- Kansas defeated Baylor by a single point in Waco on Wednesday night. The loss makes the Bears 0-2 in conference play, but their upcoming schedule at TCU, at home vs. Iowa State, and at Kansas State will give them an opportunity to pick up some wins. Baylor controlled the tempo as they have done all season, and the result was a game that featured only 52 possessions. While Baylor’s 17 offensive rebounds played a role in lowering the official possessions count, the low number also reflects a Big 12 trend this season. The conference ranks 21st in Ken Pomeroy’s adjusted tempo statistic, which measures the pace of play for a league’s teams, and puts the league behind the oft-maligned, plodding Big Ten. It’s time for college hoops officials to rethink the length of the shot clock in order to increase the number of possessions in a game and make it more exciting for the fans.
- Baylor and Kansas also shed light on another absurd college basketball rule – the block/charge call. With 3:06 remaining in the first half, Baylor’s Johnathan Motley unleashed the best dunk I have ever seen in person with a ferocious one-handed slam over the Jayhawks’ Jamari Traylor. Bears’ fans immediately broke into a frenzy without noticing that the official under the basket had simultaneously called the move a charge. Kansas’ Evan Manning even called it from the bench. The call took away what was the highlight of the night, and with the way the game finished, also ended up costing Baylor two points that could have made a difference in the game’s outcome. College basketball is meant to be fun and the block/charge call steals some of that from the fans. It’s time for a change.
- Also on Wednesday night, Kansas State picked up its first win of the conference season with a 58-53 victory over TCU. For Wildcats fans, that win will hopefully mark a turning point for sophomore guard Marcus Foster. After scoring only two points in 38 minutes in the prior two games, Foster exploded for 23 points on 5-of-11 shooting against the Horned Frogs. Bruce Weber may have finally lit the fire that he was looking for from Foster, which may help Kansas State rebound from its poor non-conference record with some wins during Big 12 play.
- It seems college basketball is back in the state of Oklahoma, as hoops competes against football for the time and attention of many Oklahomans during non-conference play and early in the new year. Berry Tramel of The Oklahoman argues that Oklahoma and Oklahoma State are making a case to the state’s residents to invest in basketball a bit earlier than usual. It’s hard to disagree with him. The Sooners defeated Baylor at home in their Big 12 opener and then picked up a huge road win against one of the league’s favorites, Texas, in their second game. And although the Cowboys lost at Iowa State on Tuesday, they had a chance to tie or win on the game’s final possession. Quality college hoops is definitely back in the Sooner State and it’s time for Oklahomans to start paying attention.
- The debate over the nation’s best conference rages on, with most people siding with either the Big 12 or the ACC for one reason or another. Either way, there’s no doubt that the Big 12 is going to provide viewers with a number of fantastic games this season. There have already been a number of one-possession games during conference play, and with six teams ranked in the Top 25, there are surely more to come. Our own Brian Goodman put it in perspective on Wednesday morning when he tweeted that there is at least one game between two of those six teams on 24 of the 34 days remaining on the Big 12 schedule. It’s a great time to be a Big 12 hoops fan.
Chris Stone (136 Posts)Chris Stone is a contributor to the Big 12 microsite. You can find him on Twitter @cstonehoops.
View Comments (4)
In #2 you suggest it is time for a change in block/charge rule. A change to what? No charges? If you disagreed with the call, then make your case that the call was wrong, but eliminating all charges would be ridiculous. How exactly do you want to change the rules and how would that have affected that particular game?
Agreed w/ Mark. Full disclosure: I'm a KU grad. I understand the argument that it was the best play of the game, and you can argue that it's too bad it was wiped away because it was a huge dunk (it really was), but to say the call cost Baylor the game is a little misguided. Like Mark said, if you think the charge was wrong because feet weren't set or something, that's one thing. But to say the charge shouldn't have been called because the dunk was just so nasty, that makes no sense. I don't really think "highlight-worthiness" is the best standard for referees to use in basketball. Since you don't really offer the change requested in that last sentence, I have to assume that's what you mean. That was pretty poor writing from an otherwise excellent site and micro-site.
Side note: The color guy for the Baylor/KU stated during that play that Traylor was "making a business decision" by squaring up to take that charge. "Making a business decision" is my new favorite term for taking a charge.
Jack and Mark - Sorry that I missed your comments. I've been a bit tied up lately. The call did change the game and in a close game like that, the two points did matter. Would it have meant a Baylor win? Who knows. That's obviously impossible to say. There is a case that the play wasn't a charge since Motley arguably had started his upward motion before Traylor was set. That said, I am not a fan of the block/charge rule. I'd rather see the athletes make a play on the ball instead of getting credit for standing in front of a moving player.
I also like the phrase "making a business decision." That's a good one.