I agree with Jason :KU shouldn’t rely on the three - Page 2

ROYC75 · 03-20-2008, 08:55 PM

http://www.kansascity.com/sports/col...ry/539904.html

KU shouldn’t rely on the three
Commentary by JASON WHITLOCK
The Kansas City Star

OMAHA | It was perfect, the way Kansas trounced Portland State 85-61 Thursday afternoon in the first round of the NCAA Tournament.

The top-seeded Jayhawks mustered the perfect amount of energy, focus and ball-sharing while making just enough crucial mistakes to give Bill Self a reason to chastise his players between now and Saturday’s second-round fight with UNLV.

A repeat of Thursday’s performance in the next three rounds and it’s highly likely the Jayhawks will make a premature exit from the Big Dance.

They shot too many threes, passed poorly into the low post and played horrible defense during stretches of their blowout victory over an overmatched Big Sky squad.

This is now two games in a row that Kansas has fallen in love with the three-ball. The Hawks, 32-3, have fired 25 threes in victories over Texas and Portland State. Lucky for them, they’ve drained 27 of 50 long-range shots.

I say it’s fool’s gold.

“I don’t think so,” said KU big man Darrell Arthur. “I think they were good shots. Guards got the ball where it needed to be. We just missed a couple of them in the second half. I thought we did a good job shooting the first half.”

No doubt they shot accurately and took wide-open shots against Portland State. The undersized Vikings didn’t have the athleticism or size to defend the low post and scramble out on KU’s sharpshooters.

The problem is three-point shooting can take on a life of its own when things start feeling too good on the perimeter. Good shooters start believing they’re great shooters, and streak shooters start believing they can shoot themselves out of a drought. Kansas is setting itself up for failure by not playing inside-out at all times, especially against an inferior foe.

“The way they play defense,” Self said of the Vikings, “is wherever the ball is, their whole team tried to get to the level of the ball. It’s called ball-line defense. And so wherever the ball is, they do a great job of really getting there. So most of our threes, if I’m not mistaken, were taken off of forcing the defense to help and passing it out.”

It’s a sound explanation, but the Hawks should’ve imposed their will on Portland State rather than taking what the defense gave them.

“The point you’re trying to make, which I would agree with,” Self said, “we have to play through our big guys. And tonight we didn’t do that as much, in large part because of the way they defended and how we shot the three in the first half.”

Kansas sank eight of 13 three-point shots in the opening 20 minutes. Sherron Collins and Mario Chalmers combined hit five of seven. The three is a hard shot to turn down when it’s falling.

But while Chalmers, Collins and Brandon Rush were unspooling threes, Arthur, Darnell Jackson and Sasha Kaun — KU’s three-headed post rotation — combined to take seven total shots in the first half. That’s not good.

And neither were the passes into the low post that were supposed to get them the ball. Portland State picked off several of the passes.

“It was sloppy,” Self agreed. “We had two or three uncontested layups if we had thrown the ball to the open hand and led them into the shot. We underthrew like two or three of them. We’re usually a better post-feeding team than that. So that’s something we definitely need to tighten up.”

OK, well the Hawks might want to tighten up their defense, too. About six minutes into the game — after Kansas built a 14-3 lead — the Vikings settled down, got into their offense and scored with relative ease. They got the shots their offense was designed to produce and closed to within 24-18 with about 9 minutes left in the half.

It wasn’t until Chalmers’ and Robinson’s quick hands and feet started creating turnovers — they combined for five first-half steals — that the Hawks reasserted control of the game.

“We’ll have to play much better defense, in my opinion, than what we played today,” Self said referring to Saturday’s game against UNLV.

Sorry if this column sounds too negative. The Jayhawks played a pretty good game on Thursday. But they didn’t enter this tournament with intentions of beating Portland State. They’re in the Dance to win the whole thing, and they’re not going to do it tossing up 25 threes against good opponents.

It’s cliché but true: Live by the three, die by the three.

Mr. Laz · 03-20-2008, 09:51 PM

i disagree .... KU isn't living by the 3.

but unlike many a season maybe they are getting used to shooting the 3 so they don't panic when they HAVE to shoot some.

build confidence so one of these other teams don't get hot behind the arc and steal a game from us.

