and ended its season in a somber locker room in Lucas Oil Stadium, thinking about what might have been. And that bitter feeling was a testament to how far this team had come in just a couple of months.


HIGHLIGHT: Coming off a big road win over No. 3 Oklahoma, the Jayhawks returned home to face the upstart Missouri Tigers, who had already beaten them 62-60 in Columbia. The Jayhawks pounded Missouri from start to finish in a 90-65 victory that catapulted KU into a No. 9 ranking in the polls.

LOWLIGHT: There are a few options — the loss to Massachusetts in the Sprint Center and the loss at Texas Tech are hard to overlook — but KU’s 71-64 defeat against Baylor in the Big 12 tournament quarterfinals takes the cake. The Jayhawks lost their first game in the league tournament for the first time and left Oklahoma City with a whimper. As Mario Little said, it was like they weren’t even there.

TEAM MVP: Sherron Collins. He surpassed even his own expectations as a leader, taking KU’s entire team under his wing as the season went on. Collins averaged 18.9 points and five assists per game. Frustrated Kansas fans can talk all they want about his negative impact in many of KU’s losses, but there’s no way the Jayhawks win the games they did without him.

BIGGEST SURPRISE: Brady Morningstar. Entering this season, nobody was talking about Morningstar, the Lawrence native and son of former KU player Roger Morningstar. It was always assumed that Brady’s legacy status helped him earn a scholarship. Turns out, the kid can play. Morningstar averaged 30 minutes a game, was a defensive stopper and became a guy that KU coach Bill Self couldn’t afford to remove from the game.

BIGGEST DISAPPOINTMENT: Mario Little — not because of how he played, but because of the circumstances he played under. Little was voted the preseason Big 12 newcomer of the year coming out of junior college, but he sustained a stress fracture in his lower left leg that kept him out of the first 12 games. He elected to play instead of taking a medical hardship year but never got his quickness back. He showed flashes of his potential, but Little wanted to be a consistent help to the Jayhawks. He wasn’t.

REASON TO HOPE FOR 2009-10: If Collins and center Cole Aldrich return, the Jayhawks are a strong candidate to be ranked No. 1 in the preseason. Tyshawn Taylor and the Morris twins should improve dramatically in year two, and Little will be able to show what he can do at full strength. Throw in a talented recruiting class that could get even better if heralded New York shooting guard Lance Stephenson commits to Kansas this week, and the Jayhawks should be dynamite.

REASON TO MOPE FOR 2009-10: If Collins declares for the NBA draft, it would leave the Jayhawks counting on Taylor or recruit Elijah Johnson to run the point. If Aldrich goes, KU would be looking to Markieff Morris or Arizona transfer Jeff Withey to play center. If Collins and Aldrich go, the Jayhawks will need all of their returnees to make great strides.

SHERRON COLLINS: If there’s one thing Collins has proved, it’s that he doesn’t like being told he can’t do something. Well, Sherron, you can’t get an A on this report card. So you better come back to school and try again. Collins’ turnover troubles bit the Jayhawks again on Friday night against Michigan State when he had a team-high six. Grade: A-

COLE ALDRICH: Aldrich turned himself into one of the top true centers in the nation in just his second season. His progression from a freshman year that saw him play eight minutes per game was startling. Still, Aldrich would be the first to tell you that he has many things to improve upon. His low-post offensive game needs some refining. Grade: A-

TYSHAWN TAYLOR: The Jayhawks ended up with Taylor thanks to the departure of Tom Crean from Marquette. Taylor’s signing ended up being a major blessing for KU. Like most freshmen, he had great moments and bad moments. Unfortunately for the Jayhawks, some of the bad ones and none of the good ones came in the NCAA Tournament. Grade: B

BRADY MORNINGSTAR: At the beginning of the season, if someone would have said that Morningstar would lock down Arizona’s Chase Budinger, Temple’s Dionte Christmas and Texas’ A.J. Abrams, laughs would have rung out throughout Lawrence. Morningstar belongs. Period. But he needs to become a more aggressive offensive player. Grade: B+

MARCUS MORRIS: Marcus was an enigma for most of the season. He immediately showed what he was capable of with 11 points and 11 rebounds against Syracuse. But he wouldn’t have another game like that one until scoring 15 points and grabbing seven boards at Kansas State. Marcus was too inconsistent but showed he can be a big-time player. Grade: B-

