So much for KU being invincible…
The Kansas Jayhawks were a total no show last night in the Elite Eight against a good Oregon team. Pretty much nobody came to play for KU. Frank Mason was solid but couldn’t save his team singlehandedly. He tried. However even Mason was slowed down.
The Jayhawks looked like they’d been up all night before the game. No energy, no electric moves, nothing. This game was over in the first few minutes..
Put another way, Kansas was not prepared to play ANYBODY.
Why, we’ll never know.
I don’t think they could have beaten much of anyone halfway decent last night. UMKC or Missouri, maybe.
They stunk and seemed not to care, until the game was totally out of hand in the second half…but there was no fixing anything by then.
Will Bill Self take heat for the team’s poor play?
Obviously.
It’s his fault too. Self’s team was just not there – he did not have this team ready to rumble. They were maybe ready to just get JACKED. And again, I didn’t see much if any interest in their faces…did you?
We could discuss the game forever, but Josh Jackson was a total no show the first half and more. Devante Graham was clearly at another game somewhere else in his mind. Did he even play last night? Hah.
Landen Lucas fumbled every ball he touched, as did most of the team. They just were horrid in everything from defense to free throws.
It was a terrible way to go out.
This team had the talent and ability to win a national title, they just didn’t care enough, I guess.
We have three sports franchises in KC…
There’s the Royals with their World Series win in 2015 – good luck seeing that again anytime in the next few decades.
The Chiefs, basically a playoff team with no hope whatsoever for a championship.
And finally, KU – a choker at the end almost every year.
Sad but true, there’s just no culture of winning here.
Just being in the hunt – guess thats who we got, who we are – that’s about as good as it gets.
K is right, I was dead wrong.
Why does it have to be “they didn’t care enough”? They had a bad game….it happens…and got beat by a better team.
KU was not prepared to play, it showed, that takes ‘want too’ they didn’t want too…why, who knows, it was more than a bad game…it was a lack of desire and want too..something was very wrong..
I completely disagree. To say they didn’t “want to” is ridiculous. These people are professionals. To say they didn’t have the desire is the same thing as saying that when one of your comics sucks and bombs. Good comics sometimes bomb and its for a lot of reasons but not usually because they didn’t want to be good. Anyone of them ever say “sorry Glazer, I just didn’t care tonight and lacked the desire to do a good job.” Ok, now imagine 5 comics saying the same thing on the same night. The biggest reason Kansas lost is because they shot 35%. Do you think any of those shooters didn’t have the desire to make those shots. Your analysis is ridiculous.
Well Tom something was off, not just shooting…the entire team was not right, couldn’t handle rebounds right to them, missed free throws, No defense most of the game…on and on…far from just an off night…my opinion..
Jackson having to sit the majority of the first half after picking up 2 quick fouls really threw KU off its game. They just never seemed to get in a rhythm.
At least Roy and 2 ex-KSU coaches are in the final 4. I’m sure that’ll make KU fans happy.
Strange that before the tournament Fescoe and some other talking heads were telling KC how inferior the SEC was in basketball compared to the Texas 10. Then the tournament happened and I’ll say it here. KU wouldn’t of won the SEC this year.
“K is right, I was dead wrong.”
– Kerouac thought he was wrong in 2014, 2015 and 2016 CG, but it turned out merely be a case superior Seahawks, Mets and Falcons giving those games away… it happens (perhaps ku’s 2017 egg laid, same.) Regardless, what passes for ‘quality’ teams today, pales comparison yesteryear’s same (NFL Packers, MLB Yankees, NBA Celtics, NHL Canadians, CFB Notre Dame and CBB UCLA proof thereof, those dynasties yore; the world of sports has not been legit since the 1960’s gave way the 70’s, pursuit dollar$.
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Aft Superbowl IV in 1970 when the Chiefs finally won a Championship (Kansas City’s first ever professional sports title), the question ‘did Dallas let the wrong team leave’? was proffered, reference the Texas city’s empty trophy case nod NFL Dallas Cowboys.
