Associated Press
Ohio State guard Michael Redd drives past Kansas
center Eric Chenowith yesterday in the Rainbow Classic.
Kansas pulls away in the
By Paul Arnett
final eight minutes to win, 69-56
Star-BulletinWith eight minutes remaining and Ohio State hanging around like an unwelcome guest, Kansas head coach Roy Williams shot a quick glance down the bench. What he saw made his heart ache one second and race the next. If his second-ranked Jayhawks were going to break this 49-49 tie and open up an insurmountable lead, they would have to do it without injured forwards T.J. Pugh and Raef LaFrentz.
They sat in shorts, polo shirts and casts -- on Pugh's foot and LaFrentz's hand -- unable to make a contribution last night in the opening round of the Rainbow Classic.
It wasn't a comforting sight, particularly when forward Paul Pierce resembled a halftime contestant in a free-throw shooting contest.
Pierce was putting up some ugly shots against the pesky Buckeyes in the nationally televised game. But just like the ESPN cameras, Pierce didn't blink.
Instead, he keyed a critical 20-7 run over the final eight minutes as Kansas beat Ohio State, 69-56, to move into tonight's semifinals with Vanderbilt.
The Commodores raised their record to 10-1 with a 79-72 win over New Mexico State. But in tonight's nationally televised game at the Special Events Arena, they will step into the limelight, something 15-1 Kansas doesn't like to share with anyone.
Just ask Ohio State sensation Michael Redd. For most of the night, the nation's top freshman scorer was getting the best of Pierce. The 6-foot-5 shooting guard even drew down on Kansas' All-America candidate a time or two, just to let him know he was around.
But when the money ball was put into play, Pierce scored 15 of Kansas' final 17 points as the Jayhawks survived their first game of many without LaFrentz.
"Paul's an All-American," LaFrentz said. "He's gonna be there every night, and the rest of the guys need to step it up."
Senior shooting guard Billy Thomas did his part early and often. While Pierce suffered through 2-for-11 shooting in the opening 20 minutes, Thomas was stroking it from everywhere.
He was 6-for-9 from beyond the arc and wound up scoring a career-high 27 points. Williams also praised him for his defensive efforts.
"Never thought I'd say that, did you? Williams said to Thomas.
In the end, it was the Jayhawks' defensive intensity that finally broke the young Buckeyes' spirits. The relentless pressure allowed Kansas to stay in it long enough for Pierce to break out of his slump and key the win.
"We feel fortunate to have won," a tired and relieved Williams said.
"I think mentally we haven't been sharp the last couple of days because what has happened. But we've got to put Raef's injury behind us."
Pierce was able to do that when it counted. He went 6-for-10 from the field in the second half to score 22 points, and grabbed six rebounds. No one else finished with more than five points.
Williams expected LSU transfer Lester Earl and 7-foot center Eric Chenowith to help ease the loss of LaFrentz's 21.2 points per game and 11.4 rebounds. But they combined for only seven points and committed six turnovers.
Ohio State forward Jason Singleton had a career night against them. He was 11-for-19 from the field to lead the Buckeyes with 23 points and eight rebounds.
It just wasn't enough.
"I really think the fatigue caught up with us," Ohio State head coach Jim O'Brien said. Singleton and Redd totaled 76 minutes.
"We were just kind of hanging in there the whole game," the first-year coach said. "These guys were very, very tired, and (guard) Carlos Davis was exhausted.
"But you've got to give credit where credit is due, and those guys stepped up and made big shots. Thomas and Pierce are two terrific players, and when the game was on the line, they made big plays. That was really the biggest difference in the end."
Pierce was just glad his shots fell when needed.
"I wasn't really sure how we were going to react after we lost one of our best players," Pierce said. "That's done now. We have to adjust and do it with the guys we've got."
Williams agreed.
"When you've got two of the best players in the country and one of them goes down, the other guy is supposed to step up," Williams said. "I'm counting on Paul to do that."
Associated Press
Injured Kansas forward Raef LaFrentz cheers on
his teammates from the bench during last night's
game against Ohio State.
There’s no
doubting ThomasJayhawks' guard steps it up
By Dave Reardon
in the absence of Raef LaFrentz
Special to the Star-BulletinSo, who would it be? Which Kansas Jayhawk would step up after the loss of 6-foot-11 Raef LaFrentz, possibly the best college basketball player in America?