MARKIEFF MORRIS: Like his twin brother, Markieff was also hard to figure out. When he was in the game, he showed an ability to rebound and block shots, but his offensive game was spotty. He settled for jumpers too often instead of using his athleticism to get to the basket. Defensively, he fouled too often. He needs to get stronger and meaner in the offseason. Grade: C+

TYREL REED: Countless times, Reed swished three-pointers when the Jayhawks needed them most. Reed knew his limited role and excelled at it often. But like Morningstar, he needs to be more aggressive offensively. Reed’s defense could use some work, too. Grade: B

MARIO LITTLE: It’s not a question of whether Little can make the grade. He showed several times this season that he has the ability to be a great scorer. But too often — maybe it was the injury, maybe it was just adapting to big-time college basketball — he was a non-factor. His disappointment in himself and his situation became obvious. He’ll have another shot next year. Grade: C+

TRAVIS RELEFORD: In his first season, Releford could have probably used a redshirt year. The talented wingman from Kansas City couldn’t get his game to translate in Bill Self’s system, so he played behind Morningstar to the tune of seven minutes per game. Releford is an aggressive offensive player, but he has to learn how to score within the framework of the offense. Still, he didn’t get much of a chance to do anything. Grade: C

COACHING STAFF: Bill Self has brought home a couple national coach of the year awards for a reason. Self coached his butt off to begin the season, trying to get the Jayhawks to play like national champions within a few months. Once he realized that wasn’t going to happen, he enjoyed the process and turned KU into a contender. Grade: A

 

2009 FINAL TEAM STATISTICS (Team highs in bold):

CATEGORY

KU

OPP

DIFF

Collins, Sherron Aldrich, Cole Taylor, Tyshawn Morris, Marcus Morningstar, Brady Reed,
Tyrel
Little, Mario

Games Played/Started

35 35   35/35 35/35 35/33 35/22 35/34 35/2 23/3

Minutes

7025 7025   1229 1037 928 646 1063 724 288

    Per Game

200.7 200.7   35.1 29.6 26.5 18.5 30.4 20.7 12.5

Points

2674 2290 384 661 520 340 258 229 228 107

    Per Game

76.4 65.4 11.0 18.9 14.9 9.7 7.4 6.5 6.5 4.7

Rebounds

1371 1119 252 101 387 76 166 104 65 73

    Per Game

39.2 32.0 7.2 2.9 11.1 2.2 4.7 3.0 1.9 3.2
    Offensive 421 392 29 19 106 11 66 29 13 26
    Defensive 950 727 223 82 281 65 100 75 52 47

Blocks

155 115 40 0 94 8 12 5 0 4

Assists

555 439 116 174 36 104 38 92 37 20

Steals

239 256 -17 39 21 38 36 43 24 11
Turnovers 508 473 35 115 56 83 57 47 36 18
(Assists+Steals)/TO 1.56 1.47 0.09 1.85 1.02 1.71 1.30 2.87 1.69 1.72

FG -Attempts

1979 2019 -40 521 333 237 190 186 162 82

       Made

945 773 172 226 199 120 94 78 66 42

       Percent

47.8 38.3 9.5 43.4 59.8 50.6 49.5 41.9 40.7 51.2
3FG-Attempts 585 688 -103 205 0 66 15 119 126 8
      Made 217 230 -13 77 0 24 6 50 49 3
      Percent 37.1 33.4 3.7 37.6 0.0 36.4 40.0 42.0 38.9 37.5

FT-Attempts

782 708 74 166 154 105 106 29 57 32

     Made

567 514 53 132 122 76 64 23 47 20

     Percent

72.5 72.6 -0.1 79.5 79.2 72.4 60.4 79.3 82.5 62.5

Production Points/Game

92.47 65.89 26.58 15.12 23.89 9.63 9.00 8.91 6.06 6.30
Production Points/Minute .461 .328 .133 .432 .806 .363 .488 .294 .293 .503

