LAWRENCE, Kan. (AP) — Wayne Selden scored 24 points, Perry Ellis added 17 and No. 2 Kansas used a big run over the first 10 minutes to swamp No. 23 Baylor 102-74 on Saturday in their Big 12 opener.
Devonte Graham added 15 points and Frank Mason III had 11 for the Jayhawks (12-1, 1-0), who charged out to a 22-4 lead, then turned back every attempt by the Bears (10-3, 0-1) to make it a game.
It was the Jayhawks’ sixth straight win over Baylor — which has never won in 14 trips to Lawrence — and 25th consecutive conference-opening win. It was also their 31st straight win at Allen Fieldhouse, where No. 3 ranked Oklahoma will visit for another high-profile showdown Monday night.
Taurean Prince had 13 of his 17 points in the second half for Baylor. Lester Medford added 15, all but three after the break, while Rico Gathers finished with 12 points and nine rebounds.
HAYS, Kan. – Fort Hays State used 24-4 first half run to build a 23-point lead and defeat the Pittsburg State Gorillas 77-57 Saturday afternoon in front of 2,225 at Gross Coliseum. The Tigers shot 53-percent in the first half as they bounce back from their first loss of the season to improve to 11-1 overall and 5-1 in the MIAA.
Tony Hobson Postgame Interview
Game Highlights
The Gorillas, who were held to their season-low in points, has lost two of their last three and droops to 10-3 and 4-3 om conference play.
Pitt State pulled within 14 and had the ball midway through the fourth quarter, but a steal and layup by Nicola Kacperska sparked a 9-0 run to push the lead back to 23.
Chelsea Mason led three Tigers in double-figures with 16 points. Jill Faxon added 13 and Beth Bohuslavsky 10.
The Tigers forced 18 Pitt State turnvers resulting in 33 points.
MANHATTAN, Kan. (AP) — Jaysean Paige scored 18 of his 25 points after halftime, Tarik Phillip connected on a floater with 4.5 seconds left in the second overtime and West Virginia toughed out an 87-83 victory over Kansas State on Saturday in the Big 12 opener for both teams.
Phillip finished with 14 points and five assists for the Mountaineers (12-1, 1-0) and Daxter Miles Jr. had 10 points.
Two free throws by D.J. Johnson with 22 seconds left in regulation sent the game to overtime where the teams traded scores but couldn’t break the tie. The Mountaineers then used eight free throws and the big-time floater from Phillip late in the shot clock to seal the victory.
Barry Brown led Kansas State with 20 points on 6-of-12 shooting while Wesley Iwundu, Kamau Stokes and Dean Wade combined for 44 points on 14-of-29 shooting.
Listen as ‘Voice of the Chiefs’ Mitch Holthus takes a look back at the Chiefs road win over the Baltimore Ravens and previews tomorrow’s home game with Johnny Football and the Cleveland Browns.
The Holthus Hotline airs Saturday at 6:30 a.m. during the Chiefs season.
WICHITA, Kan. – Wichita State collected its eighth-straight win in the series vs. Drake and sixth straight Missouri Valley Conference opener with a 67-47 win over the Bulldogs Thursday afternoon at Charles Koch Arena.
The win improved Wichita State (7-5, 1-0) to 56-8 at home in MVC games since the start of the 2008-09 season and now lead the all-time series vs. Drake (5-8, 0-1), 101-47. The Shockers also extended their school-record home court winning streak to 38 consecutive, which ties Tulsa (1980-82) for the fourth-longest in MVC history.
Senior Ron Baker led a trio of Shockers in double-figures with 14 points, 11 coming in the second half, on 5-of-7 shooting overall, including 3-of-4 from downtown. Baker also added five rebounds. Fred VanVleet contributed another strong outing, finishing with 13 points on 5-of-11 shooting, six assists and three steals. His six assists give him 501 for his career to become only the 14th player in MVC history to dish out 500 assists.
Zach Brown chipped in 10 points and four rebounds in 24 minutes of action.