Half a century later, no one wonders any more: 8 Superbowl appearances and 5 World Championships the Dallas Cowboys, compared to their former co-city resident’s ‘zero’. Today, the question moreso; ‘did Kansas City welcome the ‘wrong’ pro football team’? Still waiting for our Superbowl encore (not to mention an rolling roof over Arrowhead was going to be ours according those 1967 stadium plans.)
Baseball same, one could argue KC should have never let Charles Finley pack up our A’s for Oakland 50 years ago same. Since, latter’s have played in post season twice as many years, 17, and have also won twice as many World Championships replacement Royals, 3 World Series wins their first 7 years aft leaving KC rear view mirror end ’67.
Kansas City Kings once unsuccessfully labored here… ditto the Scouts & a bit before either, losers deux the Spurs NASL & Blues CHL, latter the farm team NHL Stl Blues, their short & shoddy if entertaining stay here (twice in fact: returned for an encore 4 years aft being buried/pronounced dead.)
Pseudo teams – pretenders – all them. Even when they manage not lose moreso than win, tarnished due a sports world became bogus long ago, continues down primrose path today. Under the category ‘beggars cannot be choosy’, what of a Champion that isn’t even certain which side of the river call home? Residing one state officially while playing another, Sporting KC a former incarnation known Wiz won something called the Supporters Shield, a US Cup and an MLS Cup, but shields like cups do not equate Superbowl’s nor World Series scale sports accomplishment.
Speaking of winning cups, our most beautiful pair belonged KC Carr (better known Raquel Welch), portraying herself as a skating member Kansas City Bombers. Alas, even here, Portland, Oregon stood in for Kansas City, former place even less major league than Paris of the Plains… oy vey and ouch.
If you can’t be phat be fat, Kaycee… is.
🙂
Let me help you out, CG. Shoot 35% from the field and 20% from 3-point land and you lose. Every time.
KU was white-hot all tournament long. best team in the field, without question. They buried 2 Big 10 teams, one of which was the Big 10 Champion.
With a chance to go to the Final 4 they decided they didn’t care? It showed on their faces? They chocked? Ridiculous.
Oregon was better Saturday night. Period. There is no “supposed to win” in sports. Those were all scholarship athletes playing for the Ducks, too! This just in: they are really good.
Christ on a cracker, there is only one winner in every single sporting event. Doesn’t mean the other team chocked or didn’t care. Face it, you’re just rooting for your prediction. It didn’t turn out to be correct, so they MUST have choked.
I like your articles, CG. But your knee-jerk reactions are all too predictable. Kansas was really, really good this year. Nothing they did on Saturday changes that.
Jim I was so sure this KU team was the best out there, but in this elite eight game something was very wrong from the tip off, KU didn’t look right…slowed down, couldn’t handle even easy plays right to them…on and on…I don’t know what it was…yes they looked like the best for three games and at seasons end…but this game was a bit odd, more than missed shots….yes I was upset my call was wrong…but man they just didn’t show up.
The category ‘how bad is it, really?’, present: the continuing ‘Tales of KC Woe’. Today, we look at cities with professional sports teams (or facsimiles thereof) whom, despite being referred loser, are more successful than the City known Kansas, either side our dirty river.
But first: bad flavor the moment, college. For all its annual over-hype, KU has won but 3 Championships in the last 65 years compared with UCLA (example), 11 since 1964 & 7 straight one point; difference ‘tween punditry pretender and dynastic.
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Professional, cities the order their ‘perceived’ sports ineptitude, especially in football: Cleveland, Chicago, Detroit & New York. Fact be, they’ve the last laugh compared the place sporting favor forgot, Kansas City.
That the Lions 1957, Browns 1964 and Jets 1968 Championships are but a bit longer ago the swiss chiefs 1970, our only leg (and an weak one) stand on. Even San Diego’s Chargers (now moved back LA) appeared Superbowl in 1994, to go with their World Championship 1963. Worse, expansion teams born aft KC’s Chiefs like New Orleans, Cincinnati, Miami, Atlanta, Seattle, Carolina & Baltimore (by way Cleveland) have all either appeared or ‘won’ Superbowls/World Championship game(s) since Kaycee last had a pseudo football pulse, 1/11/70.