**Skip Towne** · 03-20-2008, 09:54 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Laz

i disagree .... KU isn't living by the 3.

but unlike many a season maybe they are getting used to shooting the 3 so they don't panic when they HAVE to shoot some.

build confidence so one of these other teams don't get hot behind the arc and steal a game from us.

Exactly right. KU can beat you either way. I wonder if fatass is aware KU ran up 100 on Baylor while scoring 0 threes?

Boon · 03-20-2008, 10:05 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Skip Towne

Exactly right. KU can beat you either way. I wonder if fatass is aware KU ran up 100 on Baylor while scoring 0 threes?

Probably not. I think Golden Corral had a special all you can eat pig feet that night.
He was busy.

**Skip Towne** · 03-20-2008, 10:06 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by 88-31-10

Probably not. I think Golden Corral had a special all you can eat pig feet that night.
He was busy.

Heh, good one 47.

Boon · 03-20-2008, 10:11 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Skip Towne

Heh, good one 47.

Damnit!! Those are dashes not minuses.

Vegas_Dave · 03-20-2008, 10:21 PM

Reeeebbbbb-belllllsssss

**alnorth** · 03-20-2008, 10:40 PM

This article is a rediculous pile of crap. KU has already proven that they can beat your brains in within the paint, and a few other teams have noticed it too. With the way Texas played defense, Kansas hardly had a choice but to fire away. The longhorns clogged it up inside and dared the Jayhawks to beat them from outside, so Kansas took advantage of wide-open 3's all day.

Portland State didnt exactly play great defense, so KU could have gone inside more if they wanted, but bottom line: if a good 3-point shooter is given a wide-open shot, they should have no hesitation. When the shot is wide-open and your good enough to hit it, there's no such thing as shooting too many 3's. If the jayhawks had hands in their faces all day and still pulled 3's out of their asses, that would be different.

Duke won a lot of games for a long time with the 3-point shot. Their weakness has occasionally been a weak inside game, but Kansas is well-balanced all the way around. If UNLV roams out to the 3-point line, then you'll see more dunks and 10-foot jump shots. If UNLV decides that they cant afford to let anyone come within 15 feet of the basket, then the Jayhawks will and should fire away from outside.

Nearly every champion (other than those who are 1-dimensional and lucky) can do both, shoot it from outside and drive inside without relying too heavily on any one player.

**CosmicPal** · 03-20-2008, 10:42 PM

Honestly, and I don't mean any disrespect to Portland St, but watching the game, I immediately sensed KU thought of this as an excellent chance to get some "scrimmage" time in.

KU wasn't "relying" on anything, they were simply "going about the motions" and getting some 'play' time. They didn't pressure PS like they usually pressured their opponents on D, and they also didn't focus on play calling or setting the usual screens. A few times, early on, I noticed a lackluster attempt by KU to set screens.

I expect them to play a tenacious D against UNLV though. They will have to, 'cause the Runnin' Rebels like to run like the UNLV teams of old. And they can play a mean D as well. I expect KU to give UNLV fits.

BWillie · 03-21-2008, 01:21 AM

As others have noted, it is pick your poison with KU. They really have all the weapons to beat you. As complete team as I've ever seen at Kansas in the 25 years I've followed. Good teams can beat you anyway you want. If you clog the middle KU can be just as content to draining threes in your grill. If you slow it down, we will pound the ball in the middle methodically. If you chose to run with us, Chalmers will lead the break and cripple you. If you play zone, our guards amazing ball movement and Sherron Collins will break down the zone to lead to alley oops and 3 pointers.

Whitlock does realize that KU lead the Big 12 in three point % at 40% doesn't he? At 40% we really should shoot MORE threes if anything.

ceebz · 03-21-2008, 06:48 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ArrowheadHawk

They don't live by the three. They just take whatever the defense gives. For the most part they take open shots. I didn't see them forcing up threes.

I agree. Honestly, I thought they played pretty well for an opening round game. I expected them to come out flat, play sloppy and pull out a win late.

I thought the Jayhawks had pretty good intensity throughout.

Teams have started playing zone and packing it in to defend the post game and the interior passing game that KU runs so well. If Chalmers, Rush or Collins have wide-open looks at threes, I say they should take them.

Reerun_KC · 03-21-2008, 07:08 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by 88-31-10

Damnit!! Those are dashes not minuses.