Behind 52 percent shooting in the second half, the Shockers finished the game at 42.6 percent (23-of-54), while knocking down 8-of-24 three-point attempts in the contest. WSU’s defense again made life difficult for the opponent, holding Drake to just 37 percent shooting from the field and three-point range and forcing 18 Bulldog turnovers.
The Shockers owned the battle of the boards by outrebounding DU, 38-28, while also outscoring the Bulldogs in the paint (24-10) and off turnovers (26-13).
Kale Abrahamson and Graham Woodward led Drake with 12 points apiece, but also combined to turn the ball over 11 times between the two of them.
WSU extended its halftime lead to 19 just over five minutes into the second half on the heels of a 13-2 run. During the run the Shockers got five points from VanVleet and four each from Brown and Anton Grady.
Baker connected on a corner three to push the Shockers’ lead to 21 at the 8:30 mark. Just a few minutes later the Scott City native’s third trey of the game put WSU ahead 60-38.
Wichita State started the game quickly by opening on an 8-1 run courtesy of a hook shot from Shaquille Morris and three-pointers from Brown and VanVleet. The two teams remained close for a majority of the opening half with the Shockers’ largest lead being only eight. After Drake tied the game at 25 near the four-minute mark, WSU closed the half on an 8-0 run to take a 33-25 lead into the locker room.
VanVleet led the Shockers with eight first half points and four assists on 3-of-8 shooting from the floor. Wichita State began the game on a hot streak from the floor, but cooled down as the half went on and finished just 12-of-33 from the field, good for 36 percent. WSU knocked down its first three 3-point attempts, but made two of its final 13 attempts to close the half.
The Shockers relied on creating turnovers, as they forced nine Bulldog miscues and turned them into 15 points.
Drake shot 41 percent from the field and 44 percent from beyond the arc in the first 20 minutes of play. Abrahamson led all scorers with nine points on 3-of-6 shooting from three-point range.
The Shockers hit the road Sunday to take on Bradley in a 1 p.m. CT tip that can be seen locally on Cox Channel Kansas and online via ESPN3. WSU then hosts Evansville on Wednesday, Jan. 6 at 7 p.m. on the CBS Sports Network.
Former Barton Community College baseball coach Mike Warren is one of four individuals announced for induction into the Kansas Baseball Hall of Fame, according to a media release.
Joining Warren in the 2016 Class will be former Wichita State University Shockers Gene Stephenson, Nate Robertson, and Billy Hall, as well as, 2014 electee and Kansas City Royals General Manager Dayton Moore and the 1965 Wichita Rapid Transit Dreamliners as the team inductee. The group will officially be inducted on Saturday, February 6, 2016, at the Drury Plaza Hotel Broadview, located at 400 West Douglas in Wichita beginning at 12:00 p.m.
Warren retired as the Barton skipper in 2014 following his 30th season leading the Cougar Baseball program. Contributing to Kansas baseball and his communities throughout his career, the Winfield, Kansas, native coached collegiate baseball for thirty-five years following a successful Kansas high school and collegiate playing career. Winning the 1972 state championship as a player at Winfield High School, Warren continued his career helping Emporia State University to a third place finish at the NAIA Championships. Beginning his coaching career at Pratt Community College then Dodge City Community College prior to Barton, Warren’s career mark stands at 1001-740-1 with his retirement from Barton Baseball.
Aiding in the development of the Jayhawk Conference Baseball Coaches Association in 1994, Warren was also elected the association’s first president and initiated the first Region VI all-star game to provide national exposure for sophomores in the Kansas junior college ranks.
Touching the lives of over 900 student-athletes and coaches, Warren’s coaching tree reaches nearly fifty former players and fifteen former assistant coaches, including two members of the Kansas Baseball Hall of Fame and one member of the American Baseball Coaches Association (ABCA) Hall of Fame.
