Texas A&M 69 - Kansas 66

My Observations

My first reaction to this game was all about how KU doesn't have a killer instinct, Self made a big mistake leaving Kaun in the game with KU in the 1-and-1, good teams don't lose 10-point leads at home late in the game, etc.  Then, I imagined what I'd be thinking if I were a Texas A&M fan.  I would think about how TAMU never quits, the Aggies played amazing defense down the stretch and capitalized on every little advantage that was possible, Gillespie is brilliant for sending Kaun to the line and Law has ice in his veins at the end of games.  In short, many KU fans may be swinging the pendulum too far into the "KU blew it" side of things, when we have to remember that Texas A&M was ranked #10 for a reason.  This was a hard-fought basketball game by two teams who really wanted to win, and although it will play a role in the conference race, this game won't be the difference between a successful season or not for either team.

The biggest factor that decided this game, in my opinion, was KU's complete inability to keep TAMU from getting and making shots.  Joseph Jones came into the game only 3-of-14 from 3FG this season, but he shot 2-4 from there in this game.  This should be cause for concern regarding KU's defense: 4 out of KU's last 5 opponents have shot 51 eFG% or better, and the list of opponents isn't exactly full of Final Four contenders.  On offense, KU basically didn't have the services of Brandon Rush or any post player.  That's effectively 50% of KU's offensive game that was out to lunch (dinner).  Throw into the mix a few very suspect calls that turned the tide at key moments (on replays, it was clear that Robinson still had his "pivot" foot down and hadn't fallen when he passed the ball), and you have the recipe for a nailbiter that will go to the team whose players make the big plays.  No one was bigger down the stretch than Acie Law.  You have to tip your hat when someone can do what he did for the Aggies at the end.

Four Factor Analysis

• eFG% - Advantage to TAMU - 53.7% to 45.6%.  At least one team's vaunted defense showed up to play.
• TURNOVERS - 24-18% in favor of TAMU.
• OFFENSIVE REBOUNDING - KU dominated 47-20%.
• FREETHROW RATE - Small advantage for KU of 24.6-20%.

CONCLUSION - As has been the case in most Texas A&M games, the team that shot better won.  And KU's disturbing trend of giving up great shooting recently continued.  A shooting deficit like that leaves basically no room for error, so KU's high turnover rate and lackluster FT percentage sealed their doom.

Player Performance Analysis

Considering the stage and the opponent, it's clear the biggest player on the floor this night was Acie Law.  23 points, 7 AST and 2 STL in a marathon 39 minutes aren't even as big as the fact that, in the waning minutes, he had the ball every possession ... and made something happen every time.  His game-winning three-pointer was simply stepping back and shooting it over Brandon Rush.  You almost can't blame Rush for giving him a smidgeon of daylight, otherwise Law was going to drive around him and get fouled, no doubt making both his freethrows.  There was no answer from KU for Law.  The reason Law didn't rate #1 in the raw PSAN ratings is that TAMU didn't rebound offensively, so missed shots were penalized more heavily than in most games.  Kirk had a much better shooting night than Law (71 vs 53 eFG%).

Kirk and Carter also had outstanding games for the Aggies.  Kirk shot lights out (71 eFG%) and 2-of-4 from 3FG's in scoring 10 PTS, 4 REB, 2 AST, 2 STL with only 1 TO in 35 minutes.  That's a solid line against top-caliber opposition.  Carter didn't disappoint either, coming up huge from behind the arc (3-of-6).  He shot 64 eFG%, 11 PTS, 3 REB, 2 STL, 1 BLK and 2 TO's in 31 minutes.  So, even though KU managed to keep players other than Law from scoring tons of points, Kirk and Carter were playing at an extremely efficient level.

Sloan and Davis made most of their shots (combined 3-of-5) in limited action (25 minutes combined).  Kavaliauskas didn't have a very good game, shooting only 40 eFG%, 3 REB, 4 PF, 4 TO, 2 BLK and 1 STL in 34 foul-plagued minutes.  His saving grace was that he played so many minutes in an impressive team performance.  Meanwhile, inside teammate Joseph Jones struggled as well.  Jones only played 22 minutes due to foul trouble, and he shot 4-11 (45 eFG%) including a surprising 2-of-4 from 3FG (came in 3-of-14 for the season).  Jones mustered only 3 REB for the game.

On KU's side of things, a clear trend is emerging as Sherron Collins is at or near the top of the ratings yet again.  He and Julian Wright had the best numbers this game.  Collins was again on fire from the field, shooting a mind-boggling 83 eFG% (including 3-of-4 from 3FG), but he also had 3 TO's against only 2 AST and 0 STL.  Wright shot poorly (4-of-10) but grabbed 10 REB (4 offensive), 2 AST, 2 BLK, 1 STL and only 1 TO.  You really have to give Julian some credit for keeping the Jayhawks in the game with second-chance opportunities.

Russell Robinson and Darnell Jackson had pretty solid performances also.  Robinson had a bad night with turnovers (5), although one was definitely a poor call as he clearly passed the ball before falling down ... terrible call.  Robinson shot 50 eFG% (3-6), 7 REB (3 offensive), 3 AST, 2 STL and even 2 BLK.  Other than his turnovers, Robinson definitely played efficiently.  Jackson's contribution wasn't much different than Robinson's on an absolute level, but no player besides Collins had a more efficient game on a per-70-possession basis.  In just 19 minutes, he made his only field goal, shot 3-4 from the FT line, 5 PTS, 4 REB (2 offensive), 3 BLK and 0 TO's.  What more could you ask of a guy with a bad back who gets limited playing time?

The problem for KU's performance is that we've mentioned all the performances that were noteworthy and haven't even gotten to three starters ...

It is unfortunate that Mario Chalmers could never quite get open from the perimeter.  We know he can hit that shot, but there's a lot of work that he and the team need to do to make that happen.  Chalmers did have a few impressive drives to the basket, including one as a result of faking a somewhat open three-pointer.  You just get the feeling though that Mario could be more involved in the offense and needs to look more for his shot.  To some extent, he was too aggressive last night, resulting in several errant passes when he was trying to make something happen that wasn't quite there yet.

Brandon Rush somehow made his way to double figures in scoring with 10 PTS, 6 REB (2 offensive), 1 AST and just 1 TO.  The fact that he shot 3-of-13 (a paltry 27 eFG%) puts a great deal of this loss on his shoulders.  I don't know how much of the time Rush was on Law, but when we needed the big stop, Rush couldn't come through.  Big national spotlight, showdown between the top two conference teams ... the Wooden Award candidate needs to show up.  He didn't look as Wooden-worthy as much as he did just ... well, wooden.

It's becoming a little too familiar to see Darrell Arthur and Sasha Kaun near the bottom of the ratings, often with negative numbers.  Kaun must react faster to what is happening when he gets the ball inside, quickly assess whether he's going to go up with it or pass it back out.  Instead, he tends to wait until others have collapsed and stubbornly tries to make a move that only Olajuwon types should be attempting.  At least he had 3 offensive rebounds this time to go with 1-4 FG, 0-2 FT, 5 REB, 0 BLK and 2 TO.  Other than rebounding and probably playing a hand in Jones' low productivity, Kaun was awful.  You can't blame him for missing his one-and-one freethrow at the end though ... we accept his shortcoming there.  That's on Self.

Darrell Arthur was very active on the offensive glass, grabbing 3 rebounds there in just 13 minutes.  He shot only 2-of-6 from the floor and still managed 2 TO's in his limited playing time.  With each passing game, it seems more and more likely that Arthur will not be getting paid big bucks to play anywhere next year.  Maybe there's a silver lining in all this after all.