Mr. Plow · 03-21-2008, 07:59 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by CosmicPal

Honestly, and I don't mean any disrespect to Portland St, but watching the game, I immediately sensed KU thought of this as an excellent chance to get some "scrimmage" time in.

KU wasn't "relying" on anything, they were simply "going about the motions" and getting some 'play' time. They didn't pressure PS like they usually pressured their opponents on D, and they also didn't focus on play calling or setting the usual screens. A few times, early on, I noticed a lackluster attempt by KU to set screens.

I expect them to play a tenacious D against UNLV though. They will have to, 'cause the Runnin' Rebels like to run like the UNLV teams of old. And they can play a mean D as well. I expect KU to give UNLV fits.

I got the same feeling. Like this was a "I'm gonna get my points" game.

03-20-2008, 08:55 PM
ROYC75 Time For Your Wake Up Call !!! Join Date: Oct 2000 Location: Barn Yard Casino cash: $2130400	I agree with Jason :KU shouldn’t rely on the three http://www.kansascity.com/sports/col...ry/539904.html KU shouldn’t rely on the three Commentary by JASON WHITLOCK The Kansas City Star OMAHA \| It was perfect, the way Kansas trounced Portland State 85-61 Thursday afternoon in the first round of the NCAA Tournament. The top-seeded Jayhawks mustered the perfect amount of energy, focus and ball-sharing while making just enough crucial mistakes to give Bill Self a reason to chastise his players between now and Saturday’s second-round fight with UNLV. A repeat of Thursday’s performance in the next three rounds and it’s highly likely the Jayhawks will make a premature exit from the Big Dance. They shot too many threes, passed poorly into the low post and played horrible defense during stretches of their blowout victory over an overmatched Big Sky squad. This is now two games in a row that Kansas has fallen in love with the three-ball. The Hawks, 32-3, have fired 25 threes in victories over Texas and Portland State. Lucky for them, they’ve drained 27 of 50 long-range shots. I say it’s fool’s gold. “I don’t think so,” said KU big man Darrell Arthur. “I think they were good shots. Guards got the ball where it needed to be. We just missed a couple of them in the second half. I thought we did a good job shooting the first half.” No doubt they shot accurately and took wide-open shots against Portland State. The undersized Vikings didn’t have the athleticism or size to defend the low post and scramble out on KU’s sharpshooters. The problem is three-point shooting can take on a life of its own when things start feeling too good on the perimeter. Good shooters start believing they’re great shooters, and streak shooters start believing they can shoot themselves out of a drought. Kansas is setting itself up for failure by not playing inside-out at all times, especially against an inferior foe. “The way they play defense,” Self said of the Vikings, “is wherever the ball is, their whole team tried to get to the level of the ball. It’s called ball-line defense. And so wherever the ball is, they do a great job of really getting there. So most of our threes, if I’m not mistaken, were taken off of forcing the defense to help and passing it out.” It’s a sound explanation, but the Hawks should’ve imposed their will on Portland State rather than taking what the defense gave them. “The point you’re trying to make, which I would agree with,” Self said, “we have to play through our big guys. And tonight we didn’t do that as much, in large part because of the way they defended and how we shot the three in the first half.” Kansas sank eight of 13 three-point shots in the opening 20 minutes. Sherron Collins and Mario Chalmers combined hit five of seven. The three is a hard shot to turn down when it’s falling. But while Chalmers, Collins and Brandon Rush were unspooling threes, Arthur, Darnell Jackson and Sasha Kaun — KU’s three-headed post rotation — combined to take seven total shots in the first half. That’s not good. And neither were the passes into the low post that were supposed to get them the ball. Portland State picked off several of the passes. “It was sloppy,” Self agreed. “We had two or three uncontested layups if we had thrown the ball to the open hand and led them into the shot. We underthrew like two or three of them. We’re usually a better post-feeding team than that. So that’s something we definitely need to tighten up.” OK, well the Hawks might want to tighten up their defense, too. About six minutes into the game — after Kansas built a 14-3 lead — the Vikings settled down, got into their offense and scored with relative ease. They got the shots their offense was designed to produce and closed to within 24-18 with about 9 minutes left in the half. It wasn’t until Chalmers’ and Robinson’s quick hands and feet started creating turnovers — they combined for five first-half steals — that the Hawks reasserted control of the game. “We’ll have to play much better defense, in my opinion, than what we played today,” Self said referring to Saturday’s game against UNLV. Sorry if this column sounds too negative. The Jayhawks played a pretty good game on Thursday. But they didn’t enter this tournament with intentions of beating Portland State. They’re in the Dance to win the whole thing, and they’re not going to do it tossing up 25 threes against good opponents. It’s cliché but true: Live by the three, die by the three.