LAWRENCE, Kan. – Senior Perry Ellis led the charge with 14 points, 13 in the second half, as the frontcourt players of No. 2 Kansas accounted for 30 of the team’s 50 points over the final 20 minutes to claim a 78-53 win over UC Irvine Tuesday night inside Allen Fieldhouse. The victory marked the 10th-straight by the Jayhawks (11-1).
The stature of UC Irvine (10-5), with three players measuring in at 6-foot-10 or more, appeared to cause issues for the KU offense early on as the Jayhawk post players combined to score five points on 2-for-8 shooting in the first half. That issue was quickly erased in the second half, as the Jayhawks opened with a 9-0 run, including six points by Ellis and two more from senior forward Hunter Mickelson.
The Kansas run grew into a 16-2 edge and put the Jayhawks in control with a 44-28 lead with 15:54 left in the game. KU pushed the lead to 20 points after a pair of Landen Lucas dunks, 58-38, with 10:01 remaining. Lucas finished with eight points on 4-for-6 shooting and four rebounds.
The Anteaters cut the lead to 14 points twice, but a Mickelson jumper just inside the foul line lifted the KU advantage to 69-48 with 3:18 left. Mickelson scored six points on the night. The second-half attack by KU spread to the backcourt too, as the Jayhawks shot 14-for-25 in the final frame (56 percent) and forced 25 free throw attempts as opposed to just eight in the first half.
Along with his game-high 14 points, Ellis finished with nine boards, while Frank Mason III chipped in 13 points and added six assists. Brannen Greene scored 10 points, thanks to an 8-for-11 effort from the free throw line, and Wayne Selden Jr., posted eight points, seven rebounds and five assists.
In the first half, Kansas and UC Irvine traded runs throughout the period and both endured scoreless droughts of over four minutes. The Jayhawks stormed out to a 7-0 run with two-point baskets from Mason and Selden and a trey from Devonte’ Graham.
The KU lead was short-lived as the Anteaters countered with a 13-2 run to take a 13-9 advantage. The run included the first of two first-half three-pointers by UCI’s Ioannis Dimakopoulos, who entered the game shooting 1-for-8 from behind the arc for the season. Dimakopoulus finished the first half with a team-best 10 points on 4-for-4 shooting, including a perfect 2-for-2 on threes. He was held scoreless in the second half. Seven-foot-6 Mamadou Ndiaye was the high scorer for UCI with 12 points.
The Jayhawks responded with a 6-0 run highlighted by an alley-oop dunk from Mason to Lucas at the 10:19 mark. Not only did Lucas’ slam give KU the lead, 14-13, but it marked the first made basket by a Kansas post player.
UC Irvine matched its largest lead in the game, 26-22, after a 13-7 run with five points by Dimakopoulos. Graham sank his third three-point shot of the first half to start a 6-0 Jayhawk run to end the period and claim a 28-26 lead at the break. Graham finished with nine points.
K-State Sports
MANHATTAN, Kan. — Kansas State used another balanced scoring attack to close out the 2015 portion of its schedule, defeating Saint Louis, 75-47, in front of a sold-out Bramlage Coliseum on Tuesday night.
K-State (10-2) ended the game on a 21-3 run to break open a 10-point margin with 4:43 to play. The Wildcats connected on a season-tying 50 percent (26-of-52) from the field, scoring 38 points in the paint and 20 points off of 19 Saint Louis (5-7) turnovers. The Billikens were held to just 33.3 percent shooting (17-of-51).
With the win, K-State continued its best start to a season since the 2012-13 season and notched its 10th non-conference victory for the first time since 2013-14. The Wildcats have now posted at least 10 non-conference wins nine times in the past 10 seasons.
Junior Wesley Iwundu led all Wildcats with a game-high 13 points on 6-of-8 field goals to go with team-highs in rebounding (8), assists (4) and steals (2) in 29 minutes. Freshman Kamau Stokes and senior Justin Edwards also scored in double figures, posting 11 points and 10 points, respectively. In all, 10 different players registered at least one field goal in the contest, which matched the most this season.