Would it be Paul Pierce, the other All-America candidate at forward? Or how about Eric Chenowith, the 7-foot freshman? Or maybe it would be Lester Earl, the talented 6-8 transfer from LSU?
The answer? None of the above -- and no one above 6-4 -- as Kansas began its LaFrentz-less existence with a 69-56 victory over Ohio State.
Ladies and gentlemen, meet Billy Thomas.
The shooting guard scored a career-high 27 points and kept Buckeye scoring sensation Michael Redd under reasonable control to key the Jayhawk victory.
"Billy had a career night and it couldn't have come at a better time," said LaFrentz, who broke a finger Friday and will be out for several weeks. "Tonight was Billy's night."
Although he is the Jayhawks' third-leading scorer this season and top career 3-point marksman, Thomas has waited a long time for the spotlight. Last year he played behind one of the best guard tandems in the nation -- Jacque Vaughn and Jerod Haase. He started only two games before this season, both as a freshman.
Part of the reason was spotty defense, according to coach Roy Williams. But last night, Williams was as pleased with Thomas' work on Redd as he was with his play on offense.
"Billy did a great job, and not just because he scored 27 points. This was his best all-around game," Williams said. "Billy did a heckuva job on defense. I never thought I'd say that.
"His defense has improved all four years he's been here. But there were times when he couldn't guard me. This year he has had some great defensive games and he's definitely improved. Tonight we thought, let's not let (Redd) shoot 56 percent. He did a good job, with a couple steals and some deflections."
Although Redd was "held to" 22 points, only about two points below his average -- 12th in the nation -- the explosive freshman said Thomas made it tough: Redd hit only 44 percent from the field.
"He tired me out, shadowed me the whole game," Redd said. "He made it difficult for me to get open. I tried to fight my way through, but he's a good defender."
On offense, Thomas was the only productive Jayhawk in the first half. He made seven of KU's first nine points, and he had 13 at halftime, accounting for half his team's output.
"We got a little careless finding him in our zone," Ohio State coach Jim O'Brien said. "They're so big, we felt we had to give up something. We clearly needed to pack it in on them."
That left holes for Thomas.
"At first they were playing a little zone," he said. "I would just try to catch the ball on the perimeter and stay away from the deep corners. I went for the gaps."
He kept finding them in the second half, finishing six of nine from behind the arc.
Will he keep it up tonight against Vanderbilt in the semifinal? Don't doubt Thomas.
"Definitely. I want to keep shooting," he said.
Williams said he'll settle for more good defense.
Kansas 69, Ohio State 56
Buckeyes (6-4 overall, 0-1 OHRC)
mp fgm fga ftm fta reb pf tp Davis 35 2 8 0 1 7 2 4 Redd 40 8 18 4 5 7 2 22 Singleton 36 11 19 1 4 8 4 23 Johnson 32 1 4 0 0 2 4 2 Sanderson 39 1 3 1 2 7 3 3 Coleman 9 0 1 0 0 2 0 0 Herron 8 1 1 0 0 1 2 2 Steele 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Team 2 Totals 200 24 54 6 12 36 15 56
mp fgm fga ftm fta reb pf tp Earl 26 2 3 1 2 8 0 5 Robertson 34 1 6 2 2 1 3 5 Pierce 35 8 21 3 5 6 1 22 Chenowith 23 0 1 2 2 4 4 2 Thomas 35 10 16 1 1 3 2 27 Gregory 11 2 6 0 2 1 0 4 Bradford 23 2 4 0 1 5 2 4 McGrath 13 0 1 0 0 2 1 0 Team 4 Totals 200 25 58 9 15 34 13 69Halftime score--Ohio State 26, Kansas 263-point goals--OSU 2-8 (Redd 2-4), KU 10-25 (Thomas 6-9, Pierce 3-8, Robertson 1-5). Assists--OSU 19 (Davis 7), KU 19 (Robertson 5). Turnovers--OSU 21 (Davis 6), KU 18 (Chenowith 4). Steals--OSU 8 (Davis 3), KU 7 (McGrath 2). Blocked shots--OSU 4 (Johnson 3), KU 2 (Pierce 2).
Officials: Reischling, Donato, Ball.
When to Watch
1997-98 Rainbow Men’s Basketball Schedule
http://uhathletics.hawaii.edu