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03-20-2008, 09:51 PM	#16
Mr. Laz Don't Tease Me Join Date: Dec 2000 Location: KS Casino cash: $11047037	i disagree .... KU isn't living by the 3. but unlike many a season maybe they are getting used to shooting the 3 so they don't panic when they HAVE to shoot some. build confidence so one of these other teams don't get hot behind the arc and steal a game from us. __________________
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03-20-2008, 10:21 PM	#21
Vegas_Dave Veteran Join Date: Jun 2002 Location: Las Vegas, NV Casino cash: $-1575280	Reeeebbbbb-belllllsssss __________________ Lastly, Redrum_69:
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03-20-2008, 10:40 PM	#22
alnorth . Join Date: Dec 2002 Casino cash: $57156239	This article is a rediculous pile of crap. KU has already proven that they can beat your brains in within the paint, and a few other teams have noticed it too. With the way Texas played defense, Kansas hardly had a choice but to fire away. The longhorns clogged it up inside and dared the Jayhawks to beat them from outside, so Kansas took advantage of wide-open 3's all day. Portland State didnt exactly play great defense, so KU could have gone inside more if they wanted, but bottom line: if a good 3-point shooter is given a wide-open shot, they should have no hesitation. When the shot is wide-open and your good enough to hit it, there's no such thing as shooting too many 3's. If the jayhawks had hands in their faces all day and still pulled 3's out of their asses, that would be different. Duke won a lot of games for a long time with the 3-point shot. Their weakness has occasionally been a weak inside game, but Kansas is well-balanced all the way around. If UNLV roams out to the 3-point line, then you'll see more dunks and 10-foot jump shots. If UNLV decides that they cant afford to let anyone come within 15 feet of the basket, then the Jayhawks will and should fire away from outside. Nearly every champion (other than those who are 1-dimensional and lucky) can do both, shoot it from outside and drive inside without relying too heavily on any one player. __________________ how many emo kids does it take to change a lightbulb? HOW MANY?! none they just sit in the dark and cry
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03-20-2008, 10:42 PM	#23
CosmicPal Learn it. Know it. Live it. Join Date: Nov 2002 Location: St. Petersburg, FL Casino cash: $10004900	Honestly, and I don't mean any disrespect to Portland St, but watching the game, I immediately sensed KU thought of this as an excellent chance to get some "scrimmage" time in. KU wasn't "relying" on anything, they were simply "going about the motions" and getting some 'play' time. They didn't pressure PS like they usually pressured their opponents on D, and they also didn't focus on play calling or setting the usual screens. A few times, early on, I noticed a lackluster attempt by KU to set screens. I expect them to play a tenacious D against UNLV though. They will have to, 'cause the Runnin' Rebels like to run like the UNLV teams of old. And they can play a mean D as well. I expect KU to give UNLV fits. __________________ - * - * - * - * - * - * - * - * - * - Four blessings upon my fellow planeteers: Older whiskey, younger women, faster horses, and more money.
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03-21-2008, 01:21 AM	#24
BWillie Are you ready to Rumble? Join Date: Apr 2006 Casino cash: $-1468759	As others have noted, it is pick your poison with KU. They really have all the weapons to beat you. As complete team as I've ever seen at Kansas in the 25 years I've followed. Good teams can beat you anyway you want. If you clog the middle KU can be just as content to draining threes in your grill. If you slow it down, we will pound the ball in the middle methodically. If you chose to run with us, Chalmers will lead the break and cripple you. If you play zone, our guards amazing ball movement and Sherron Collins will break down the zone to lead to alley oops and 3 pointers. Whitlock does realize that KU lead the Big 12 in three point % at 40% doesn't he? At 40% we really should shoot MORE threes if anything.
Posts: 52,872