Saint Louis, which lost for the fourth consecutive contest, was led by sophomore Milik Yarbrough, who came off of the bench to score 12 points. SeniorAsh Yacoubou added 10 points and a team-high 8 rebounds.
DENVER (AP) – The Denver Broncos were able to wrap up a playoff berth by outlasting Cincinnati in a matchup of AFC division leaders.
Brandon McManus hit a 37-yard field goal to cap the first possession of overtime before DeMarcus Ware recovered AJ McCarron’s fumble to complete the Broncos’ 20-17 victory over the Bengals in Denver. McManus came through in the extra session after he hooked a 45-yarder at the end of regulation.
The Broncos’ defense allowed just 294 total yards and held the Bengals to a field goal after Cincinnati built a 14-0 lead.
Broncos quarterback Brock Osweiler was 27 of 39 for 299 yards, one touchdown and no interceptions while playing with an injury to his non-throwing shoulder. C.J. Anderson had 73 yards on just nine carries, including a 39-yard scoring burst that put Denver ahead 17-14.
McCarron completed 22 of his 35 passes for 200 yards, one TD and no interceptions.
Both teams are 11-4. Denver can earn the top seed in the AFC with a win over San Diego and a loss by New England at Miami next weekend.
Cincinnati blew a chance to earn a bye in the playoffs.
WICHITA, Kan. – Wichita State’s men’s basketball game with New Mexico State, originally scheduled for Monday night, has now been postponed indefinitely.
The schools are working to identify potential makeup dates later this season, but no decisions have been made. Season ticket holders will be notified once a plan is in place.
Winter storms played havoc on NMSU’s original travel itinerary, canceling the team’s Sunday flight from El Paso, Texas to Wichita. Continued attempts on Monday to book a replacement flight, commercial or charter, were unsuccessful.
WSU and NMSU agreed Monday morning to postpone the game at least one day. By Monday evening, both sides had given up on the possibility of playing Tuesday, either.
WSU hosts Drake at 1p.m. Thursday in its Missouri Valley Conference opener, and NMSU has a home game of its own scheduled for Wednesday night against Arizona Christian.
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Alex Smith threw two touchdown passes for Kansas City, and the game clock finally stopped Johnny Manziel as the Chiefs held on to beat the Cleveland Browns 17-13 on Sunday for their franchise record-tying ninth consecutive victory.
Smith threw for 125 yards while running for 54, helping Kansas City (10-5) clinch a playoff berth when Pittsburgh lost to Baltimore moments after his own game ended.
The Chiefs jumped out to a 17-3 halftime lead Sunday, but their offense became listless over the final two quarters, just as Manziel was pumping some life into the Browns (3-12).
The former Heisman Trophy winner led Cleveland to 10 straight points, then took over at his 30 with 1:52 left and no timeouts. The Browns picked up three first downs, and Manziel hit Darius Jennings on fourth-and-10 from the Chiefs 32. But time expired before Manziel could get another snap off.
He spiked his helmet in frustration as the Chiefs poured onto the field.
Listen as ‘Voice of the Chiefs’ Mitch Holthus takes a look back at the Chiefs road win over the Baltimore Ravens and previews tomorrow’s home game with Johnny Football and the Cleveland Browns.
The Holthus Hotline airs Saturday at 6:30 a.m. during the Chiefs season.
ENGLEWOOD, Colo. (AP) – The Denver Broncos are sticking with Brock Osweiler.
Coach Gary Kubiak informed the team Wednesday that Osweiler will make his sixth straight start Monday night.
Denver (10-4) hosts the Cincinnati Bengals (11-3).
Peyton Manning hasn’t played since Nov. 15 because of a torn plantar fascia in his left foot.
Manning returned to practice last week but spent his two days on the field doing individual drills and running the scout team. He didn’t practice Friday because of soreness.
The Broncos are 3-2 with Osweiler, who’s been victimized by a leaky line and big drops by Vernon Davis and Demaryius Thomas in back-to-back losses.
Denver still has a shot at the top seed in the AFC but could also miss the playoffs altogether.