Statistics, Cont'd

CATEGORY Morris, Markieff Releford, Travis Thomas, Quintrell Appleton, Tyrone Teahan, Conner Kleinmann, Matt Buford, Chase Bechard, Brennan Juenemann, Jordan Team
Games Played/ Started 35/7 32/0 26/1 21/0 21/0 17/2 11/0 11/1 5/0  
Minutes 547 225 140 47 81 36 13 16 5  
   Per Game 15.6 7.0 5.4 2.2 3.9 2.1 1.2 1.5 1.0  
Points 162 86 39 17 15 7 4 1 0  
   Per Game 4.6 2.7 1.5 0.8 0.7 0.4 0.4 0.1 0.0  
Rebounds 155 45 51 7 18 11 6 1 0  
   Per Game 4.4 1.4 2.0 0.3 0.9 0.6 0.5 0.1 0.0 3.1
   Offensive 51 20 18 2 5 4 2 0 0  
    Defensive 104 25 33 5 13 7 4 1 0  
Blocks 25 0 4 1 0 2 0 0 0  
Assists 34 6 2 7 3 0 0 2 0  
Steals 14 8 1 1 3 0 0 0 0  
Turnovers 43 22 13 9 4 2 1 0 1  
(Assists+Steals)/TO 1.12 0.64 0.23 0.89 1.5 - - - -  
FG - Attempts 134 58 25 13 22 5 4 6 1  
         Made 60 33 11 7 4 3 2 0 0  
         Percent 44.8 56.9 44.0 53.8 18.2 60.0 50.0 0.0 0.0  
3FG-Attempts 16 8 0 0 17 0 1 4 0  
        Made 3 3 0 0 2 0 0 0 0  
        Percent 18.8 37.5 0.0 0.0 11.8 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0  
FT - Attempts 60 32 25 6 5 3 0 2 0  
        Made 39 17 17 3 5 1 0 1 0  
        Percent 65.0 53.1 68.0 50.0 100.0 33.3 0.0 50.0 0.0  
Production Points/Game 7.20 2.59 2.38 0.71 0.81 0.82 0.64 -0.27 -0.40  
Production Points/Minute .460 .369 .443 .319 .210 .389 .538 -.188 -.400  

Source:   KU Basketball Media Guide

GAME-BY-GAME

 

DATE            OPPONENT                       W/L    SCORE 

   ------------    --------------------           ---    ----- 

   11-16-08        UMKC                           W      71-56   

   11-18-08        FGCU                           W      85-45   

   11-24-08     vs Washington                     W      73-54   

   11-25-08     vs Syracuse                         LOT  81-89   

   11-28-08        COPPIN STATE                   W      85-53   

   12-01-08        KENT STATE                     W      87-60   

   12-3-08         NEW MEXICO STATE               W     100-79   

   12-6-08         JACKSON STATE                  W      86-62   

   12-13-08        MASSACHUSETTS                    L    60-61   

   12-20-08        TEMPLE                         W      71-59   

  %12-23-08     at Arizona                          L    67-84   

   12-30-08        ALBANY                         W      79-43   

   1-3-09          TENNESSEE                      W      92-85   

   1-6-09          SIENA                          W      91-84   

   1-10-09      at Michigan State                   L    62-75   

  *1-13-09         KANSAS STATE                   W      87-71   

  *1/17/09      at Colorado                       W      73-56   

  *1-19-09         TEXAS A&M                      W      73-53   

  *01-24-09     at Iowa State                     W      82-67   

  *1/28/09      at Nebraska                       W      68-62   

  *1-31-09         COLORADO                       W      66-61   

  *02/02/09     at Baylor                         W      75-65    

  *2/7/09          OKLAHOMA STATE                 W      78-67   

  *02-09-09     at Missouri                         L    60-62   

  *2/14/09      at Kansas State                   W      85-74   

  *2/18/09         IOWA STATE                     W      72-55   

  *2/21/09         NEBRASKA                       W      70-53   

  *02/23/09     at Oklahoma                       W      87-78  

  *3/1/09          MISSOURI                       W      90-65   

  *03/04/09     at Texas Tech                       L    65-84    

  *3/7/09          TEXAS                          W      83-73   

   03-12-09     vs Baylor                           L    64-71     

   03/20/09     vs North Dakota State             W      84-74  

   03/22/09     vs Dayton                         W      60-43  

   3/27/09      vs Michigan State                   L    62-67 


 

New Look Jayhawks, Rivals.com

Link to National Statistics for 2009

Link to Big 12 Conference for 2009

Big 12 Conference Standings

TEAM

CONF W-L

TOTAL W-L

#9 Kansas

14-2

27-8

#5 Oklahoma

13-3

27-4

#12 Missouri

12-4

25-6

Texas A&M

9-7

23-8

Kansas State

9-7

21-10

Oklahoma State

9-7

20-10

Texas

9-7

20-10

Nebraska

8-8

18-11

Baylor

5-11

17-13

Iowa State

4-12

15-16

Texas Tech

3-13

13-18

Colorado

1-15

9-21