Preview: Guaranteed Payday at Revenue Opportunity

posted by Hoopinion on 12/19/2006 - -

Nothing good can come of tonight’s game other than someone who usually spends his time on the far end of the bench using the time between 8:40 and 10:00 pm CST (approximate) to set a career high in various categories.

On the other hand, the vast gulf of talent and athleticism that separates the Univeristy of Kansas men’s basketball team from the Winston-Salem State men’s basketball team renders everything that happens on the court meaningless while the very existence of this game highlights the most unpleasant realities of 21st Century college basketball. What progress is made tonight is not in pursuit of a conference or national championship in 2007 but in pursuit of narrowing the gap in Athletic Department revenue between the University of Kansas and the University of Texas at Austin.

If anyone wants the particulars as to Winston-Salem State’s easily purchased incompetence, check Ken Pomeroy’s wonderful content here and here.

Updated team and individual stats for the Jayhawks are after the jump.

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Calipari to NC State?

posted by Jeremy Chrysler on 4/10/2006 - -

A few weeks back, Calipari said he wasn’t going anywhere. Now, the tune on the old Coaching Carousel changed and got a little louder as Calipari is said to be in a dangerous flirtation with NC State University according to Gregg Doyel.

Calipari, the Memphis coach, is in serious negotiations with North Carolina State about becoming its next coach, according to a source close to the Wolfpack.

Texas coach Rick Barnes should send a fruit basket to NC State, because by simply dropping his name out there, they got the folks that our beloved flesh eating death machine of Texas Athletics a little motivated, such that Barnes is now making 1.8 million a year, despite potentially losing Tucker and Aldridge.

AUSTIN, Texas - Texas men’s basketball coach Rick Barnes is staying. But LaMarcus Aldridge, his star sophomore forward from Seagoville, is leaving.

According to two sources, Barnes will see his annual base salary jump from $1.3 million to $1.8 million with a $125,000 incentive for reaching the NCAA Tournament.

While Barnes will remain at Texas , he’ll be without Aldridge. The 6-11 forward averaged 15 points, 9.2 rebounds and 1.97 blocks per game and has told teammates and the coaching staff that he’s headed for the NBA, according to three sources.

Smash-Mouth Jayhawks

posted by AJ Vanderhorst on 3/13/2006 - -

Zone busters. Spark plugs. Pit bulls.

I’m looking for the right words, help me.

The Kansas Jayhawks are rolling as the NCAA tourney looms, and it’s hard to do justice to their offensive tenacity and smash-mouth defensive mentality.

After the Jayhawks beat down the Texas Longhorns, making me look good for having called the win and predicting key stats, the whole state of Kansas started jumping up and down. Out in the prairie, ground hogs thought a minor earthquake was hitting the Midwest.

Nope, it was just the ‘Hawks and their fans, celebrating a pay-back smack-down. Everyone told them not to do it, including the Longhorn cheerleaders, but KU went on and defied the Lone Star curse. They messed with Texas, but the dirt didn’t stick. If anything, NBA lottery pick LaMarcus Aldridge (4 points, 5 rebounds, no blocks) is looking a little dusty now.

As the week progresses, I’ll post some thoughts on KU’s first-round match-up with the Bradley Braves. Bradley features a couple of NBA-caliber players, one of them a 7-footer. Needless to say, the services of the Jayhawk big men will be required once again.

For the moment, I’m simply thrilled with the tough, tough, in-your-face intensity I’m seeing from the Jayhawks. This team appears sold on Bill Self’s strategy, and as a result has a toughness that Roy Williams KU teams always seemed to lack. This concerted aggression is embodied by PG Russell Robinson, whose stat line in the Oklahoma State game included 7 steals, 7 assists, 7 stitches. No problem. Against the Longhorns, Robinson’s stat line resembled a Trophy assembly line: 14 points, 6 rebounds, 6 assists, 3 steals.

Gutsy.

What was written on UT’s Championship Trophy

posted by Jeremy Chrysler on 3/6/2006 - -

UT evidently didn’t like what was written on their championship trophy on Sunday, so they called on the PhD hotshots at their sekrit embossing lab to make a quick replacement, and it was the replacement that got fans and such all excited.

So what did UT choose to place on its trophy? Check out the photo evidence below…

One month till Spring football

Curiouser and curiouser…Mizzou will probably call for an investigation.