So who are we better than, Kansas City? ‘Perception’ is not borne out fact, cities get a bad rap, to wit:
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The ‘Mistake by the Lake’ Cleveland, Ohio. Last year Cleveland’s Indians played World Series & except longer suffering Chicago’s Cubs triumph would be ‘World Champions’. To say Cleveland’s Browns are worse KC’s Chiefs, a misnomer, claiming they have not won a Superbowl, semantics. As KC’s Athletics begat Oakland’s Champions, Baltimore Ravens progeny Cleveland Browns, ‘yeah but’ all you like. Add 2016 ‘World Champion’ Cleveland Cavaliers the mix and the upshot: Cleveland sports > Kansas City sports.
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Chicago… home 2016 ‘World Champion’ Cubs, 1986 ‘World Champion’ Bears as well multiple others before & 2015 ‘World Champion’ Blackhawks too. Even Second City’s second MLB team, White Sox, won a ‘World Championship’ an decade ago, Chicago’s Bulls & Fire too sipped the silver cup. Upshot: Chicago sports > Kansas City sports.
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Detroit: home of the Champion Red Wings, Pistons, Tigers and Lions, multiple circas 2008, 2004, 1984, 1957 and more afore. For a city that has lost a lot including its spot ‘greatest auto manufacturer’, has won more. To refer its sports teams including Lions as laughable, is to realize one’s eyes shade green. Upshot: Detroit sports > Kansas City sports.
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New York, New York: ‘they like to wake up, in a city that never sleeps’ when it comes winning Championships. Giants, Yankees, Rangers, Islanders, Knicks, Nets & Mets – yes – even Jets, latter took their last breath same era KC’s withered football nostrils. Upshot: NY sports > KC sports.
As we see, KC has an LONG ways to go, even catch up to the likes these other cities in terms sports success, and we are running out of bottom the barrel buffers (thank God for Jacksonville, though truth be Jaguars have played in the AFC Championship more recently than our swiss chiefs.) Yes, grim reality is Cubs off the snide, Indians primed and ready and Lions on par the Chiefs who, like the Jets, are a QB away contending a Championship watered down modern era NFL, it’s now or never. ‘Wait till next year!’
🙂
Even further stinging salt in KC wounds is that fellow Missouri city St Louis kicked their ass all over the state as well. Equal in Super Bowls, STL kills KC in World Series titles, and even NBA championships.
Well its over now…the pain is leaving….the season will not be one people talk about much in the future..another elite eight out game. KU did have a great regular season and thats who they are. 3 national titles with all their post seasons is a bit weak…and decades between titles…KU basketball is an outstanding program, just not off the charts like Duke,NC or what UCLA was…way it is.
Off the charts? UCLA hasn’t been relevant for 20 years.
In the Bill Self era, KU has 1 national championship.
NC has 2
Duke has 2
UCLA has 0
Only NC has a chance to improve those stats in 2017.
Glass is half-full, CG.
Let’s Go Royals.
Were it a movie would be titled Groundhog Day, symptoms Sisyphus rolling his rock and Charlie Brown trusting Lucy, yet again… ‘fandom’, local teams.
If Emma Lazarus had been a fan, resided vicinity, her sonnet would have read ‘give us your tired, your poor, your jayhawkers, swiss chiefs and fraudroyals… alas, she was not. Instead, hers, ‘help for the brokenhearted’ – encouragement and hope by way EM Cioran:
“It is not worth the bother of killing yourself, since you always kill yourself too late. Only optimists commit suicide, optimists who no longer succeed at being optimists. The others, having no reason to live, why would they have any to die?”
At least ‘wait till next year’.
🙂
Lottery pick flu. A 19 year old that gets a 6-7 figure agent advance 5 minutes after the season ends. Distraction? Uh yes.